Accies 1, Hibernian 2: League Cup Round 2: Saturday, 8 August 1998

Accies were knocked out of the League Cup on Saturday by a less than impressive Hibs team. Accies started the match very strongly and were in control for the first fifteen minutes or so. We very nearly snatched the lead early on when Tommy Tait's header from a Nicky Henderson corner was deflected onto the crossbar by a Hibs defender.

After this fright, however, Hibs really took control of the game and spent much of the first half encamped on the half way line. They took the lead midway through the first half with an absolute shocker of a goal. Shaun Dennis got a free header from a corner and, after some sloppy defending, the ball was forced just over the line by a Hibs player. Naturally, this led to the brainless Hibs fans thinking it was a grand idea to gloat to the bemused Accies fans. The really nauseating bit was at half time, when, in turn, Kevin Harper, Austrian recruit Peter Guggi and the other sub were called over individually to the large travelling support for some hand clapping, high-fives etc. After his awful performance in the second half, I don't think too many would want to shake Kevin Harper's hand now.

The early part of the second half followed the same pattern, with Tony Rougier combining great ability with an alarming tendency to fall over for no apparent reason. The referee fell for this trick on several occasions. The game really came to life after the hour, when Michael Geraghty was replaced by David McFarlane. Shortly afterwards, when my pal Gerry was just mentioning that Steven Renicks should have a go at goal, he did just that. His shot was well struck, but was so far left of the keeper that it would have gone out for a throw in. However, Davie McFarlane thumped the ball low past the goalie and it was 1-1. This was just what we needed and Accies really dominated the rest of the match without ever looking like scoring. Gary Wales was particularly impressive up front and a partnership with David McFarlane might be very productive.

Unfortunately, Hibs scored a very late winner, with Accies breaking the law which states that you should never lose a goal after ten to five. The referee gave a very soft free kick outside the box, the ball was floated over to the back post, where it was nodded back into the middle for an easy tap-in. The Hibs fans celebrated and we hit the road. At the final whistle, many of the Accies fans gave their team a standing ovation.

Accies man of the match : Gary Wales

Accies : I McFarlane, Renicks, Cunnington, Hillcoat, Tait, Berry, Thomson, N Henderson, McAulay, Geraghty, Wales and D Henderson.

- Read the fans' memories, or add your own, via this link.

- Please contact us if you have any information that will improve this page or if you spot any mistakes.

Images

Videos

Links and References