The Slope

[Colr]

Anyone miss the slope at Easter Road?

Where we told to remove it?

The siight of Hibs attacking downhill in the second half must have been one of the most thrilling in football.

[Mon Dieu4]

Sure it was to do with being UEFA compliant

[Jamesie]

Anyone miss the slope at Easter Road?

Where we told to remove it?

The siight of Hibs attacking downhill in the second half must have been one of the most thrilling in football.

We had to remove it in order to be able to play European matches at ER. Ironically I have noticed that in each and every game this season we have kicked off going “up” what was once the slope. Has there been a rule change and no coin toss re which end is taken anymore?

[Colr]

Sure it was to do with being UEFA compliant

Pity we couldn't have put it on hydraulics!!

[Smartie]

I know of a former Hibs captain who would beat himself up a fair bit if he lost the toss - he knew how psychologically significant is was for Hibs to kick "doon the slope" in the second half.

[Michael]

We had to remove it in order to be able to play European matches at ER. Ironically I have noticed that in each and every game this season we have kicked off going “up” what was once the slope. Has there been a rule change and no coin toss re which end is taken anymore?

Both sides usually want to attack towards their own fans in the second half. Think there's still a toss.

[CraigHibee]

Anyone miss the slope at Easter Road?

Where we told to remove it?

The siight of Hibs attacking downhill in the second half must have been one of the most thrilling in football.

I don't think we were specifically told to get rid the slope but I think it got done when the west (or east) stand was being built

[Peevemor]

I don't think we were specifically told to get rid the slope but I think it got done when the west (or east) stand was being built

It goes back further than that. The FF and South stands were built to accommodate a level pitch - thus the front rows were respectively above and below pitch level. The pitch was eventually levelled of when the West was built a good few years later.

If only our pink neighbours had had as much foresight when planning their stadium redevelopment...

[Colr]

It goes back further than that. The FF and South stands were built to accommodate a level pitch - thus the front rows were respectively above and below pitch level. The pitch was eventually levelled of when the West was built a good few years later.

If only our pink neighbours had had as much foresight when planning their stadium redevelopment...

Have they still not removed the lumps?

[Sauzee16]

I don't think we were specifically told to get rid the slope but I think it got done when the west (or east) stand was being built

It was levelled before the West was built. Think it coincided with a new drainage system at the Millenium.

[Peevemor]

It was levelled before the West was built. Think it coincided with a new drainage system at the Millenium.

What? Our rainwater ends up in Cardiff?

[Sauzee16]

What? Our rainwater ends up in Cardiff?

Year 2000. Sorry. :greengrin

[hibbysam]

We had to remove it in order to be able to play European matches at ER. Ironically I have noticed that in each and every game this season we have kicked off going “up” what was once the slope. Has there been a rule change and no coin toss re which end is taken anymore?

Still a coin toss but I reckon most captains don’t really care which end they’re shooting into first/last. Sun/wind doesn’t effect it too much with the stands and that’s the only thing that may influence a decision.

[One Day Soon]

Have they still not removed the flumps?

Fixed that for you.

[J-C]

We had to remove it in order to be able to play European matches at ER. Ironically I have noticed that in each and every game this season we have kicked off going “up” what was once the slope. Has there been a rule change and no coin toss re which end is taken anymore?

Most teams play toward certain stands in games and opposition teams know this and usually respect that, some teams will refuse to do it just to pee us off but not that often.

[Famous Fiver]

In the old days Hibs were always attacking the end where our fans were. Changed ends at half time every week.

[Sauzee16]

Most teams play toward certain stands in games and opposition teams know this and usually respect that, some teams will refuse to do it just to pee us off but not that often.

Is it to do with respect or to shoot towards their own away fans second half?

[Keith_M]

In the old days Hibs were always attacking the end where our fans were. Changed ends at half time every week.


But the Cave end at the north part of the stadium was where our most fervent fans stood.



Just ask Blackpool Hibs, he still goes on about it forty years later

:wink:

[jacomo]

Most teams play toward certain stands in games and opposition teams know this and usually respect that, some teams will refuse to do it just to pee us off but not that often.


I was sure we had to switch halves for a game last season.

[Greentinted]

It was levelled before the West was built. Think it coincided with a new drainage system at the Millenium.

I cannae find any pics but I recall the perimeter wall along the East touchline was sloped, the gradient increasing North to South iirc, after the pitch was levelled. Looked a bit weird

[hibbyfraelibby]

If I recall the pitch actually sloped from south west corner to north east corner more than it did along the west side. 8 ft as opposed to just 4 ft which could explain why the long diagonal ball always worked in the second half!

[blackpoolhibs]

But the Cave end at the north part of the stadium was where our most fervent fans stood.



Just ask Blackpool Hibs, he still goes on about it forty years later

:wink:

Exactly, still waiting on my email from Tom Hart about that bloody bench seating.

[J-C]

If I recall the pitch actually sloped from south west corner to north east corner more than it did along the west side. 8 ft as opposed to just 4 ft which could explain why the long diagonal ball always worked in the second half!

