Hibernian might pull off something unique in Scottish football before this season is done: they could have beaten more than half of the teams in the Premiership without being in it themselves.
They staggered through an unforgiving battle with Inverness Caledonian Thistle yesterday — a William Hill Scottish Cup quarter-final and a relentless war of attrition, all rolled into one — and could still make the Cup holders their fifth top-flight victims in the two knockout tournaments. They would need to defeat a sixth club, Ross County, to lift the League Cup in next Sunday’s final but that’s hardly beyond them and nor is overcoming a seventh, Celtic, if they both reach the Scottish Cup final. For a few more days, at least, they can claim to be the best cup team in Scotland.
Which is all very nice, but Caledonian Thistle have something more tangible than that. They are the Scottish Cup holders and what a determined, resilient fight they put up to prolong their defence of the great old trophy. They were within a quarter-of-an-hour of going out to James Keatings’ deserved opener for Hibs but what a dogged, gritty unit they are under John Hughes. They are one of the most stubborn teams in the country, and usually one of the most difficult to play against. Give up their trophy? Not lightly.
They will face Hibs again in the replay in Inverness on Wednesday, March 16, but thanks to Andrea Mbuyi-Mutombo’s equaliser they are still in the mix to win the Cup two years on the trot.
What a slog it was to end up back at square one. Caley Thistle made the stronger start, Hibs grew into things and tried to play the better football, but they were dragged into a dogfight. There were tackles, blocks and thundering challenges every few seconds and it did nothing for the game’s flow or rhythm.
Advertisement
The visitors’ aggression and robustness wasn’t pretty although they had their moments of decent, dangerous attacking. Liam Henderson and John McGinn were desperate to get on the ball and make things happen for Hibs but Caley Thistle’s midfielders put in a power of work to close them down and knock them off their stride. Hibs were also disrupted when Dylan McGeouch, who had been troubled by a recent groin injury, felt that again and had to go off inside the opening half hour. Niklas Gunnarsson came on instead and the shape changed from a midfield diamond to 3-5-2.
The home side made more chances. Owain Fon Williams saved McGeouch’s header and helped to scramble away Liam Fontaine’s rebound. The goalkeeper brilliantly touched an Anthony Stokes shot on to the post, with Keatings offside in the goalmouth when he converted it off the woodwork.
Caley Thistle’s only real threat came in a break when Liam Polworth should have exposed Hibs’ out-of-position back four. Instead Polworth had a rush of blood to the head and lashed a shot over from outside the box when Miles Storey was screaming for a pass in the centre.
From all this graft and industry two well-crafted goals emerged. It had been as if a dimmer switch had been activated on Stokes’ form in recent weeks but he was constantly bright and busy here and his skill and touch worked the ball to David Gray, whose cross found Keatings in space to ram home the opener. By then Hibs had already had two penalty claims turned down. Polworth fouled Henderson right on the chalk line of the edge of the box they got a free kick instead — before Danny Devine was accused of handball at the start of the second half.
Ratings
The equaliser was well constructed. Lewis Horner caught the ball at the byeline, gave it to Jordan Roberts and as soon as it was fed to Mbuyi-Mutombo Hibs were exposed. The Congolese international had the composure and nerve to move the ball between his feet before putting away the finish.
Advertisement
Hibs were jittery after that, their passing sloppy. Still, after three straight league defeats and without a key man in each part of the side — defender Paul Hanlon, midfielder Marvin Bartley and top scorer Jason Cummings — they had no reason to be despondent about being pegged back.
Their mood will be one extreme or another by the time of the replay, either euphoric after winning the League Cup final or dejected after defeat, but for now that all seems light years away. Hibs fly to their pre-cup final training camp in Spain today, but only when they’re back in Scotland will the temperature around them really rise.