They're all gone!
Ticket Office staff deserve their praise after record sales....

34,800 now that is some figure.  And that is how many Hibs fans will be at Hampden a week on Sunday to cheer their team on with hopes of winning the CIS Cup.  Cup Final Fever has already hit the fans of Hibernian Football Club even with over a week to go till the big day.  The ticket sales alone show this to be the case with the club once again speaking to the SFL with a plea for more tickets for those of the Hibee faithful who have not been fortunate enough to get their hands on a ticket yet.  Fingers crossed that those who it concerns will get a ticket for what is going to be the biggest day of the season for the Hibs support.

The club newsletter which I have just finished reading has at the top a superb picture of the queue from the ticket office into Albion Road.  It is a truly wonderful sight to behold that so many fans want a ticket for this game after those from the semi-final and the season ticket holders have got their share already.  A big congratulations must go to the Ticket Office staff at Easter Road as they all worked extremely hard on Tuesday and since then with tickets still having to be posted out to and collected by fans.  12,000 tickets went on Tuesday alone when the tickets went on public sale some queuing from the wee small hours of the morning to get the briefs that they wanted.  Those who have not been lucky enough to get a ticket I do feel genuinely sorry for them and it was a suggestion on the hibs.net messageboard that a ticket exchange should be set up for those who might have a spare ticket to pass it on to someone without one.  It is a cracking idea, as I know I would be so grateful for it if I didn’t have a ticket for the game.

John Campbell gets ready for the last Hampden trip!  This time a few more will make it!  (hibs.net)

But these ticket sales figures do bring up an old chestnut that comes up every time there is a Final or a big game involving Hibs which I don’t really want to go into but I do know it is on the minds of some of the regular attendees at Easter Road some season ticket holders others not.  I could fall into the category that this chestnut concerns as I for my part have not exactly been regularly attending Easter Road this season.  But as far as I am concerned on this recurring issue the more Hibees that are there to lend their support to the boys on what is a massive occasion for them the better.  Hampden will indeed be a mass of green and white, a sight not to be missed.

With no game this week the focus will totally be on preparation for the Cup Final with Bobby Williamson hoping to get a bounce game organised in the run up.  I have little doubt that the players will be as excited as the fans and knowing that so many of the Hibs support will be there will be a boost to them as the vocal backing will hopefully be astonishing.  Many of the players are young and this will be their first experience of a major Cup Final.  Those who have been there before will at least know about the nerves that will surely set in before the game and during it.  They will I’m sure help the youngsters and make them feel at ease as they prepare for the big day.

Well that’s about it from me for this week.  Just a wee message to the boys…have a good weekend and week before the Final.  And to the fans…enjoy the build up!

In other news Rod Petrie is pleading with members of the Hibs support not to tout any extra tickets they may have for more than their face value.  He urges fans to use a ticket exchange like the one set up on hibs.net if they have extra tickets which could allow others to attend the big match on March 14^th. 

Rod Petrie was also shocked to hear that Celtic will play Motherwell on the same day as the CIS Cup Final with a 1.30pm kick off.  The game was re-arranged to accommodate Celtic’s UEFA Cup commitments but fans of both Hibs and Livingston will be disappointed to learn of this especially after Rangers refused to switch their game to the same Sunday as they felt it would be inappropriate.  Mr Petrie has contacted the SPL to register his disappointment with this move.