Aberdeen have all but booked a £5million jackpot after sealing third place in the Scottish Premiership at a raucous Pittdorie.
The Dons turned in a dominant display in the 3-0 win over St Mirren that looks to have guaranteed European football until Christmas – and a massive financial bonanza. Their victory, coupled with rivals Hearts’ draw at Rangers, saw them finish best of the rest.
Barry Robson’s side will now go straight into the Europa League playoffs, should Celtic complete the Treble with Scottish Cup glory over Inverness Caley Thistle. Should they crash out of UEFA’s second tier competition, Aberdeen will parachute into the Europa Conference League group stage – just as Hearts did this season. It’s a huge achievement for the Dons, who trailed the Jambos by nine points earlier in the year. Robson’s revival was capped with the win over Saints at Pittodrie, with a fabulous free-kick from Leighton Clarkson and a Graeme Shinnie double doing the damage in front of a crowd of more than 16,000. Hearts, meanwhile, managed only a 2-2 draw at Ibrox.
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