Hibs 1 Hearts 5

By Ed_ScottishFitba

Hearts strolled to victory in the William Hill Scottish Cup final

Hibs were beaten in the Glasgow version of the Edinburgh Derby and will forever be reminded by the Jambo fans that no matter where they play, Hearts are able to show them who is boss. The better team (by far) won on the day and the wait goes on for Hibs to win the cup again since their last success in 1902. Paulo Sergio may not be sure of his job for next year but he know how to win a Scottish Cup. History meant nothing to him ahead of the game as he prepared for the final. He knew his squad can beat anybody on their day and this was their day to beat Hibs. Again. Not that many Hearts fans will care right now but the final score was 4 - 1 and it may only be tomorrow when the reality sinks in will they need a reminder of the score. It was great to see the national stadium filled with maroon and green and white flags as both sets of fans welcomed legends John Robertson and Pat Stanton parade the cup ahead of the game. I am sure there was some choice words of encouragement from the rival fans as the cup passed by. Even Vladimir Romanov got into the spirit of the Scottish Cup by donning a kilt.

The game started well for Hearts when Darren Barr opening scoring with just under 14 minutes on the clock before Pa Kujabi put himself under pressure for the rest of the game when he was booked on 17 minutes. Hibs needed to settle or else they were in danger of being steam-rollered by a maroon tide. However, Rudi Skacel made sure they would not settle when he scored with a fine shot from the edge of the box on 27 minutes which flews past Mark Brown in the Hibs goal. Jamie MacDonald in the Hearts goal had not been tested with 30 minutes on the clock and the longer that went on the more likely Hearts were to run out winners. Hibs were snatching at opportunities, few that they were. Hearts nearly had a third when Suso Santana had a shot saved on the line by a Hibs leg in the 35th minute. James McPake who has been a revelation in the Hibs side since he moved in January managed to get one back for the Easter Road side on 41 minutes. Hibs needed to make something of the game and if half time had come without them scoring they may as well have handed the cup to Hearts after 45 minutes. McPake could be heading back to Coventry if a deal cannot be done soon as his loan is up. Half-time saw Hearts take a 2-1 lead into the team talk from Paulo Sergio. He only needed to tell them to carry on playing like they had been for the first 45 as Hibs could not cope with the maroon efforts. Pat Fenlon on the other hand would have to be giving the team talk of his life to remind Hibs they were allowed into the opposition half.

And things just got worse for Hibs with two minutes gone of the second half. A penalty goal and a sending off ended their hopes of ending the 110 nightmare. Doherty was penalised for a challenge in the box and picked up a yellow card for his bother and then Kujabi paid for his earlier indiscretion when he got his second yellow card for talking back to the ref. The penalty was slotted home with aplomb by defender Danny Grainger. Worse was to follow for Hibs as Hearts scored nearly a minute later to make it 4-1. This time it was Ryan McGowan who scored in the 50 minute and Hibs were demoralised as the Hearts fans swirled their scarves in the air in celebration. Hibs tried everything and took Gary O'Connor off in 53 minutes to be replaced by Eoin O'Doyle. All to no avail as Hearts toyed with the ball and Hibs much to the delight of their fans. Hearts were in full control as they moved forward whenever they wanted. The chants of 'Easy, easy' were not misplaced from the Hearts end of Hampden. As we moved in to the last 15 minutes it was wave upon wave of maroon heading to Brown's goal. Molre and more empty seats were becoming visible in the Hibs end as Craig Beattie was brought in to perhaps rub salt into the wounds of the Leith side. Before he could get on Skacel did the salt-rubbing when he scored his second and Hearts fifth goal of the afternoon. That signalled the end for the majority of Hibs fans who headed for the exits with 14 minutes to go. The Hearts fans were calling for six and it could have been when Stephen Elliott's lob just beat the crossbar. Sergio was making the use of his squad with subs and he could have taken MacDonald off and nobody would have noticed. Ian Black was given a standing ovation on leaving the field with five minutes to go as the manager subbed him to allow the fans to thank him for his time at the club. The final indignity for Hibs was seeing manager Fenlon sent to the stands with a minute to go.

Now that Hearts have won the cup will owner Romanov fall back in love with the Scottish game and start investing again. The football landscape in Scotland will be different now that the Rangers financial nightmare has been exposed and the third force may be Hearts.