As around sixteen thousand beleaguered Hibs fans made their way back to their buses, cars, and trains for the long, quiet journey home from Hampden having watched their heroes chalk up another year on the 'since-they-won-the-Scottish-Cup-o-meter', they would have been wondering just how Hibs had managed - again - to take nothing from a game that they utterly dominated.
It has been the story of their season. I've lost count of the number of games Hibs have failed to take full points, having battered their opponents for virtually the full ninety minutes. Home games against Falkirk (twice), Queen of the South, Hearts, Raith (twice), and Dumbarton - and that's just from the top of my head, have seen Hibs put in a commanding performance only to draw or lose the match.
Saturday's Scottish Cup Semi-Final can now be added to that list. Before I dwell on Hibs' failings, I want to congratulate Falkirk for reaching the final. The most important statistic in football is the number of goals scored versus the number conceded, and Falkirk compared favourably in that aspect on Saturday, and so they have a Cup Final to look forward to. Well done to Falkirk, and I genuinely wish them all the best in the final.
So, onto Hibs. Where do you start when trying to explain that defeat? You can criticise the forward players for not taking their chances, and we had plenty of them regardless of what Peter Houston might have you believe. Scott Allan rattled the crossbar after a Gascoigne-esque dribble through the Falkirk defence. Fraser Fyvie had seen a shot tipped onto the post only for the ball to rebound with an almost magnetic precision back into the arms of the grateful Jamie McDonald.
Farid El-Alagui had a first minute header (if you can call the ball bouncing off his head as he lay prone on the ground a 'header') saved on the goal-line. Lewis Stevenson blasted over from eight yards when he seemed more likely to score, just moments after Dylan McGeouch had totally mis-hit his shot to the point where it was closer to trapping the ball than shooting at goal.
Stevenson came close again when a deflected shot looped over McDonald only to drop agonisingly wide of the post, and there were late chances for Malonga and El-Alagui, neither of whom were able to take advantage.
Falkirk, of course, scored in the most ironic of fashions. The referee halted a Hibs attack, Falkirk broke forward and gave their opponents a lesson in clinical finishing. Mark Oxley had been a virtual spectator in the second half at Hampden, his only contribution prior to conceding had been to tip a speculative effort round the post early in the second half. Falkirk had, by my count, three chances in the second half in total, and scored with one of them.
It's hard to pinpoint why this has happened to Hibs so frequently this season. You can criticise the defence, but then you'd think they would deserve praise for limiting the opposition to three chances. Then again, how can you praise a defence that concedes one goal from three chances, compared to Falkirk who conceded none from goodness knows how many.
Perhaps it's a lack of concentration. If it was only once that a game had gone this way, you could attribute it to bad luck, but when it's happened with a depressing regularity then it surely can't just be luck.
Alan Stubbs must take some responsibility - it's been a season long problem at both ends of the park. If Hibs had taken chances with the same efficiency as our opponents this season, it would have been Hibs rather than Hearts that had romped the league with plenty to spare. Hibs haven't though, and Hearts have, and that's why they were worthy winners.
Stubbs must now look at his side and find a way to address this wastefulness in front of goal, and the carelessness in defence, in order that his side has any chance of promotion this season. Stubbs cannot afford to attribute the poor results to mere bad luck, no matter how much he may protest that his side deserved to win the game (and few neutrals would argue with him), the fact of the matter is that again, his Hibs side were trumped by a sucker punch, and lost the match.
I like Alan Stubbs. I like the way he sets Hibs up to play and I like that he isn't shy in saying that the better team lost. It's refreshing, and his style of play is pleasing on the eye, in stark contrast to his recent predecessors in the Easter Road hot-seat. There is a real lack of a cutting edge, no ruthlessness or mean streak in the side, and he needs to find that, and find it soon.
Stubbs has challenged his side to go and get the promotion their play deserves, but that play will only deserve promotion if it finds an end product. Teams don't get promoted for missing chances or keeping the ball. You can have all the possession in the world, if you don't score and you can't prevent the opposition scoring, then you don't deserve to get promoted. I think it's important that Stubbs acknowledges that, if not publicly then at least within the confines of the Easter Road/East Mains dressing rooms.
The players can't be allowed to continue to put costly defeats like Saturday's down to bad luck. They have to be aware that they are ultimately responsible for the fine margins that have gone against them. Is it bad luck or bad finishing to hit the bar from fifteen yards out? Is it bad luck that you swing a boot at the ball with the goal gaping and send the ball three feet over the crossbar? Is it bad luck that you find yourself conceding - again - from the only chance your opponent carves out?
Passing it off as bad luck removes the need to make an improvement. I'm not expecting to see Stubbs chastise his players for their inefficiencies in public, in fact, I wouldn't expect him to hammer them in private either, but I would expect him to seek improvement and to make the players accountable.
Hibs' season is teetering on the brink now - the cup had proven to be a welcome distraction and the prospect of finishing the season with the play-offs and a cup final to look forward to was exciting. Now there is the very real prospect of Hibs finishing the season with nothing to show for the undeniable improvements that Stubbs and his coaching team have made. Hibs have three league games left to put themselves in with a shout of finishing second, but they are now reliant on Rangers slipping up.
Even finishing second won't guarantee Hibs promotion, if they continue to mis-fire as they did against Falkirk and countless other teams this season. These fine margins are critical now, and unless Hibs do more to make those margins count in their favour, then there's a huge risk that any progress will be overlooked in the anger and disappointment that will inevitably consume large chunks of the Hibs support, who will have at least another Championship season to face. For a club Hibs' size, that is almost unthinkable.
In fairness, the players do not deserve a hard time for their performance on Saturday. The team played well, with some great football and you'll struggle to see a more dominant performance from a team all season. Had that game finished 1-0 to Hibs, people would have been enthusing over the way that Hibs controlled the game and kept Falkirk at arms' length throughout. It didn't though, and in the aftermath it's easy to lose sight of the fact that Hibs performed at a good level, without it being good enough to take them into the Scottish Cup Final.
And so it goes, another year to the record. I think that's 114 now. I sometimes get asked if it hurts more with each year, and I liken it to playing the lottery, which I haven't yet won at many more than 114 times of asking. Sometimes I get close to it, there's been a few times where I've had four numbers but never enough to retire early or get a holiday home somewhere sunnier than Leith. That winning combination eludes me, sometimes twice a week, yet the disappointment lasts just a few moments and never dampens the anticipation that maybe - just maybe - the next draw will be the one. I feel like that with the Scottish Cup these days. Yes, if and when Hibs do win the bloody thing, the hangover I will have after it is beyond my comprehension at the moment. However I'm long since past the point of beating myself up about it when the inevitable cup disappointment comes around again.
Monday 20 April 2015
Monday 13 April 2015
Hibs Do the Honourable Thing in the Derby
A lot was made of Hibernian's apparent refusal to grant Hearts a guard of honour onto the pitch in the lead up to the final Edinburgh derby of the season. More was made of it than was really necessary, to be completely honest.
Depending on who you speak to, tradition seems to dictate that the guard of honour is generally given at the game immediately after the title is won, or on each of the first home and away games after winning the league. In Hearts' case, this had been extended by Alloa to include their second home game.
There was suggestion that Hibs should have followed Rangers' lead and clapped their city rivals onto the pitch, a suggestion that was shot down by the vast majority of Hibs' online support, and by Alan Stubbs himself, who cited safety reasons and a desire to avoid fueling the flames of an already volatile fixture as the reason for Hibs not granting the guard of honour.
That Stubbs should have been having to turn it down in the first place is a nonsense in itself. Even more ridiculous was the reaction to the apparent snub from Hearts' Head Coach Robbie Nielson and their centre-half Alim Öztürk, who comically said that the show of disrespect told you everything you needed to know about Hibs.
Quite how the whole thing was contrived to be an issue is beyond me. However, common sense prevailed and the players ran out in their conventional line-ups and got on with things.
Clearly, I am biased towards Hibs, I will never hide that fact or pretend otherwise, especially when it comes to the derby and the rivalry between Hibs and Hearts, but even putting that bias to one side, I find the idea of giving a team that shafted a laundry list of creditors (including you and I as tax payers) a guard of honour - and that team expecting it - quite distasteful.
The current Hearts side and owners deserve all the credit going for a fantastic season. They have been unquestionably the best side in the Championship over the course of the season. They have barely faltered and have played some terrific football in that time, backed by a large support home and away throughout the season. Hearts have been the success story of the 2014-15 Scottish Championship season.
What they won't win prizes for,evidently, is having a little bit of humility; and this notion that Hibs were somehow being disrespectful in not granting the guard of honour was disrespectful in itself.
On to the derby then, and what a derby it was - from a Hibs point of view. The Hearts support filled the Dunbar end at Easter Road and they turned up for a party, and they weren't shy in letting the disappointing Hibs crowd know about it.
Robbie Nielson said prior to the match when speaking to Sky TV, that he had set up to match Hibs 3-5-2, and in doing so was making the game a case of his players going man to man with Stubbs' players.
Nielson changed his tactics with barely half an hour gone, as his side struggled to get a foothold in the game, unable to win their man v man battles. Hibs took the upper hand, rattling the Hearts crossbar on two occasions and calling Neil Alexander in the Hearts goal into action, before the 'King of Zing' Jason Cummings shinned (and it was shinned, rather than caressed, Jason) his second derby goal of the season to give Hibs a deserved lead.
Hearts at this point had been on the back foot for all but a few minutes of the game. Neilson's tactical switch helped them stifle Hibs' play to some degree but still Hearts lacked in their effectiveness going forward.
Hibs' three centre-halves, Paul Hanlon, Liam Fontaine, and Jordon Forster were superb. The physical threat of Osman Sow and man-mountain Genero Zeefuik got absolutely no joy against them all game, and from those solid foundations, the rest of the Hibs side were able to impose themselves on the match.
Dominique Malonga had a great opportunity to extend Hibs' lead in the second half as Hibs broke forward with three against two, but the forward opted to shoot rather than pass to Scott Allan or Martin Boyle, either of whom would have been left with only the Hearts keeper to beat. It was just about the last involvement that Malonga had in the game, having come on as a substitute he was replaced shortly afterwards, the introduction of Frank Dja DjeDje a necessity following an injury to Malonga.
Malonga has looked short of fitness in his last couple of outings in a Hibs jersey, and seems in dire need of a confidence restoring goal. His decision making in the derby invoked the ire of the Hibs support, only too aware that failing to take your chances in this particular fixture usually ends up coming back to haunt you.
On this occasion, however, Hibs weren't left to rue that mistake. In fact, as the game edged into injury time Hibs again found themselves outnumbering the Hearts defence when DjeDje turned Öztürk before clipping the ball through to Farid El Alagui who was calmness personified as he dinked the ball over the diving Alexander to seal Hibs' win. It was fitting for Hibs fans that it was Öztürk's woeful defending that let DjeDje in, given the pre-match complaints about Hibs from the defender.
The victory, of course, had no bearing in the title with Hearts already crowned champions, but make no mistake - Hearts came to Easter Road to win. In fact, the game was almost a carbon copy of the previous Easter Road derby, only this time it was Hibs rather than Hearts that scored the injury time goal. The balance of play in both games had been distinctly in Hibs' favour, and if anything Hearts were better in this derby than in the first one. So don't be misled that there was any suggestion of Hearts players being in holiday mode.
They, like their fans, and by Robbie Nielson's own admission, had come to Easter Road to win. Neilson's post match comments to the BBC told us that Hearts 'should be coming to Easter Road and winning, it's what we do'. Well, that's not strictly true, Robbie, is it? You've yet to win at Easter Road as Hearts' Head Coach, so again, a little humility wouldn't go amiss.
As it was, there was no sign of the Hearts party, and from demanding a guard of honour there were barely any Hearts fans left to clap their league winning heroes from the pitch at the end of the match. The green and white half of Edinburgh, however, headed off into the April sunshine in celebratory mood, off to find parties of their own.
Depending on who you speak to, tradition seems to dictate that the guard of honour is generally given at the game immediately after the title is won, or on each of the first home and away games after winning the league. In Hearts' case, this had been extended by Alloa to include their second home game.
There was suggestion that Hibs should have followed Rangers' lead and clapped their city rivals onto the pitch, a suggestion that was shot down by the vast majority of Hibs' online support, and by Alan Stubbs himself, who cited safety reasons and a desire to avoid fueling the flames of an already volatile fixture as the reason for Hibs not granting the guard of honour.
That Stubbs should have been having to turn it down in the first place is a nonsense in itself. Even more ridiculous was the reaction to the apparent snub from Hearts' Head Coach Robbie Nielson and their centre-half Alim Öztürk, who comically said that the show of disrespect told you everything you needed to know about Hibs.
Quite how the whole thing was contrived to be an issue is beyond me. However, common sense prevailed and the players ran out in their conventional line-ups and got on with things.
