Mark Brown aims to grab cup final chance after near misses

JUST a few weeks ago, Mark Brown feared he would suffer the agony of yet another near miss if Hibs reached this weekend’s Scottish Cup final. Instead, he is now readying himself for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hit the ultimate jackpot against Hearts.

The 31-year-old had spent most of this season playing second fiddle to Graham Stack but was thrust back into the limelight in dramatic fashion during last month’s semi-final victory over Aberdeen.

With just 17 minutes remaining, and with Brown cracking jokes on the sidelines, the former Motherwell and Inverness keeper was called on to help the Easter Road side seal tomorrow’s historic all-Edinburgh final when Stack injured his thigh.

Brown was at Rangers when three outfield players were named on the bench for their 4-0 Scottish Cup triumph over Aberdeen in 2000 and was then cup-tied when Celtic lifted the trophy courtesy of their 1-0 victory over Dunfermline seven years later following his move from Inverness midway through that season.

The Scotland B cap then at least got closer to the cup final action when the Parkhead side defeated rivals Rangers 2-0 to scoop the League Cup in 2009.

In Saturday’s bumper 24-page Scotsman Sport pull-out, the latest interviews, features and exclusives from the Hibs and Hearts camps ahead of the all-Edinburgh Scottish Cup final.

But he is now desperate to make the most of the golden chance afforded by Stack’s misfortune to finally play his part in lifting silverware.

He said: “I was on the bench for a League Cup final at Celtic and I was cup-tied for the Scottish Cup final when we beat Dunfermline. I was at the game but unfortunately couldn’t be involved. These occasions don’t come around that often in your career, especially for players outwith the Old Firm, so you have to savour them. We have to prepare right for the game and come Saturday try and get the job done. It will be great to be involved.

“Very rarely do you get an Old Firm-free final. It’s a huge occasion and there’s obviously a lot of excitement in Edinburgh. We’ve been speaking to the fans at various sponsors’ events and you can tell what it means to them. The capital will probably be empty on Saturday.

“I’ve been at Rangers and I’ve been at Celtic and there’s no doubt every trophy you win there is very special. But getting to a cup final with Hibs, against Hearts, is just something different. There is a different feel to this. It’s over 100 years since these two teams played each other, which is hard to believe when you consider the size of the clubs, and so we know the history attached. It’s like a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Hopefully we can put on a decent show.

“The way the season was going it looked like it would just peter out with me sitting on the bench but football changes quickly.”