PREMIERSHIP survival was Partick Thistle's main aim at the start of the season.

Now it is the Jags' only goal after they were eliminated from the Scottish Cup by Aberdeen yesterday afternoon.

After an impressive start to the campaign on their top- flight return, Alan Archibald's side have faltered in recent weeks as they have struggled in Scotland's highest echelon, while Dundee United brought an early end to their League Cup hopes.

The return to knockout action didn't prove to be the spark their season needed as they slipped to their third defeat of the term to the Dons, Andrew Considine netting the only goal at Firhill to deny Thistle a fifth-round berth.

Thistle shipped seven goals without reply in their two previous encounters against the high-flying Pittodrie outfit and with a depleted squad at Archibald's disposal, the Jags fans who made their way to Firhill would have done so with a degree of trepidation.

The Thistle rearguard was deprived of Aaron Muirhead, Stephen O'Donnell and Jordan McMillan for the fourth-round clash and it took the Dons just five minutes to expose the hosts' defensive weakness once again.

Firhill No.1 Scott Fox has been arguably their top performer in the Premiership thus far and while he was once again crucial to their cause, he was helpless to prevent Derek McInnes' side taking the lead as Considine rose highest in the area to bullet home a header from Barry Robson's corner.

"The start kills us," Archibald said. "It takes the wind out our sails and kills our game plan. I thought it affected us in the first half.

"We warned them. I know the quality Barry Robson brings from set-plays. It has been a problem this year for us and we have worked on it.

"It kills you so early when you have a game plan. They have all played enough games now and have the responsibility. When you give them a job to do, they must do it.

"There are enough bodies and experience in there to go and organise."

Thistle's response to the early setback was not exactly electric, with their attacking intentions too often snuffed out before they got within shooting range of Jamie Langfield's goal.

A couple of Kallum Higginbotham efforts were just about all they could muster in the first half as Aberdeen passed up a series of chances to put the tie to bed before the break.

Twice in quick succession Fox had to be at his best, first to tip away a dipping Peter Pawlett effort from 25 yards and then to pull off a superb reaction stop to keep out a deflected Ryan Jack shot.

In the wintry Glasgow sunshine, Aberdeen should have had their place in the next round all but secured, but the crucial second goal continued to elude them, Gregg Wylde firing high and wide after bursting into the box and Calvin Zola heading a Niall McGinn corner over the bar.

Their profligacy was encouraging from a Thistle perspective, with the Jags continuing to grow into the tie as the clock ticked down. Higginbotham again tried his luck from distance before Christie Elliott fired narrowly over from close range as the Jags looked to launch a late salvage mission.

It was Aberdeen who would come closest to the second goal, however, McGinn cracking Fox's left-hand post as Thistle's cup dreams came to a premature end.

Archibald said: "As a manager and a player, you want a cup run. It does give us a spare week down the line.

"But we wanted to go and win the game and take the positives from it."