Jonnyboy
05-08-2021, 11:16 PM
I love European nights at Easter Road. Having watched many fine displays in the past, including victories over the likes of Napoli 5-0, Sporting Lisbon 6-1 and FC Besa 7-0, I wondered how we would fare against HNK Rijeka of Croatia. Of course, there were no restrictions on crowd numbers back then, and my green tinted memory was of near full houses at those games. Tonight, those that watched on were spread across the West and East Stands and in truth the atmosphere was patchy at best but cracking when the volume was raised.
Watching the teams warming up I noted that the visitors were wearing a colour very close to maroon which is never pleasing on the eye. As the warm up ended and the players started to make their way to the dressing room, I was struck by the fact that our multi million pound asset that is Josh Doig was left to join others in collecting the footballs into the net bag they are transported in. What impressed me the most was that he just got on with it, joking with the other youngsters and looking entirely happy with his lot. If the transfer talk is getting us fans excited, it certainly didn’t seem to be occupying Josh’s thoughts!
I confess I knew next to nothing of Rijeka or indeed the Croatian league they play in. I know nothing of the strength of their league but given that Croatia is a top nation internationally I guessed their players would be technically gifted and as the game unfolded, I reckon two or three of their number are indeed high grade, but only two or three. For the most part, they were workmanlike, and the truth is Hibs should have scored at least four past their keeper. Three glorious first half chances were fired straight at their goalkeeper and more than once in the second half, hesitation in shooting resulted in a Hibs man being closed down. Right at the death, Danny MacKay was through for a one on one, but the Rijeka keeper was quick off his line to deny the youngster.
An early clash of heads resulted in lengthy treatment for Paul Hanlon and the Rijeka goalkeeper, both of whom played the remainder of the game wearing head bandages. The sides were feeling each other out and the first twenty minutes or so were played mainly in midfield areas where Jake Doyle-Hayes was catching the eye for the hosts and the tricky Ampem for the visitors. Rijeka made extensive use of the diagonal crossfield ball but profited little from that possession. Lewis Stevenson was playing like a man possessed and it was ridiculous how many headers he won against taller opponents.
Nisbet and Murphy had good chances to score but shot straight at the keeper and then Boyle split the Rijeka defence with a ball to Stevenson who isn’t known for scoring goals but who came within the width of the post from putting his side ahead. Boyle himself was next to try his luck but once again the keeper was untroubled. An overly fussy referee allowed only three minutes of added time and that was played out without a change to the scoreline.
I felt Hibs came out in the second half determined to move the ball quicker and they certainly enjoyed the bulk of the possession in the opening spell. Pushing for an opener, Hibs were caught out at the back when McGinn failed to cut out a cross and Stevenson was beaten to the ball by Ampem who headed the visitors in to the lead. I felt sorry for Lewis who had been having a great game, but he could have dealt with the threat better.
A series of fouls by Rijeka players went unpunished and the home fans were loudly booing the referee, never more so than when Boyle was hauled down in the box and the ref waved penalty claims away. Thankfully, Hibs were soon back on level terms when a Magennis corner was met by Hanlon, the skipper heading the ball into the six yard box where Nisbet steered it on target with the keeper only parrying the ball into the path of Boyle who crashed it into the roof of the net.
With a little more than twenty minutes to go, Hibs tried to pile on the pressure, but the Croats packed their penalty area, and no Hibs player could find the space for a clear shot on goal. The referee seemed hell bent on taking centre stage and bizarrely was more concerned with ensuring free kicks were taken from the exact spot of the infringement rather than clamping down on some of the industrial challenges being meted out.
For their part, Rijeka did try to get forward for periods of the remaining time but the closer we got to ninety minutes the deeper they dropped in protecting what they had. In an effort to clinch a winner, Jack Ross made a triple substitution removing Magennis, Newell and the limping Nisbet with Gogic, MacKay and Allan. Right at the death, two of those substitutes combined as Scott Allan sent a slide rule pass into the path of Danny MacKay who was though one on one, but the keeper was quickly out of his goal to block the youngster’s effort.
And so, the sides remain locked in a 1-1 situation ahead of next week’s second leg, but I am strongly of the belief that we can go there and win. It will be a hostile atmosphere, I’m sure but we have the players to overcome that.
