Hibs 0 - 3 Celtic

Gary Hooper's first-half double helped Celtic to a comfortable William Hill Scottish Cup final win over Hibernian at Hampden Park which completed the domestic double for Neil Lennon's side.

The game turned in favour of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League champions as early as the seventh minute when Hoops keeper Fraser Forster made a great save from a close-range Eoin Doyle header.

Hooper ran up the park moments later and scored the first of two almost identical goals, both coming from Anthony Stokes crosses, with midfielder Joe Ledley sealing the win with a 79th-minute strike.

For Hibs, who were thrashed 5-1 in last year's final by Edinburgh rivals Hearts, their quest to win the competition for the first time since 1902 limps painfully on.

Their fans put up a show of defiance in the final stages but left Glasgow wondering what might have happened if Doyle, playing his last game before moving to Chesterfield, had scored his early chance.

The afternoon started positively enough for the Easter Road side who were without skipper James McPake, ruled out on Friday with a back complaint.

The Leith side, full of enthusiasm and vigour, should have taken the lead when left-back Ryan McGivern put the ball on to the head of Doyle eight yards from goal but the Irishman's header was brilliantly saved by Forster.

Hibs paid for that only a minute later when right-back Alan Maybury only half-cleared Mikael Lustig's cross from the right with the ball being picked up wide on the left by Stokes.

The former Hibs striker turned and sent an inviting cross to the back post which evaded Easter Road stand-in skipper Ben Williams with Hooper confidently volleying into the net.

Celtic, playing in all black, took control of the game thereafter.

A fine pass from Hoops midfielder Kris Commons on the half-hour mark opened up the Hibs defence and found Ledley but Williams made a good save from the drive before the Leith side cleared their lines.

However, the Hoops' second goal was only moments away and came when Stokes' cross from the left again found Hooper at the back post and he headed it back across Williams and into the corner of the net.

Hibs looked deflated as they surveyed the task ahead.

Leigh Griffiths had half a chance in the 37th minute when a long ball from midfielder Kevin Thomson caught out the Parkhead defence but although the on-loan Wolves striker went past Forster, the angle was too tight and his attempted shot went across the goal with no real prospect of sneaking in.

Stokes almost got on the scoresheet himself in the 52nd minute with a right-footed drive from the edge of the box which fizzed just past the far post.

Amid an early second-half surge from Hibs, Celtic skipper Scott Brown and Hibees midfielder Jorge Claros were both booked for a spat that had several players from both sides excited.

There was little urgency, though, from the Parkhead side although they retained enough of a threat to suggest another goal was at their finger tips if required.

Hibs looked powerless to do anything about their plight.

Danny Handling replaced Doyle, Ross Caldwell came on for Thomson and Georgios Samaras took over from Commons by which time the game was petering out.

Ledley brought the Celtic fans back to life, though, when, from 14 yards, he converted a cross from Lustig which had been missed by Hooper for his hat-trick.

That was the signal for the Celtic fans to begin their celebrations in earnest as the Hibs support pondered another missed opportunity to exorcise their Scottish Cup ghost of 1902.A joyous afternoon for the Hoops sees them add the Scottish Cup to their SPL title as they complete the double at Hampden. For Hibs, it will be 112 years without a cup as Pat Fenlon's side endure more final misery. Congratulations to Neil Lennon's side who wrap up an outstanding season with silverware in the league and the cup.

FT: Hibernian 0 Celtic 3. Celtic win the Scottish Cup.

