24 July 1958 - Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Leighton, He's A Keeper

On 24 July 1958, goalkeeper Jim Leighton was born in Johnstone, Scotland. He had a lengthy career that saw him become the oldest person to play for the national team and reach second on Scotland's all-time appearances list.

He started his career with non-league Dalry Thistle, then joined Aberdeen in July 1978, signed by their new manager, Alex Ferguson. He made 438 appearances, winning three league titles, four Scottish Cups, and the European Cup-Winners' Cup, before leaving with Ferguson in 1988 for Manchester United.

After two seasons at United, he fell out of favor with Ferguson and spent a year on loan at Arsenal, then later played for Reading, Dundee, Sheffield United, and Hibernian before returning to Aberdeen in 1997. He played there until his retirement in 2000, becoming the oldest player to appear in the Scottish Premier League at the age of 41 years, 302 days (St. Mirren's Andy Millen broke that record in 2007).

Leighton received his first call-up to the national team in 1982 and manned the posts for Scotland at the 1986, 1990, and 1998 World Cups (the Scots failed to qualify for the 1994 tournament). His final appearance for Scotland set the age record at 40 years, 2 months, and 6 days (though that was later broken in 2010 by David Weir). His 91 caps are the second-most of any Scottish player, just behind Kenny Dalglish (102).

12 May 1990 - One Touch Was All It Took

On 12 May 1990, Aberdeen outlasted Celtic in a dramatic penalty shootout to claim their fifth Scottish Cup in nine years.

After winning their first two Scottish Cups in 1947 and 1970, Aberdeen dominated the tournament in the 1980s under manager Alex Ferguson, winning it in 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1986 (along with three league titles under Ferguson in 1980, 1984, and 1985). For the 1990 Final, however, the Dons were led by Alex Smith, appointed in 1988.

They faced a familiar opponent, having played Celtic five times already that season. They met four times in the league, resulting in one win each and two draws, and also played against each other in the Scottish League Cup semifinal (which Aberdeen won to reach the final against Rangers, which they also won).

In the Scottish Cup Final, played before a crowd of 60,493 at Hampden Park, the two teams finished extra time in a scoreless draw to force the match into penalties. In the shootout, they couldn't stop scoring, so the tally rose to 8-8 before Aberdeen keeper Theo Snelders dove to his left to block the attempt from Celtic defender Anton Rogan. Defender Brian Irvine then stepped up and drove the decisive shot home to give the cup to Aberdeen, 0-0 (9-8).