Clearly, I am biased towards Hibs, I will never hide that fact or pretend otherwise, especially when it comes to the derby and the rivalry between Hibs and Hearts, but even putting that bias to one side, I find the idea of giving a team that shafted a laundry list of creditors (including you and I as tax payers) a guard of honour - and that team expecting it - quite distasteful.
The current Hearts side and owners deserve all the credit going for a fantastic season. They have been unquestionably the best side in the Championship over the course of the season. They have barely faltered and have played some terrific football in that time, backed by a large support home and away throughout the season. Hearts have been the success story of the 2014-15 Scottish Championship season.
What they won't win prizes for,evidently, is having a little bit of humility; and this notion that Hibs were somehow being disrespectful in not granting the guard of honour was disrespectful in itself.
On to the derby then, and what a derby it was - from a Hibs point of view. The Hearts support filled the Dunbar end at Easter Road and they turned up for a party, and they weren't shy in letting the disappointing Hibs crowd know about it.
Robbie Nielson said prior to the match when speaking to Sky TV, that he had set up to match Hibs 3-5-2, and in doing so was making the game a case of his players going man to man with Stubbs' players.
Nielson changed his tactics with barely half an hour gone, as his side struggled to get a foothold in the game, unable to win their man v man battles. Hibs took the upper hand, rattling the Hearts crossbar on two occasions and calling Neil Alexander in the Hearts goal into action, before the 'King of Zing' Jason Cummings shinned (and it was shinned, rather than caressed, Jason) his second derby goal of the season to give Hibs a deserved lead.
Hearts at this point had been on the back foot for all but a few minutes of the game. Neilson's tactical switch helped them stifle Hibs' play to some degree but still Hearts lacked in their effectiveness going forward.
Hibs' three centre-halves, Paul Hanlon, Liam Fontaine, and Jordon Forster were superb. The physical threat of Osman Sow and man-mountain Genero Zeefuik got absolutely no joy against them all game, and from those solid foundations, the rest of the Hibs side were able to impose themselves on the match.
Dominique Malonga had a great opportunity to extend Hibs' lead in the second half as Hibs broke forward with three against two, but the forward opted to shoot rather than pass to Scott Allan or Martin Boyle, either of whom would have been left with only the Hearts keeper to beat. It was just about the last involvement that Malonga had in the game, having come on as a substitute he was replaced shortly afterwards, the introduction of Frank Dja DjeDje a necessity following an injury to Malonga.
Malonga has looked short of fitness in his last couple of outings in a Hibs jersey, and seems in dire need of a confidence restoring goal. His decision making in the derby invoked the ire of the Hibs support, only too aware that failing to take your chances in this particular fixture usually ends up coming back to haunt you.
On this occasion, however, Hibs weren't left to rue that mistake. In fact, as the game edged into injury time Hibs again found themselves outnumbering the Hearts defence when DjeDje turned Öztürk before clipping the ball through to Farid El Alagui who was calmness personified as he dinked the ball over the diving Alexander to seal Hibs' win. It was fitting for Hibs fans that it was Öztürk's woeful defending that let DjeDje in, given the pre-match complaints about Hibs from the defender.
The victory, of course, had no bearing in the title with Hearts already crowned champions, but make no mistake - Hearts came to Easter Road to win. In fact, the game was almost a carbon copy of the previous Easter Road derby, only this time it was Hibs rather than Hearts that scored the injury time goal. The balance of play in both games had been distinctly in Hibs' favour, and if anything Hearts were better in this derby than in the first one. So don't be misled that there was any suggestion of Hearts players being in holiday mode.
They, like their fans, and by Robbie Nielson's own admission, had come to Easter Road to win. Neilson's post match comments to the BBC told us that Hearts 'should be coming to Easter Road and winning, it's what we do'. Well, that's not strictly true, Robbie, is it? You've yet to win at Easter Road as Hearts' Head Coach, so again, a little humility wouldn't go amiss.
As it was, there was no sign of the Hearts party, and from demanding a guard of honour there were barely any Hearts fans left to clap their league winning heroes from the pitch at the end of the match. The green and white half of Edinburgh, however, headed off into the April sunshine in celebratory mood, off to find parties of their own.
Friday 3 April 2015
Got the Bottle?
Consecutive league defeats have led to some questions being raised amongst some members of the press, and some Hibs supporters, asking whether or not the Hibs squad have lost their bottle in the race for second place in the Scottish Championship.
