Jimmy Calderwood has enjoyed Aberdeen's cup adventures but insists the Dons always made the league a priority this season.But with the Dons in serious danger of missing out of a top-six finish, Calderwood admits there will be a diminished sense of achievement if his team are frozen out.

The campaign's highlights for Aberdeen have come almost exclusively in the cup competitions, with the Dons reaching the CIS Insurance Cup semi-finals, going beyond the UEFA Cup group stages, and booking themselves a Scottish Cup semi-final place against Queen of the South next weekend.

They faced Bayern Munich in Europe and briefly threatened to upset the German giants, and knocked Celtic out of the Scottish Cup to the delight of their supporters.

Despite the cup exploits, Calderwood maintains this will not be a standout season for him unless Aberdeen feature in the top half of the table.

The cup runs have given fans experiences to savour, more so than in many recent seasons.

However Calderwood said: "It would probably be more memorable for the fans, but not for myself because the league is what you have to do every week."

Aberdeen face Falkirk on Monday, and the visitors to Pittodrie can secure sixth place with victory.

Calderwood has at least been satisfied with his team's cup record.

He believes the run of tough games and ill luck with injuries have contributed to his eighth-placed team's under-par league form.

Jamie Smith, Richie Byrne, Darren Mackie, Derek Young and Jackie McNamara have been among the players at Pittodrie who have been forced out of action this season.

Even with their absence at times, Calderwood is adamant Aberdeen should still be far higher up the table, having finished third last year.

He said: "If it does go to the wire and we do play in the Scottish Cup final then we would play 14 games more than we normally would in a season.

"That is a third more, and we have only got a small squad.

"We've had about four injuries where players have been out for five months.

"In respect of the amount of extra games we are playing it is good, although nobody feels sorry for you.

"But we should still be doing better in the league."

Calderwood points to the fact Aberdeen have conceded 52 goals in the league already as another reason for their disappointing position in the top flight.

During Calderwood's previous three years in the Granite City, the highest number of goals his side leaked during a league campaign was 40.

Calderwood left no doubts over his feelings regarding Aberdeen's defensive deficiencies, saying: "The goals-against record we have is a joke."

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