Scottish football's defenders of yesteryear would probably pore over Mark Reynolds's disciplinary record and declare him something of a softie.

But, although though he has gone through eighteen months of football without being booked and makes self-effacing comments that "I don't like to tackle", the reality that here is a modern centre-back whose speed of though and a pace that has left many an opponent behind, seldom requires tackling of a "clogging" nature.

The truth is that the "no bookings" statistic had somehow passed Reynolds by, his thoughts preoccupied by being part of a team that has bought into Derek McInnes's ethos that diligence and dedication are important elements of success.

Richard Gough, with whom the Aberdeen manager played at Rangers, and Michael Duberry, the former Chelsea defender he signed for St Johnstone, were two of the players that sprang into his mind.

It was three years ago that Reynolds, who had left Motherwell for Sheffield Wednesday in a £100,00 deal a year earlier, was coaxed to Aberdeen on loan, the then Pittodrie manager, Craig Brown, persuading him that not being rated by Dave Jones, the man in charge at Hillsborough, was not the end of the world. A second loan spell followed - both highly successful - and the player agreed his move to the Dons should be made permanent.

Since then, he has been an ever-present in central defence - he hasn't missed a minute of play for a season and a half - first alongside Russell Anderson, now toiling to return from knee surgery and an absentee for six months, then Ash Taylor, himself a casualty having required an operation last week for knee ligament damage and a defender who will be missed by his team-mates in Saturday's League Cup semi-final against Dundee United at Hampden as the Dons bid to retain a trophy they lifted last season.

So, how does someone in such a potentially vulnerable position in the side manage to negotiate his way through such a long spell without incurring the wrath of referees, especially, as he put it, with an outfit that is the most successful in recent history?

"Staying clear of injury is a bonus as well," he said, "as but that has an element of luck as well as you saw Ash Taylor getting hurt against Dundee the other day.

"A lot of bookings come from desperation and lunging in to tackles to try to impose yourself on the game, but the way we have played means we have imposed ourselves with the quality of our football.

"We are well organised as a back five unit and we have not really been exposed to the extent where we are trying to bring people down.

"You look at Barcelona, Real Madrid and even some of the German teams and if you looked at their stats there would be few of their players getting booked as well."

"That's the way football is played and when you are trying to play at a high tempo and a high pace then it's basic science you are going to get sore ones if you come together."

Last season's League Cup final victory over Inverness Caledonian Thistle, achieved by a penalty shoot-out, released a faith inside McInnes's squad that the triumph could, and would, be repeated.

More than 20,000 Dons fans will make the trip to Hampden having been taken along on the crest of red wave on which even winning the Premiership is not out-of-bounds in their thinking.

Reynolds considers Dundee United capable of inflicting damage, an assessment underlined by the fact that the Tangerines are the league's top scorers.

Yet, there is no major concern in the Aberdeen camp where the personnel are confident in their approach.

He added: "We have had a couple of good games against them with goals in them and similar to ourselves they have a bit of fluidity in the team.

"Against Dundee United you know that if you give them half a chance they have the quality in the side that they can score them.

"They are certainly dangerous but I feel that we have the same sort of quality at the other end of the pitch."

McInnes, meanwhile, expressed surprise that Reynolds - nor Taylor, for that matter - had not been shown a yellow card this season.

"For many of the best defenders it's all about timing and positioning," he said, "and we try to make sure there aren't many last-gasp tackles and going to ground and panic defending.

"The best defenders have that know-how and anticipation and putting out fires before they actually become a problem. We don't want defenders making situations worse.

"The best defenders I played with always had that sense of anticipation, nous, know-how and calmness to their defending.

"The player I'm thinking about is Richard Gough, even latterly in his career when he played deeper than what we wanted him to be. He was always in the right position at the right time and was constantly organising. He's the one that springs to mind most but even defenders I've managed, like Michael Duberry at St Johnstone, had good, good experience and there's a lot to be said for having experience in the back line."