Two minutes of added time to be played.
90+1

Stokes and McCourt take turns tormenting HIbs' defence, before the former shimmies into a shooting position which sees his delicate chip land over the bar.
90

Forrest's game is brought to an end as McCourt comes on for the final few minutes.
88

Caldwell lets rip, with his shot cannoning off Ambrose before an ambitious strike from Taiwo finds the fans behind goal.
88

Claros looks to feed the ball into Handling's path, but the pacey ball is carried over from his team-mate and Forster claims once more.
87

Izaguirre hounds Harris, who remains down following the collision, forcing play to be stopped as the winger gets back to his feet.
86

Griffiths heads off, waving farewell to the Hibs fans for the time being as Stevenson takes his place.
84

Forrest fails to get his shot away and Samaras impedes his progress as he then gives the ball away. Regardless, it's all Celtic and they should net a fourth easily as Hibs now look weary and drained.
83

Forster eases the ball into Williams' hands following Izaguirre's delivery, with Hooper on alert the entire time as the striker chases his hat-trick.
82

Celtic captain Brown makes way, with Ambrose his replacement.
80

Game over. Lustig again exploits the inexplicable space allowed down the right, before whipping the ball which Hooper first misses, but Ledley doesn't, firing into the top corner as Celtic march towards the trophy,
79

GOAL FOR CELTIC - LEDLEY!
79

Lustig gets away down the right, before Forster heads away and Hibs look to break. A ball forward sees them force a throw-in, but the momentum dies as the Celtic bodies track back.
78

Meanwhile for Hibs, Thomson comes off in place of Caldwell.
76

Commons is replaced by Samaras for the last 15 minutes of the game.
76

Harris, Hibs' liviliest scond half player, carves out an attack that results in McGivern earning his side a corner.
75

Controlled passing from Celtic prevents Griffiths latching on to the loose ball, before a rather woe ball up field from Forster results in a Hibs throw-in.
74

Handling gets involved in the thick of the action, but loses out after crowding from Izaguirre and Mulgrew as Celitc once again clear their lines with a calm confidence.
72

Doyle makes way as Handling enters the field.
71

Stokes and Claros square up following a tug of war that sees the former penalised when in fact replays show the free-kick should have been awarded the other way.
70

Izaguirre advances forward to the byline, whips the ball in and as Stokes aims to make contact, Williams dives in front of the striker to make a confident claim at the near post.
69

McGivern struggles for options and launches it long as a result. Hibs manage to keep the ball, but Celtic comfortably force the ball back to Williams.
68

As the ball clips off Izaguirre, Hibs win a throw-in, but they can't make their movement in the final third pay off as Taiwo concedes a free-kick on Brown upon losing the ball.
67

Doyle collects another warning as he slides into Ledley this time, with the striker surely bound for a yellow upon his next foul.
65

Ledley is offside trying to reach Commons' ball down the line, with Hibs pressuring following WIlliams' free-kick forward before Celtic push their opponents back.
64

A wonderful attack from Celtic sees Commons slip in far too easily past McGivern, but as he aims the ball towards Hooper, the ball cannons off Hanlon, much to Hibs' relief. That goal really would have been game over.
63

Griffiths wins the free-kick this time, with Ledley flooring the striker as both competed for the ball on the half-way line.
60

Yellow card for Griffiths following a late challenge on Mulgrew.
59

Harris keeps the ball alive at the byline, but his cut-back to Griffiths is cut out by Wilson. Hibs remain on the attack though, earning a throw-in deep in the Hoops' half.
58

Izaguirre nudges Taiwo away from the ball, but admirable pressing from the winger sees Hibs win a throw in Celtic's half.
57

Brown reacted badly to that tackle, and it has taken a moment for tensions to cool following intervention from the referee.
55

Claros, caught in two minds, concedes the ball needlessly, before showing his frustration with a lunge on Brown that earns him a yellow card.
54

Griffiths claims a free-kick under Wilson, but it is not awarded by the referee. Fair play to Hibs, they're giving it everything, but Celtic continue to look likely to score whenever they go forward. Expect more goals before the end of the day.
53

Forrest tries to get in on the act, with Hooper again picking him out in a good position, but off-balance, his first touch betrays him and Williams ushers the ball out of play.
52

Stokes holds up the ball under pressure from Doyle, but as Izaguirre delivers, a confident header from McGivern brings the attack to an end.
51

Stokes is muscled into by Maybury as a battle on the touchline commences, which results in Celtic being awarded a free-kick.
50

Mulgrew goes long in search of Commons, but the Hibs defence do well to crowd out the Celtic man and the ball rolls on for a goal-kick.
48

Two decent Hibs moments in quick succession as Harris takes on the whole Celtic defence before losing out, only for Maybury to take over and drag the ball wide from range.
46

Hibs get the game restarted.
46

The optimistic Jordan Green writes: 'Of course, anything is possible in football, come on Hibs!'

Two Hooper goals are the difference at the break and Celtic appear to be sprinting clear to victory. A Hibs goal could well change everything though, is the comeback a second-half possibility? Send your thoughts to jack.woodfield@bskyb.com or @JWoodfield365

HT: Hibernian 0 Celtic 2.
45

Hooper finds Forrest with a delightful ball, but as the chance to shoot was ignored by Forrest, his ball out wide to Stokes was poor and the chance comes to an end.
45

Mulgrew looks for that long ball that has caused problems for Hibs, but it runs along to Williams as the first half ends with a bit of a whimper.
44

McGivern comes close to meeting the ball, which eventually falls to Thomson's feet as the midfielder wildy fires over the bar.
42

With Hibs quite flat, Neil Lennon's relaxed posture is a sight to behold on the touchlines. Moments later, that changes as Hibs win a corner via a Wilson deflection.
41

Mulgrew again seeks out Commons, with Forster impressively clearing for a throw despite a collision with fellow defender Hanlon.
40

Forrest pressures Hanlon into conceding a throw-in, earning a standing ovation from the Celtic fans as their team continue to dominate possession.
39

Neat football from Hibs sees them play their way out of danger, before Thomson goes long, finding Griffiths, who drills the ball across the goal-line with no team-mate in sight.
37

Commons fancies his luck from range, striking a decent half-volley towards goal that unfortunately for him is just a few yards wide of troubling Williams.
36

As Griffiths receives treatment, Hibs fans watch on nervously as the striker hobbles to the sidelines.
35

Stokes is tackled crucially by Maybury, as the Celtic striker advanced on goal, moments before Griffiths goes down with a knock that is bound to compound the woe for Pat Fenlon.
34

Doyle clatters into Wilson and the referee penalises the Hibs forward, who perhaps unleashed a little frustration with that tackle.
33

With Hibs well and truly up against it now, they look all but beaten already, but a goal before half-time would make it interesting and potentially set up one heck of a second half.
32

In a mirror-image of their first goal, Stokes crosses into Hooper, who heads the ball across goal ahead of Forster to launch Celtic into a commanding 2-0 lead.
31

GOAL FOR CELTIC - HOOPER!
31

Doyle can't hold up play for Hibs as Brown steps in, but his ball wide to Lustig ends up with Williams as the action in midfield becomes more and more combative.
29

Commons' exeptional pass finds Ledley in behind Forster, who stabs the ball at goal with Williams making the save as Hibs are let off the hook for some uncertain defending.
28

Taiwo is reprimanded this time after lunging in late on Ledley, with the midfielder a tad lucky not to be booked.
27

Thomson drifts the ball forward, but a needless shove on Wilson by Doyle results in a Celtic free-kick.
26

Claros catches Commons as the winger fled away on the break, with the tackle earning the Hibs man a warning from the referee.
25

Hibs play back to their defence upon seeing the space dry up in Celtic's half, with the Hoops continuing to marshall their goal wonderfully.
24

Stokes is found superbly by Hooper and the striker looms in on goal, twisting away from Maybury but only able to find the side netting when he lets a shot away.
23

Griffiths reclaims the ball for Hibs, but with Taiwo tracked by Wilson, a battle on the touchline results in a Celtic throw-in.
22

Griffiths slips as Doyle looks to return the ball, with the latter left annoyed after he declined the chance to unleash a shot.
20

Griffiths takes WIlliams' long ball splendidly, but as McGivern collects, his ball down the line fails to find a team-mate and it's a Celtic goal-kick.
19

Wilson clears Maybury's delivery, but the Hoops' attempts to counter are ended as Williams storms out of his goal to beat Stokes to the ball.
18

Mulgrew goes long for Hooper, but Maybury shows goof strength to win the ball in the air before Stokes is penalised for fouling Hanlon.
17

Taiwo collects the ball in midfield, but as McGivern appears on the overlap, his ball into Doyle is poked away from the striker by Wilson.
16

Once again, Brown picks out Lustig, with Celtic spreading play shortly after, but this time Brown's ball is woeful and travels out of play.
15

Hooper declines to shoot and invites in Stokes, but his effort cannons off Forster before Hibs get the ball to safety.
14

Brown finds Lustig's run down the right, but the ball from the full-back is well claimed at the near post by Williams as Celtic start to boss possession.
13

Stokes nearly carves out a second assist as he looks for Brown on the edge of the area, but Maybury lunges into clear as the ball is booted away.
11

Following that early onslaught from Hibs, it will come as a real body blow that Celtic took the lead. Can Pat Fenlon's men find a way back into this?
10

With their first real attack, Celtic break the deadlock. Stokes crosses in from the left and Hooper is on hand at the far post to poke the ball into the net. First blood to the Hoops!
8

GOAL FOR CELTIC - HOOPER!
8

Forster is called into action, making a wonderful save as McGivern's delivery from the left finds the head of Doyle, with a powerfully header clawed away by the Celtic keeper.
7

Harris takes on Izaguirre before whipping the ball into the Celtic penalty area which sees the alert Wilson make the clearance. Lively start this from Hibs.
6

First real chance of the game falls to Taiwo, who launches a volley at goal following the corner but sees it fly narrowly over the bar.
5

McGivern goes long for Griffiths, before Wilson looks to close down the in-form striker and ends up conceding a corner.
4

Free-kick to Celtic as Commons is tripped, before playing short to Brown as Claros nips in and steals possession. The Celtic captain ends up retrieving the ball shortly after.
3

Griffiths takes aim near the touchline, with an ambitious 40-yard drive not close to troubling Forster in the Celtic goal.
2

Celtic kick-off as the action gets underway.
1

The players are out on the pitch, with a tremendous atmosphere greeting them as we prepare for kick-off at Hampden.

Defender Charlie Mulgrew and winger James Forrest recover from their respective knee and hamstring injuries to take their place in the Celtic side. Boss Neil Lennon, who has midfielders Victor Wanyama and Beram Kayal suspended, also drafts in striker Anthony Stokes with Efe Ambrose, Paddy McCourt and Georgios Samaras dropping to the bench. Hibs captain James McPake was ruled out on Friday with a back injury which means 19-year-old Jordon Forster retains his place in central defence as midfielder Kevin Thomson and forward Eoin Doyle come in for Lewis Stevenson and Ross Caldwell, who are named among the substitutes.

It's been 111 years since Hibs won the Scottish Cup, but in a big boost for Pat Fenlon's side, Leigh Griffiths starts and is 15/2 with Sky Bet to open the scoring. Celtic are heavy 5/2 favourites to win the trophy, with Hibs at 7/1 to pull off the upset.

Celtic: Forster, Izaguirre, Wilson, Brown, Stokes, Commons, Ledley, Mulgrew, Lustig, Forrest, Hooper. Subs: Zaluska, Ambrose, Samaras, Rogic, McCourt.

Hibernian: Williams, McGivern, Hanlon, Claros, Griffiths, Doyle, Maybury, Taiwo, Harris, Forster, Thomson. Subs: Murdoch, Stevenson, Handling, Robertson, Caldwell.

Taken from sportinglife.com