The players
Macey – Didn’t have a great deal to do and not at fault for their goal. I wish when he has the ball at his feet and is being closed down, that he would clear it more quickly because right now he’s giving me the heebie jeebies.
McGinn – Had a busy night defensively and I think he had a chance to block the cross that led to the goal but was on his heels a bit and couldn’t react quickly enough.
Porteous – Ryan was fabulous tonight, bar one misplaced pass. Excellent both in the air and on the ground, this was a very mature performance from the youngster who wins my man of the match award.
Hanlon – Despite the early head knock, Paul had a fine game and his header back into the danger area at our goal was excellent.
Stevenson – Lewis was immense tonight but blotted his copybook at their goal. That’s a negative for sure, but there were plenty of positives too, including hitting the post with a fierce drive.
Boyle – I thought Boyle had a quiet first half, other than his defence splitting pass to Lewis but he came into his own in the second, scoring our goal and causing their defenders bags of problems.
Magennis – Continued where he left off at Motherwell. Bags of energy but lacking a little in pace he was all over the park tonight.
Doyle-Hayes – What a fine performance from the young lad. Works his socks off in continually moving to either receive or pass the ball. Got the sponsor man of the match award and came very close to getting mine.
Newell – Joe protects the back four well and I was delighted tonight to see him forging upfield on occasion. One particular first time pass to Murphy is still being replayed in my head.
Murphy – Jamie kinda drifted a bit tonight and I felt he left Lewis alone to often at times rather than tracking back to help defend.
Nisbet – Showed some fantastic first touches and I was particularly impressed with how cleverly he uses his body strength to outmuscle opponents.
Doidge – Did I really witness a piece of sublime skill from the big fella when he flipped the ball over an opponent’s head before going around him to collect it! Gave their defenders something to worry about from balls crossed into the box.
Gogic – I’m not sure what’s happened to him. He was poor at Motherwell and struggled tonight, failing to clear his lines more than once.
MacKay – I feel heart sorry for the kid as he was clearly shattered at missing his late chance. It was good to see Jack Ross put an arm around him as the players left the pitch at the end.
Allan – Scotty had little time to make his mark but provided that superb pass for MacKay’s effort.
Jack Ross – Will be pleased with his players and I hope he shares my optimism for the second leg.
Referee – You know they’re poor when they turn out to be worse than Scottish ones.
Watching the teams warming up I noted that the visitors were wearing a colour very close to maroon which is never pleasing on the eye. As the warm up ended and the players started to make their way to the dressing room, I was struck by the fact that our multi million pound asset that is Josh Doig was left to join others in collecting the footballs into the net bag they are transported in. What impressed me the most was that he just got on with it, joking with the other youngsters and looking entirely happy with his lot. If the transfer talk is getting us fans excited, it certainly didn’t seem to be occupying Josh’s thoughts!
I confess I knew next to nothing of Rijeka or indeed the Croatian league they play in. I know nothing of the strength of their league but given that Croatia is a top nation internationally I guessed their players would be technically gifted and as the game unfolded, I reckon two or three of their number are indeed high grade, but only two or three. For the most part, they were workmanlike, and the truth is Hibs should have scored at least four past their keeper. Three glorious first half chances were fired straight at their goalkeeper and more than once in the second half, hesitation in shooting resulted in a Hibs man being closed down. Right at the death, Danny MacKay was through for a one on one, but the Rijeka keeper was quick off his line to deny the youngster.
An early clash of heads resulted in lengthy treatment for Paul Hanlon and the Rijeka goalkeeper, both of whom played the remainder of the game wearing head bandages. The sides were feeling each other out and the first twenty minutes or so were played mainly in midfield areas where Jake Doyle-Hayes was catching the eye for the hosts and the tricky Ampem for the visitors. Rijeka made extensive use of the diagonal crossfield ball but profited little from that possession. Lewis Stevenson was playing like a man possessed and it was ridiculous how many headers he won against taller opponents.
Nisbet and Murphy had good chances to score but shot straight at the keeper and then Boyle split the Rijeka defence with a ball to Stevenson who isn’t known for scoring goals but who came within the width of the post from putting his side ahead. Boyle himself was next to try his luck but once again the keeper was untroubled. An overly fussy referee allowed only three minutes of added time and that was played out without a change to the scoreline.
