There will be a school reunion at Tannadice today when Dundee United’s Stuart Armstrong meets up with an old acquaintance.
The Tangerines midfielder and Dons youngster Fraser Fyvie were fellow pupils of Hazlehead Academy in Aberdeen and the friends will be reunited out on the park this afternoon.
The school motto of Ad altiora tendo I strive towards higher things is apt for Armstrong and Fyvie, who are part of the growing group of rising stars in the SPL who provide hope for future of Scottish football.
Indeed, if there is one aspect of today’s encounter that should tempt people out of their homes and into the stadium it is the array of exciting young talent that will be on show.
As well as Armstrong (19), United will also include the likes of Johnny Russell and Gary Mackay-Steven in their side. Teammates of Fyvie (18) at Pittodrie, meanwhile, are Peter Pawlett and Ryan Jac all really just starting their careers.
Armstrong is convinced the young guns can help fire up the fixture and is looking forward to seeing Fyvie again.
”Aberdeen have a lot of young, up-and-coming players as well as United,” he said. ”I knew Ryan Jack when we were younger and I also went to the same school as Fraser Fyvie.
”Fraser and I were both at Hazlehead Academy, although he was a year younger than me. We had a very good school team even without him because he didn’t play for us as he was tied to Aberdeen.
”He was still well known as a good player back then. He was always a stand-out and was a confident boy.”
It is United’s young crop who have been catching the eye lately. Some of the link-up play between Armstrong, Mackay-Steven and Russell has been a joy to watch as the Tangerines have gone on a four-game unbeaten run.
”It has been great to get a spell in the team and that’s now four successive matches I have started,” added Armstrong. ”I had been in and out of the side so I have been really, really happy to have been given so many starts by the manager recently.
”During that time the performances have been pretty good and we have been unbeaten.
”The younger players enjoy linking up with each other and passing it among ourselves. The likes of myself, Johnny and Gary team up well in training and it is great that we are doing so in games as well.
”I got my first goal for the club against St Mirren in midweek there and I got a few congratulations. The club actually awarded me a (disputed) goal up at Inverness but the one on Wednesday night felt like my first proper goal for the club.
”My aim for the new year is just to try to keep my place that and the team getting wins are what matter to me. I think that if we can keep showing the form we have been doing lately then 2012 can be a really good year for United.”
Given the array of young talent that will be on show at Tannadice, manager Peter Houston started 2012 in optimistic mood about the game north of the border.
”The future of Scottish football is really bright,” he said. ”Teams are giving young players a chance and are developing them for the future. You get inconsistency with them at times but that is natural when you are playing three or four in the same team.
”The teams who have not been inconsistent, St Johnstone and Motherwell for example, have more experience throughout their side.
”We have gone through a major transition since the Scottish Cup final. We only had three of the cup final team playing the other day at St Mirren. That is a massive change in the space of 18 months.”
United will do all they can to get clearance through to enable new signing Richie Ryan to make his debut, even from the bench, while Danny Swanson is back training but is still a ”fair bit away” from a return to the first team, according to Houston.
Meanwhile, Peter Pawlett returns from a two-game ban for Aberdeen. The midfielder was suspended after being found guilty of simulation in winning a penalty in the game against Hibernian at Pittodrie but could come straight back into Craig Brown’s side.