It sloped towards the corner of the North and West stands, if you sat in the East near the South stand the bottom 6-8in of the far away corner flag was impossible to see.

[Jamesie]

It goes back further than that. The FF and South stands were built to accommodate a level pitch - thus the front rows were respectively above and below pitch level. The pitch was eventually levelled of when the West was built a good few years later.

I seem to recall there being a large concrete wall at one end (I think the South stand) to accommodate this but I can't find any pictures to confirm my memory. IIRC an Edinburgh Gunners player suffered a nasty injury after smacking against it when they were ground sharing at ER back in the late 1990s.

[Frogga]

Has anyone been to Glebe Park in Brechin? The slope on that pitch is crazy.

Sent from my SM-J530F using Tapatalk

[Peevemor]

This photo shows the South end of the East after the pitch was levelled, leaving the front of the old terracing well above the level of the touchline. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180409/5d4022f8870ebf82c2d1630eb0ddfaf9.jpg

[Peevemor]

And here we can see how the front of the South was well below pitch level when it was built. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180409/5c492a593ff83a50b0f40eefb75cad08.jpg

[penihibs]

This photo shows the South end of the East after the pitch was levelled, leaving the front of the old terracing well above the level of the touchline. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20180409/5d4022f8870ebf82c2d1630eb0ddfaf9.jpg
The wee ballboy giving it the big yes is
Scott Smith,played in the youth team that beat Rangers to win Scottish cup. Went on to play a few games for the first team great left peg on him.

[ancient hibee]

Had a kick around on the old pitch at a hospitality do(all in best bib and tucker of course).As you would expect it was a lot easier to run down the way than up.

[Eyrie]

I still think in terms of "down the slope" when we're playing towards the Famous Five Stand.

[jacomo]

I still think in terms of "down the slope" when we're playing towards the Famous Five Stand.


:agree:

Long may it continue.

[One Day]

I still think in terms of "down the slope" when we're playing towards the Famous Five Stand.

Me too, still say playing down slope 2nd half

[SonOfDavidFrancey]

Anyone remember the sight of the teams changing ends after the coin toss, immediately followed by fans moving to be behind the goals the team was attacking. Have I imagined that?

[hibby6270]

Anyone remember the sight of the teams changing ends after the coin toss, immediately followed by fans moving to be behind the goals the team was attacking. Have I imagined that?

No. You’re spot on. In my time 5his happened regularly in the 60s/70s. Not everyone did it but there was a definite shift of people depending on which end we were playing towards. Then it was all change at half time.

[Forza Fred]

I still think in terms of "down the slope" when we're playing towards the Famous Five Stand.

Me too.

Opponents lose all hope, when we get them down the slope....Hibernian! Give us a goal!

[Glory Lurker]

IIRC, the “Inside Easter Road” video has some footage of the levelling works.

[hibbie02]

i'm pretty sure that the pitch slope was tackled a few times before we go to level. Was it not an 11 foot drop end to end originally, then cut to 6?

[Alfiembra]

Anyone remember the sight of the teams changing ends after the coin toss, immediately followed by fans moving to be behind the goals the team was attacking. Have I imagined that?

I always remember a cheer went up when Paddy Stanton won the toss and changed ends, he seemed to win the coin toss more often than not too.

[heretoday]

I don't think it was ever an advantage from a playing point of view. Our fans happened to be mostly concentrated at the end is all.

[monarch]

But the Cave end at the north part of the stadium was where our most fervent fans stood.



Just ask Blackpool Hibs, he still goes on about it forty years later

:wink:

You mean we didn't have uber fans in these days ? :greengrin

More seriously I remember being told that the teams preferred playing downhill in the second half to balance tiredness setting in towards the end of the game. Pat Stanton always maintained that considerable more effort was required when playing uphill even although the difference was reckoned to be only 6 feet.

[Keith_M]

Exactly, still waiting on my email from Tom Hart about that bloody bench seating.


Long overdue, Bud


:greengrin

[snooky]

Both sides usually want to attack towards their own fans in the second half. Think there's still a toss.

I don't think they give a toss, TBH. :wink:

[SirDavidsNapper]

I still call it kicking down the slope when we shoot towards the FF. I blame my dad for that.

[snooky]

We mostly stood on the East terracing (sometimes we went to the old 'North' Stand). I still say kicking doon the slope too. :greengrin

I can remember the fan migration after losing the toss. There was no segregation in those days.
Around that time, I roughly estimated the difference in level between each end of the enclosure along the West Stand as being about 6ft. I thought it would be slightly more between goal line to goal line. I'm sure I read somewhere what the officiall figure was but can't remember now.

FWIW, Kenny Miller was the last player to score doon the famous slope - against the Sheepies, IIRC

[SirDavidsNapper]

Interesting article





THE famous Easter Road slope, which has been graced by the likes of George Best, Dino Zoff, and Ferenc Puskas, and Scottish talent like Lawrie Reilly, Billy Bremner, Alex McLeish and Jim Baxter, will be consigned to the history books after Saturday's game against Aberdeen.
After years of staging some wonderful European nights and great domestic games, the pitch at Easter Road and the incline that slopes 6ft 3in from the top goal at the Dunbar end, where the visiting supporters sit, all the way down to the bottom goal will be levelled out in the coming months.