I felt Hibs came out in the second half determined to move the ball quicker and they certainly enjoyed the bulk of the possession in the opening spell. Pushing for an opener, Hibs were caught out at the back when McGinn failed to cut out a cross and Stevenson was beaten to the ball by Ampem who headed the visitors in to the lead. I felt sorry for Lewis who had been having a great game, but he could have dealt with the threat better.
A series of fouls by Rijeka players went unpunished and the home fans were loudly booing the referee, never more so than when Boyle was hauled down in the box and the ref waved penalty claims away. Thankfully, Hibs were soon back on level terms when a Magennis corner was met by Hanlon, the skipper heading the ball into the six yard box where Nisbet steered it on target with the keeper only parrying the ball into the path of Boyle who crashed it into the roof of the net.
With a little more than twenty minutes to go, Hibs tried to pile on the pressure, but the Croats packed their penalty area, and no Hibs player could find the space for a clear shot on goal. The referee seemed hell bent on taking centre stage and bizarrely was more concerned with ensuring free kicks were taken from the exact spot of the infringement rather than clamping down on some of the industrial challenges being meted out.
For their part, Rijeka did try to get forward for periods of the remaining time but the closer we got to ninety minutes the deeper they dropped in protecting what they had. In an effort to clinch a winner, Jack Ross made a triple substitution removing Magennis, Newell and the limping Nisbet with Gogic, MacKay and Allan. Right at the death, two of those substitutes combined as Scott Allan sent a slide rule pass into the path of Danny MacKay who was though one on one, but the keeper was quickly out of his goal to block the youngster’s effort.
And so, the sides remain locked in a 1-1 situation ahead of next week’s second leg, but I am strongly of the belief that we can go there and win. It will be a hostile atmosphere, I’m sure but we have the players to overcome that.
The players
Macey – Didn’t have a great deal to do and not at fault for their goal. I wish when he has the ball at his feet and is being closed down, that he would clear it more quickly because right now he’s giving me the heebie jeebies.
McGinn – Had a busy night defensively and I think he had a chance to block the cross that led to the goal but was on his heels a bit and couldn’t react quickly enough.
Porteous – Ryan was fabulous tonight, bar one misplaced pass. Excellent both in the air and on the ground, this was a very mature performance from the youngster who wins my man of the match award.
Hanlon – Despite the early head knock, Paul had a fine game and his header back into the danger area at our goal was excellent.
Stevenson – Lewis was immense tonight but blotted his copybook at their goal. That’s a negative for sure, but there were plenty of positives too, including hitting the post with a fierce drive.
Boyle – I thought Boyle had a quiet first half, other than his defence splitting pass to Lewis but he came into his own in the second, scoring our goal and causing their defenders bags of problems.
Magennis – Continued where he left off at Motherwell. Bags of energy but lacking a little in pace he was all over the park tonight.
Doyle-Hayes – What a fine performance from the young lad. Works his socks off in continually moving to either receive or pass the ball. Got the sponsor man of the match award and came very close to getting mine.
Newell – Joe protects the back four well and I was delighted tonight to see him forging upfield on occasion. One particular first time pass to Murphy is still being replayed in my head.
Murphy – Jamie kinda drifted a bit tonight and I felt he left Lewis alone to often at times rather than tracking back to help defend.
Nisbet – Showed some fantastic first touches and I was particularly impressed with how cleverly he uses his body strength to outmuscle opponents.
Doidge – Did I really witness a piece of sublime skill from the big fella when he flipped the ball over an opponent’s head before going around him to collect it! Gave their defenders something to worry about from balls crossed into the box.
Gogic – I’m not sure what’s happened to him. He was poor at Motherwell and struggled tonight, failing to clear his lines more than once.
MacKay – I feel heart sorry for the kid as he was clearly shattered at missing his late chance. It was good to see Jack Ross put an arm around him as the players left the pitch at the end.
Allan – Scotty had little time to make his mark but provided that superb pass for MacKay’s effort.
Jack Ross – Will be pleased with his players and I hope he shares my optimism for the second leg.
Referee – You know they’re poor when they turn out to be worse than Scottish ones.