It would be fair to say that the Hibs support have good cause to question the mental strength of the team. Hibs are a side who have in recent times, crumbled at the first sniff of a bit of pressure. Cup final? Bottled. Relegation battle? Bottled. Countless derbies? Bottled.
Prior to this season, Hibs were almost renowned for their lack of fight and grit. Visiting managers would talk about how Hibs were a soft side, and even incoming managers referenced the need to toughen up the squad. Both John Hughes and Pat Fenlon tried to instil a mental toughness to the football side. Neither could lay claim to having been successful in their task.
Terry Butcher was desperate to add bottle to a demoralised squad, but only succeeded into making a side already bereft of confidence and swagger, even more introverted and scared. Butcher and Malpas roared their players to defeat after defeat, and when the chips were down, Hibs folded under the pressure and were relegated.
This season's Hibs squad have been something of a different kettle of fish. A sticky start to the season had the support again analysing the mental fortitude of Stubbs' side. The first test of Hibs' resolve came in the opening derby of the season, and they fell short. Liam Craig had an opportunity to put Hibs in the lead with a first half penalty, which he pulled wide of the post. The miss clearly played on Craig's mind, and he was ineffective up until the half time whistle. In the second half, Scott Robertson conceded a penalty and was then sent off in what was a personally disastrous second half for the player. Hibs played OK, but ultimately came up short. The culprits of the piece were players who had fallen out of favour with the support from the relegation season. Neither Robertson nor Craig could have laid claim to being fans' favourites at that point. The questions remained about the team's bottle, and crucially, whether the players who had come down with the club would ever have the bottle for the Championship season.
The stuttering start to the season didn't do Hibs any favours, and you sensed that teams fancied their chances against Hibs far more than they did Hearts or Rangers. There were, I feel, two significant games that shifted opinions of Hibs, when the Hibs squad started answering the questions around their ability to withstand pressure.
The first of those was the 1-1 draw with Hearts at Easter Road. Hibs out-played the visitors on the day, controlling much of the match and limiting Hearts to very few chances. Hearts scored with almost the last kick of the game, and though they undoubtedly took a huge lift from avoiding defeat, Hibs also took many positives from that game. Hibs had played without fear and went toe to toe with the best side in the league, and were unlucky not to take the three points. It was the first real sign that Hibs might not be the shy-boys of the league after all.
The second game was the 4-0 rout of Rangers. With the Sky cameras at Easter Road and the match being beamed live on Sky Sports, Hibs brushed Rangers aside with style and strength. The scoreline was a fair reflection on a game that Hibs completely dominated. Rangers couldn't cope with Hibs in that form, and Hibs knew it. Crucially, the rest of the league knew it as well.
Hibs went to Tynecastle and again were unlucky not to come away with all three points in a close game. If there was a game to bottle it, the New Year derby would have been the one Hibs would have chosen to do so in seasons gone by. Not this season though. Hibs answered all the questions asked of them.
Stubbs' side were to go through to March before tasting defeat, clawing back a huge points deficit on Rangers to overtake them and claim second place in the league (a spot they still hold ahead of the Easter fixtures this weekend.) There was no question of Hibs' bottle during this time.
So why now, when Rangers won at Easter Road, and Hibs lost at Raith, do these questions come up? Alan Stubbs was clearly annoyed at the questions around Hibs' bottle in his Hibs TV interview. He has, in my opinion, every right to be.
Last week's defeat at Raith had nothing to do with bottle. Bad finishing and bad defending, absolutely. No bottle? No chance. Hibs created enough chances to win that game three times over. A team that bottled it would not have done that.
Hibs' bottle wasn't to blame for the defeat to Rangers either. There is a legitimate question around whether or not Stubbs chose the right tactics for the game, but his players didn't bottle it.
Hibs go into tomorrow's game against Queen of the South needing to once again prove that they have the mental strength to dust themselves down and get a result when it really matters. I have no doubts in my mind that they have the bottle and resolve to do so. That doesn't mean that they'll win- there are no guarantees in football, but if they lose it will not be down to a lack of mental resolve or bottle.
Much has changed at Easter Road in the time since we were relegated. This is a different football club to the one which limped out of the SPL with a mere whimper.
We are stronger, better, and tougher. We are not the finished article, and there will be - I'm sure - another loss on the way to the end of the season, but I am confident that Hibs will take the race for promotion right to the wire, and when the players need to stand up to be counted, they will be the ones asking the questions of the opponents, and not the other way around.
