2008 Scottish Cup final

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2008 Scottish Cup Final

The final took place at Hampden Park in Glasgow on 24 May 2008. It was the 123rd Scottish Cup final, and the teams were Queen of the South and Rangers. Rangers won 3-2.

Queen of the South were in the final for the first time, after beating Aberdeen 4–3 in their semi-final. Rangers had reached the final after a 4–3 win on penalties over St Johnstone following a 1–1 draw after extra time.

Queen of the South lined up with the same team that beat Aberdeen, with Stephen Dobbie and Sean O’Connor up front. Rangers made four changes from their previous match, with Kris Boyd and Jean-Claude Darcheville up front and DaMarcus Beasley starting in midfield. Nacho Novo was suspended, and Chris Burke and Steven Naismith were injured.

The match began with Queen of the South pressing early, but Rangers took the lead in the 33rd minute when Barry Ferguson converted a free kick after a Beasley foul. Just before half-time, Beasley scored again for Rangers when Cuéllar’s header was helped on by a scramble in the Queens defense.

After the break, Sean O’Connor set up Jamie Tosh to pull Queens level in the 53rd minute, making it 2–2. Rangers pressed to regain the lead, and Kris Boyd headed in from Beasley’s corner with about 18 minutes to go, putting Rangers 3–2 ahead.

Queen of the South pushed forward but could not find another goal, and Rangers held on to win the cup. Kris Boyd was named Man of the Match.