Hibernian 5 - 1 Montrose: Polished Hibs fire five to keep cup quest alive

Published on Sunday 7 February 2010 23:21

THIS was brutally efficient from Hibernian, who look increasingly at ease in the Scottish Cup this season. The quality of opposition is guaranteed to improve in the quarter-finals, but Hibs have form on their side, if not history.

This was their fourth successive victory in a fortnight. There is no shame for Montrose, who fell by the same score-line as suffered by Hamilton Academical at Easter Road at the end of last month. No-one from the Angus side was prepared to say anything so dramatic as: 'we saw the cup winners out there'. But Andrew McNeil, who fulfilled his aim to distinguish himself on his return to his old club, claimed that this Hibs side are better than the team which won the League Cup in 2007.

His is an opinion which carries weight, since McNeil kept goal for that side. But it is hardly a controversial viewpoint. Anyone can see that this is an outfit which carries more threat. Derek Riordan, for one, has since returned to the club from Celtic, and provided a goal – the most spectacular one, naturally – on Saturday. And then there is Alan Gow, who looked lean and lively in a cameo appearance at the end, and who completed the scoring with a fine solo strike.

Riordan talked later of there being "loads of quality" at the club. He used the players kicking their heels in the stand as proof of this abundance of talent. Danny Galbraith, who scored the winner at Parkhead recently, did not even feature on the bench, Riordan noted. Hibs are in an enviable position. The season explodes with possibilities, on league and cup fronts.

The stadium again thrilled to an emphatic victory for the home side. John Hughes' side's desire to succeed in this year's competition seems to have been intensified by a belief that this could be the year. This appetite reduces the chances of a team such as Montrose springing the kind of surprise the neutral – along with nearly 600 away fans – might have wished for. But Hibs believe their struggles in the competition lends their narrative an epic quality. Is there anything so romantic as a 108-year odyssey to claim back something that has been lost? Not in Hibbie eyes. They will happily tread across the dreams of others to attain the sense of closure a Scottish Cup victory would achieve. Montrose, who Hughes described as the real heroes both before and after the game, lay trampled at the end.

The Third Division side were treated like Irvine Meadow, who fell 3-0 to Hibs in the last round. They were welcomed in as guests, but then sent briskly on their way. Indeed, the Junior side might well have caused Hibs more problems, but then can point to a budget that far exceeds that which Steven Tweed has been expected to work miracles at Links Park this season.

The player-manager perhaps proved why he is cut out for management. He put others first, and left himself out of the side. Anybody with his emotional ties to Easter Road would have been tempted to include himself in the line-up. But Tweed, who has been plagued by a calf injury of late but was fit to play, decided to pair Sean Crighton and Alan Campbell in the middle of defence. He explained later that he had played enough times at Easter Road. For some in his side, this might have been their only chance.

Montrose could have done with his experience on the pitch, particularly since the start they dreaded came to pass. Hibs went ahead after four minutes through Colin Nish. But, even then, Montrose had already spurned a chance to open the scoring. Hugh Davidson will be haunted by the moment he was left with a free shot after Steven Nicholas had hounded Ian Murray on the bye-line, and cut-back a fine ball for his team-mate. Davidson mis-kicked horribly, and the chance was not only gone, but led almost directly to Hibs' opening goal. McNeil could only parry an effort by Riordan at the other end, and Nish swept in the rebound.

Nish made it 2-0 from a John Rankin cross, and Riordan, Abdessalam Benjelloun and Gow, on his debut, added to the scoring in the second-half. But Montrose at least managed a goal, and at the end where their fans had made themselves heard throughout. It was a glorious strike too, dispatched from 25 yards by Chris Hegarty. For four delirious minutes Montrose were back to within two goals of their hosts. But two further strikes from Hibs – a header from Benjelloun after good work from Merouane Zemmama and a mazy run and finish from Gow – saw the scoreline reflect more accurately the balance of play. These two goals also meant the perceptive soul behind Montrose's 'Gable End Graffiti' website can cast himself as an oracle, since the writer had forecast the Links Park side would fall by a margin which lay somewhere in between the outcomes of their last two meetings with Hibs. They lost 2-0 in 1995, but were thumped 9-0 seven years ago. They even managed a goal on this occasion.

One disappointment was the standard of refereeing. Alan Muir was maddeningly over-officious, ignoring the obvious cases of advantage and bringing back play when a minor foul had been committed. He was the subject of jeers from all four sides of Easter Road following Hegarty's 73rd-minute strike. The midfielder ran to his own fans to receive their acclaim which, sadly, meant a booking. Muir can't be blamed for this risible rule but it summed up an afternoon when officialdom often soured an enjoyable occasion.