■Stuart Armstrong hits home the winning goal to take Dyce into the semi-final

A magnificent goalkeeping performance from Leith's Andy Haggon wasn't enough to keep his side from going down 1-0 to Dyce Boys Club, at Leith Links today, in this Scottish Cup quarter final.

The visitors from the North were well worthy of their win having controlled this game from start to finish. And whilst Haggon will have been disappointed not to have got down quicker to the winning goal from a direct free-kick, it was his display that stopped the margin of victory being significantly greater.

A strong wind was blowing along the length of the pitch as the teams took to the field and it was Leith Athletic that had the gale behind their backs following the coin toss. But it was to no advantage as the hosts were pegged back from the off by an energetic, fluid and very skilful Dyce side.

With the flame haired Ryan Robertson orchestrating moves from the centre of the park and Chris Eadie rampaging down the right hand side it was one way traffic into the horizontal rain as Leith stuttered to find any kind of hold in this game.

Jonathon Reid added to the Leith problems with his strong presence up front and it is no exaggeration to say that this tie could have been over in the first 10 minutes.

The first real test for Leith came on 5 minutes with three near misses for Dyce in the space of a minute.

Firstly the ball was sent into the box and a stramash ensued before the Leith defence partially cleared. But the ball was soon heading towards the Leith goal again as Jonathon Reid was played through and in on goal before Leith goalkeeper Andy Haggon saved well. And then from a Dyce corner Haggon pulled off a brilliant save from an equally terrific header from Dyce's Andrew Macaskill, pushing the ball over the bar from near range.

It was breathless stuff from the Aberdeen outfit who at this stage of the game were simply too quick for Leith who were chasing shadows in the rain.

Haggon again came to Leith's rescue on 8 minutes after a blistering shot from the edge of the box. And moments later Dyce came closer still after another Chris Eadie raid down the right wing ended with a cross cum shot deflecting of the bar and away to safety.

But the inevitable goal was merely delayed and on 20 minutes Dyce took the lead that their play deserved. A free kick was awarded 22 yards out and it was struck hard and low by Stuart Armstrong. The Leith wall disintegrated and Andy Haggon was probably partially unsighted as the ball flew underneath him and into the left centre of the net.

Dyce went for the jugular in an attempt to put this tie out of sight and 3 minutes later they almost scored a second. Jonathon Reid was giving Neil Watson a torrid time and he again skipped past the Leith player before sending in a brilliant ball for Liam Kenyon in the centre of the box only to see his point blank shot saved again from 8 yards.

It was completely one way traffic and on 28 minutes Dyce went close again when Ryan Robertson rattled the bar with a header before Andy Haggon saved again from the rebound.

There was little Leith could do to stifle the movement and pace of the Dyce attack but on 37 minutes they almost snatched an unlikely equaliser when Keith Mason sent in a rasping shot from the right edge of the Dyce box which goalkeeper Murray Kinnaird did well to parry on the line. It was Leith's first real attempt on goal.

Half Time 0-1

Leith started the second half more brightly and almost brought themselves level 3 minutes after the restart with a magnificent surging run by Fraser Gray on the left wing. He picked the ball up on the half way line and ran with the ball deep into the Dyce box before his legs ran out of steam and he shot tamely into the side netting as he bore in on goal.

But it was Haggon and the Leith defence that continued to be the busier and Liam Kenyon flashed a shot past the right hand upright before Lee Veitch saw his shot turned around the post by the Leith number one.

The game then entered a rousier period with several yellow cards shown by referee Hugh McGregor as both players and sidelines sensed the game entering the critical final quarter. But although Leith were certainly more competitive chances were at a premium and it was always Dyce that looked more likely to score again.

The Aberdeen side thought they had put the game beyond doubt in 74 minutes but the effort was flagged for offside. And then a terrific move involving Ryan Robertson and Lee Veitch saw the latter's shot just slip past the post.

Leith tried everything they could to conjure up a goal that would give them another crack at this tie but the Dyce defence, superbly marshalled by Lawrence McLelland, held firm without too many scares and they deservedly went through to the semi-finals where they will now meet Kingdom Thistle.

Full Time 0-1

In truth Leith had a torrid time of it. Best performers for them were Keith Mason, David Kirkham and Douglas Ashall. And although Neil Watson was on the back foot for most of the first half he went on to have a more productive second half and was instrumental in anything Leith were able to create.

Dyce were terrific throughout and are probably the best side I have witnessed this season. Their fluidity of movement, strength in the right areas and excellent technique were too much for Leith and they must have a great chance of winning the cup. Ryan Robertson was quite brilliant in the centre of the park. Chris Eadie owned the right wing and up front Jonathon Reid and Liam Kenyon were too much for the Leith defence. Goalscorer, Stuart Armstrong, had an excellent game as did Andrew Macaskill in midfield. At the back Lawrence McLelland was in total control and was ably assisted by Adam Morrison and Grant Munro.

It was a terrific performance from the Dyce outfit but for the Man of the Match award we are going to plump for Leith's goalkeeper Andy Haggon. He produced save after save to keep his side in this match and he can be proud of his day's work as can his team mates in reaching the last 8 of the national cup competition.