All-night celebration as Hibs win Scottish Cup

IT was a party 114 years in the making.

As the full reality of Hibs’ historic Scottish Cup final victory sank in, grown men wept tears of pure joy, cheers rang out long into the night and fans danced and jumped in the street, belting out Sunshine On Leith until they were hoarse.

Publicans up and down Easter Road said they had never been so busy as beer pumps ran dry and bars filled to bursting.

The cup-winning Hibs squad was also quick to get a piece of the action, with Alan Stubbs and his team partying at Easter Road’s hospitality suite in a day that fans and players didn’t want to end.

Lisa McKenzie, a member of staff in Middletons Bar in Easter Road, which saw some of the wildest celebrations of the night, described a “brilliant atmosphere” with not even a hint of trouble.

She said: “The fans have been singing Sunshine on Leith all night long. I am born and bred in Leith and I have never seen anything like it. We have no tenants left and it’s crazy out there.”

Easter Road had a Hogmanay-like feel, fans said, as the atmosphere around Hibs’ home ground reached fever pitch.

Eric Gillespie, who lives off the thoroughfare, said: “The street has been like New Year on Princes Street. Everybody is singing and dancing. And when the pubs are too busy for people to get served, they’ve just been getting carry-outs.”

Ex-Royal Marine Martin Dixon, 35, who is originally from northern England but has lived in Leith for more than a decade, watched his team, Manchester United, win the FA Cup only hours after Hibs clinched their  famous victory.

He said: “Hibs supporters party a lot harder than Manchester United fans. I know that because I called my sisters who were down there.”

Speaking from the The Mash Tun in Easter Road, Andy Johnston, 23, from Linlithgow, described unforgettable scenes of emotion.

“I’m still in shock,” he said. “I have never seen so many grown men cry. And it was the first time I have seen my dad cry.”

The party began as David Gray netted Hibs’ last-minute winner at the end of Saturday’s match – sparking a surge of  happiness across Leith.

In The Mash Tun pub in Easter Road, bar manager Grant McNeil spoke of an electric atmosphere.

The 36-year-old said: “The whole place was going mental – well over 100 people were here. It’s going to be a good night. The place will be jumping.”

Long-suffering Hibby Robert Dick, drinking nearby, summed up the general elation and disbelief as he described going “numb” when captain Gray scored.

The 53-year-old said: “My wee one is 11 tomorrow, and he said to me, ‘Daddy, would it not be great if Hibs brought the Scottish Cup home – would that not be the best present ever for me?’

“He’s only 11, he doesn’t realise that his grandad and his dad have never seen Hibs win this cup either. Until the final whistle went, I still could not believe it was going to happen.”