Ross County manager Malky Mackay admitted he was left frustrated by referee John Beaton following his side’s 2-1 Viaplay Cup defeat by Aberdeen.
Aberdeen will play Hibernian in the last four of the competition following an action-packed Viaplay Cup quarter-final in Dingwall.
Graeme Shinnie’s cracking early volley put the Dons ahead and that setback was swiftly followed by a red card for County captain Jack Baldwin for a poorly-judged tackle on Duk.
Ester Sokler made it 2-0 late on before a Kyle Turner spot-kick offered slight hope for the hosts, but the Dons advanced to a Hampden semi-final against Hibs on the weekend of November 4/5.
However, a challenge by Ryan Duncan on County’s Josh Sims in the second half was still in Mackay’s mind after the final whistle.
He said: “I’m really disappointed. I think with the sending off then VAR would be looking at that one.
“I think with 10 minutes to go Aberdeen were trying to shore up at the back.
“I’m disappointed but really proud of the players.
“There seemed to be a lot of bookings and then a couple of bizarre ones after that.
“Josh is away to hospital with his leg split wide open – I don’t know why there is not a booking on Ryan Duncan with that. It’s really not good. Josh Reid was also absolutely wiped out in a challenge.
“We are just looking for a bit of consistency and a little bit of dialogue.”
Mackay praised his side for pushing Aberdeen all the way despite being reduced to 10 men so early on.
He said: “We still were playing between the lines. We whipped in a couple of great balls across the box.
“With five or 10 minutes to go, anything can happen. I am proud how the boys kept calm and kept playing.”
County, who are sitting seventh in Premiership, now turn their attention to the visit of Hearts on Saturday.
Mackay added: “I am really pleased with the group I’ve got and working with every day. There is a consistency to them.
“There’s a real sense of togetherness. I have to pay credit to the five subs who came on because they did very well.
“Our bench is stronger this year. People are competing for jerseys. If you want a jersey, you better be consistent.”