It would be fair to say that the Hibs support have good cause to question the mental strength of the team. Hibs are a side who have in recent times, crumbled at the first sniff of a bit of pressure. Cup final? Bottled. Relegation battle? Bottled. Countless derbies? Bottled.
Prior to this season, Hibs were almost renowned for their lack of fight and grit. Visiting managers would talk about how Hibs were a soft side, and even incoming managers referenced the need to toughen up the squad. Both John Hughes and Pat Fenlon tried to instil a mental toughness to the football side. Neither could lay claim to having been successful in their task.
Terry Butcher was desperate to add bottle to a demoralised squad, but only succeeded into making a side already bereft of confidence and swagger, even more introverted and scared. Butcher and Malpas roared their players to defeat after defeat, and when the chips were down, Hibs folded under the pressure and were relegated.
This season's Hibs squad have been something of a different kettle of fish. A sticky start to the season had the support again analysing the mental fortitude of Stubbs' side. The first test of Hibs' resolve came in the opening derby of the season, and they fell short. Liam Craig had an opportunity to put Hibs in the lead with a first half penalty, which he pulled wide of the post. The miss clearly played on Craig's mind, and he was ineffective up until the half time whistle. In the second half, Scott Robertson conceded a penalty and was then sent off in what was a personally disastrous second half for the player. Hibs played OK, but ultimately came up short. The culprits of the piece were players who had fallen out of favour with the support from the relegation season. Neither Robertson nor Craig could have laid claim to being fans' favourites at that point. The questions remained about the team's bottle, and crucially, whether the players who had come down with the club would ever have the bottle for the Championship season.
The stuttering start to the season didn't do Hibs any favours, and you sensed that teams fancied their chances against Hibs far more than they did Hearts or Rangers. There were, I feel, two significant games that shifted opinions of Hibs, when the Hibs squad started answering the questions around their ability to withstand pressure.
The first of those was the 1-1 draw with Hearts at Easter Road. Hibs out-played the visitors on the day, controlling much of the match and limiting Hearts to very few chances. Hearts scored with almost the last kick of the game, and though they undoubtedly took a huge lift from avoiding defeat, Hibs also took many positives from that game. Hibs had played without fear and went toe to toe with the best side in the league, and were unlucky not to take the three points. It was the first real sign that Hibs might not be the shy-boys of the league after all.
The second game was the 4-0 rout of Rangers. With the Sky cameras at Easter Road and the match being beamed live on Sky Sports, Hibs brushed Rangers aside with style and strength. The scoreline was a fair reflection on a game that Hibs completely dominated. Rangers couldn't cope with Hibs in that form, and Hibs knew it. Crucially, the rest of the league knew it as well.
Hibs went to Tynecastle and again were unlucky not to come away with all three points in a close game. If there was a game to bottle it, the New Year derby would have been the one Hibs would have chosen to do so in seasons gone by. Not this season though. Hibs answered all the questions asked of them.
Stubbs' side were to go through to March before tasting defeat, clawing back a huge points deficit on Rangers to overtake them and claim second place in the league (a spot they still hold ahead of the Easter fixtures this weekend.) There was no question of Hibs' bottle during this time.
So why now, when Rangers won at Easter Road, and Hibs lost at Raith, do these questions come up? Alan Stubbs was clearly annoyed at the questions around Hibs' bottle in his Hibs TV interview. He has, in my opinion, every right to be.
Last week's defeat at Raith had nothing to do with bottle. Bad finishing and bad defending, absolutely. No bottle? No chance. Hibs created enough chances to win that game three times over. A team that bottled it would not have done that.
Hibs' bottle wasn't to blame for the defeat to Rangers either. There is a legitimate question around whether or not Stubbs chose the right tactics for the game, but his players didn't bottle it.
Hibs go into tomorrow's game against Queen of the South needing to once again prove that they have the mental strength to dust themselves down and get a result when it really matters. I have no doubts in my mind that they have the bottle and resolve to do so. That doesn't mean that they'll win- there are no guarantees in football, but if they lose it will not be down to a lack of mental resolve or bottle.
Much has changed at Easter Road in the time since we were relegated. This is a different football club to the one which limped out of the SPL with a mere whimper.
We are stronger, better, and tougher. We are not the finished article, and there will be - I'm sure - another loss on the way to the end of the season, but I am confident that Hibs will take the race for promotion right to the wire, and when the players need to stand up to be counted, they will be the ones asking the questions of the opponents, and not the other way around.
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