Christopher Mueller scored his first goal for Hibernian as they booked a place in the next round of the Scottish Cup, while Ian Harkes and Christian Ramirez also found the back of the net in varying results for their respective teams.
Arbroath 1-3 Hibernian
Hibernian fell behind early, but they went on to score three unanswered goals as they beat Arbroath at Gayfield Park.
The Scottish Championship leaders gave their guests a sucker punch six minutes into the contest when Craig Wighton fired home from close range.
The Premiership side was on the hunt for the equalizer and they got it in the 20th minute when Demetri Mitchell headed in the ball from close range from a Lewis Stevenson cross.
Both sides pushed for more goals in the second half, but Hibs would be the ones to benefit as they took the lead after 71 minutes. Christopher Cadden crossed the ball into the area from the right side and Kevin Nisbet’s shot hit the roof of the net.
Christopher Mueller, who entered the game in the 65th minute, put the game to bed with his goal in the 87th minute. Cadden’s cross was initially blocked by an Arbroath defender, allowing the American to pounce on the loose ball to slot home.
Partick Thistle 0-1 Dundee United
Ian Harkes’ first-half goal would be enough for Dundee United as they were able to hold on for the win over Partick Thistle at Firhill Stadium.
This was a game that could have easily gone the way of the hosts as they were clearly the better side on the muddy field. If not for the saves of goalkeeper Benjamin Siegrist, United could have been dumped out of the cup.
Despite struggling on the field, the visitors did score the only goal of the game in the 34th minute when Harkes ran onto the loose ball to fire his shot past Partick Thistle goalkeeper Jamie Sneddon.
Despite holding the lead, the Tangerines had their work cut out or them as Partick pushed for goals going into the second half. However, they were able to hold on to the end.
United will have to wait until Monday to find out their next opponent, and it could be an enticing derby if their rivals Dundee get past Peterhead.
Motherwell 2-1 Aberdeen
Motherwell hit back after surrendering an early goal to advance to the next round of the Scottish with their win over Aberdeen at Fir Park.
The hosts thought they got off to a dream start when recent signee Joe Efford’s shot hit the back of the net. However, it was ruled out due to an offside call.
The Dons then jumped out to the lead after three minutes when Christian Ramirez headed home a cross from Ross McCrorie. The striker had an excellent chance to add a second in the game when he chipped the ball over goalkeeper Liam Kelly, but it bounce just wide of the goal.
Motherwell would level the score in the 34th minute when Kevin van Veen’s blistering shot took a deflection before ending up in the back of the net.
Connor Shields then scored the eventual game-winner in first-half stoppage time when Aberdeen failed to clear the ball from the area following a corner kick, allowing the Scottish striker to slam home the ball from close range.
Aberdeen tried to find the equalizer, but in the end, it would be Motherwell that moved on to the quarterfinals.
Notes
In other Scottish FA Cup action, Cameron Carter-Vickers played 74 minutes as Celtic came away with a 4-0 win over Raith Rovers.
James Sands went the distance for Rangers as they knocked out Annan Athletic in a 3-0 victory.
