Baker steals limelight with four magic moments

PERHAPS the most astonishing aspect of the fabulous Baker boy's four-goal performance for Hibs against Hearts in the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup 38 years ago was how, at 17 years of age, Joe Baker, the prodigy who succeeded Lawrie Reilly as Hibs centre forward, played such a hugely influential role in eliminating the league leaders - as well as short-priced favourites to secure the double - from the competition.

It would do an injustice, of course, to his team-mates to suggest this was a one-man show. Eddie Turnbull, the captain, Jackie Plenderleith, who was recalled at centre-half, John Grant, who completed 90 minutes at inside-forward in spite of sustaining a shoulder injury, and Lawrie Leslie, the outstanding 21-year-old goalkeeper, also played key roles in thwarting the side which romped home in the championship.

This was the year when Hearts exuded an indomitable aura. They had not lost at Tynecastle in a competitive match all season and were also unbeaten in their 15 previous league and cup games.

Hibs, on the other hand, had lost their way in the league and were so hampered by injuries before the tie that - unusually in this era - a team selection was delayed until just before the kick-off.

From the moment the Edinburgh rivals were drawn together in the cup, Hibs, who needed a replay to defeat Dundee United in the previous round, appreciated they would have to combat the power of John Cumming and Dave Mackay in midfield. That's why Grant was selected at inside-forward to add strength in this area.

Reilly was approaching 30 and troubled by a knee injury which, frustratingly, ended his career later that season just as Baker started to make a name for himself. Although the strikers did play together a couple of times, as footballers they never got the chance to form a lasting partnership. Reilly scored on his farewell appearance for Hibs against Rangers in a league game but took no part in the final against Clyde.

On the day, however, when Baker ejected the champions-to-be from the Scottish Cup - and The Scotsman hailed the teenager "as Reilly's successor" - the great man savoured every moment of the young maestro's four-goal master class from a seat in the main stand at Tynecastle. (The following year, incidentally, according to John Mackay in The Hibees, this newspaper had to defend the number of column inches it devoted to Baker.)

"Pace is what frightens defenders most and what made Joe so special was his blistering speed," Reilly observed yesterday. "Joe was a breath of fresh air when he came into the side and it was his quickness which bothered Hearts so much. He was like lightning and, in that respect, there's a similarity between him and Ivan Sproule from today's Hibs team. The lad from Northern Ireland upsets every defender he plays against when he puts the foot down.

"Joe's pace was just as phenomenal and along with his speed he was a tremendous player.

"Joe went on to become one of Hibs' greatest players and, in my opinion, deserves to be considered in the same breath as Gordon Smith and Pat Stanton. All three were exceptional. Joe scored a lot of goals for the club but perhaps his most memorable game was that performance against Hearts. I'd played in the side which lost 5-0 to Hearts in the cup three years earlier and that was such a sore disappointment.

"Watching Joe score all four goals for Hibs in a 4-3 win couldn't have been more rewarding. I can't ever remember watching a more enjoyable game. Joe more or less won the match on his own. It's not often you can say that, but that day it was true."

If Baker was Hibs sharpest attacking weapon, Plenderleith's return at centre-half was also instrumental in subduing the skills of the gifted Alex Young, arguably the complete centre-forward, who would go on to become one of Everton's most revered players. According to Gordon Marshall, one of Hearts' finest goalkeepers, the attacking combination of Jimmy Murray, Young and Jimmy Wardhaugh was at least the equal of Alfie Conn, Willie Bauld and Wardhaugh and remains inexplicably under-rated in Tynecastle folklore.

At any rate, it was Young who set up Johnny Hamilton to put Hearts in front after 11 minutes with a left-foot shot which went in off the underside of the bar. Undaunted, Hibs were level within a couple of minutes, Baker pouncing on to an effort from Ormond which also struck the woodwork.

Marshall, who, like Baker, played for England at Under-23 level, only has sketchy memories of what happened during the rest of the contest. "Willie Ormond's shot hit the bar and, when the ball came back out, I got a kick on the head. Because I was concussed, it was just a tap-in for Joe. In those days, there were no substitutes and you just had to soldier on. I remember Hibs' first goal, but the rest of that game is a blank."

Baker gave Jimmy Milne, the Hearts defender, a hard time that afternoon. When the teenager received a pass from Grant, the reporter for the Pink [the Saturday sports edition of the Edinburgh Evening News] noted how Baker "left the centre-half sitting on the ground" before firing a low shot past Marshall.

Although he would pull off a string of superb saves late in the game, Leslie couldn't cut out a cross from Hamilton at the start of the second-half. The predatory Wardhaugh was on hand to equalise for Hearts from close range. Baker, though, restored Hibs' advantage with another brace in the 66th and 81st minutes before Murray got one back for Hearts a minute from time.

During a frenetic finale, Hibs relied on their 21-year-old goalkeeper to pull off a string of outstanding saves and, according to The Scotsman, it was a close run thing between Leslie and Baker as to who was man of the match. "Baker scored four goals, but Leslie saved many more," observed our writer. "Which was the greater feat? No one can judge, but the crowd rose to Leslie after the game and hundreds ran on to the pitch to chair the goalkeeper off the field."

MacKay, the Hearts captain, never forgot the threat posed by Baker. Years later, when he was with Spurs, the wing-half was mighty relieved after the White Hart Lane side were drawn against Nottingham Forest in an FA Cup semi-final to discover Baker was injured and lightning couldn't strike twice.

Plenderleith, who now lives in Aberdeen, was a friend of Baker's and perhaps better equipped to judge the lethal centre-forward than most. As well as playing with him for Hibs, the centre-half was capped for Scotland at Under-23 level against England and knew how difficult Baker was to play against.

"Joe was a mate of mine and anyone who scores four goals in one game has done something special," recalled the centre-half. "He was very fast over the first couple of yards. Luckily, I was also quick over a short distance. Not a fast player, but over the couple of yards which matter most I was quick enough.

"Lawrie Leslie also had an exceptional game that day, making so many vital saves. You never got an easy game against the Hearts because they had some forward line at that time. So everyone on our side had to play their part in order to pull off the upset. Of course, it was our turn to be favourites when final came along against Clyde..."

Hibs were everyone's tip to lift the trophy at Hampden. Baker duly scored two more in the next round against Third Lanark and, in the semi-final, a replay was needed to defeat Rangers 2-1. This was the game where a Rangers 'goal' in the last minute was first given by a linesman then disallowed by referee Bobby Davidson. The decision was proved correct when photographs showed Ralph Brand handling the ball.

If the tide at last seemed to be turning in Hibs favour as far as the cup was concerned, the trophy continued to elude them when, in a poor final, John Baxter diverted the ball into his own net for Clyde's only goal. The closest Baker came to scoring was in an incident where he handled the ball over the line.

Hearts, meantime, bounced back 48 hours after the upset of losing to Hibs by defeating Scotland 3-2 in a warm-up match before the squad bound for the World Cup finals in Sweden was finalised. The following Saturday, Hearts won 4-1 against Queen's Park to earn their 13th consecutive league victory and take another step towards the title.

Yet for Hibs, the memory of the irrepressible 17-year-old striker's display in Gorgie will never fade. One of Burt Bacharach's first hit songs, Magic Moments, sung by Perry Como, was No 1 that week. Baker, who enjoyed four of them at Tynecastle, could hardly have whistled a more appropriate tune on the way home.

Taken from the Scotsman