Some opposition players and even some young Hibs teenagers playing their first game on the pitch, faced with the strong wind, driving rain and heavy surface during an Edinburgh winter, have said playing up the slope is like trying to climb the north face of the Eiger. That sense of foreboding has worked to Hibs' advantage through the years, and clearly the positive psychology of kicking down the slope in the second half always had a place in the minds of the Hibs players.
Club historian and author John R Mackay said the Easter Road slope has been there since the pitch was laid out back in February, 1883 and in the early days had been the main problem for the club to deal with. In fact, the slope was so bad that Hibs even thought about moving lock, stock and barrel to Aberdeen in 1902, the mere suggestion leading to a north-east revolt, which resulted in the three local clubs merging to form what became the Aberdeen side of today.
Seven years later, they were still concerned at the state of their pitch and had planned to move to a new 50,000 stadium in Northfield Broadway in Edinburgh, but the local railway company got a last minute injuction which scuppered the project, although the football pitch Hibs had laid remained at the site for years, being used for minor finals.
In 1924, the playing surface at Easter Road was moved sideways by 40 yards to allow the main stand to be built, and, at the time, they made an attempt to level the pitch, but somehow still managed to be left with a 6ft 3in slope, which gives an indication as to how bad it must have been in the first place.




The soon-to-be-announced work is all part of redevelopment work for Easter Road, which is believed to include rebuilding the main stand and used to have a massive advertisement for Youngers beer on its roof.
Yesterday, three Hibs heroes of different generations, Lawrie Reilly, Keith Wright, and Alex McLeish met to discuss just what playing on the Easter Road slope meant to them and why they would mourn its passing.
In the 1950s ''Last Minute Reilly'', who was given the nickname for his knack of winning games in the dying seconds as a member of the Famous Five, remembers the confidence the side got by realising they would be playing down the slope in the second half.
At 71, he is still a regular at Easter Road and will be there on Saturday to see the end of the pitch where he recorded some of his greatest triumphs.
''Back then, if we won the toss, we would always kick up the hill in the first half,'' said Reilly. ''I think it was a more famous landmark to my generation than any other as The Famous Five team was very successful and Hibs shooting down the slope in the second half was like a war cry back then.
''Certainly, if our captain won the toss, he knew he had to shoot up the hill in the first half, and if we knew that, we had a wee boost straight away.''
As he surveyed the main stand at Easter Road, Reilly said the time was right for it to be rebuilt.




''I have great memories of the pitch and the main stand, but, to be honest, it's all a bit dilapidated now and the time is right for it to be rebuilt.
''In a way, I feel sorry for Alex McLeish, because back when I was playing, we could compete with Celtic and Rangers because the money in football, or what there was, was a bit more widespread and things like rebuilding the stand wouldn't have the affect on the bank balance it does nowadays.
''Alex has done a great job with what he has to work with, but, to be honest, no team can compete with the Old Firm like we did back in my day.''
In the 1990s, Keith Wright was a favourite with the Easter Road faithful, and it was his goal which helped secure them the Skol Cup against Dunfermline. For Wright, the passing of the Easter Road slope is the end of an era that will be felt by every Hibs supporter.
''When Alex Miller was in charge here, he made us kick up the slope in the first half, and if we weren't getting beat, I always fancied our chances going down the slope in the second half,'' said Wright, whose main goalscoring memories at Easter Road were two hat tricks - against Dunfermline and Dundee United.
However, it was Alex McLeish who best summed up the folklore surrounding the famous Easter Road slope after playing on it for Aberdeen and managing the Easter Road side successfully over the past couple of
seasons.




''When I was at Aberdeen, we realised the significance of Hibs kicking down the slope in the second half, but to be honest any advantage they got was all part of the mind games of football,'' said McLeish.
''It's sad that maybe some of
the foreign players at the club
now don't realise the history of the slope, although obviously all the Hibs fans realise its significance.
''From a managerial point of view, we usually kick up the slope in the first half, but I leave the final decision to the captain and the goalkeeper, especially if he is
having a problem with the sun.''
According to club historian Mackay, the nostalgia surrounding the slope had waned through the years, but had been at its highest in the 1950s.
Mackay said the fact the ground had such a big slope was not out of the ordinary, considering the state of other pitches of the time. However, most clubs had improved their playing surface since the early part of the last century.
''Back then, all pitches weren't in that good a condition and
Easter Road would have been like many others,'' said Mackay.
''I think the peak in interest in the slope was up until the late 1950s as Hibs were winning things and in these days the crowd would be close to the pitch and Easter Road would be an intimidating place to play.''

[blackpoolhibs]

Long overdue, Bud


:greengrin

Thought i'd mention it as i dont think i have before? :wink: