September 16th 2001
Scottish Premier League
Attendance: 11,035
Scorers:
Hibernian: Brewster(2), McManus, Luna(2).
Dunfermline: Crawford.
This is a copy of a report of the game as it appeared in the Scotsman on Monday September 17th 2001
AS PREPARATIONS for Europe go, this was just about perfect for Hibs. They may not be favourites to win their UEFA Cup first round tie against AEK Athens, but they will fly out for Thursday’s first leg buoyed by the knowledge that they are playing with an increasing consistency and composure.
Two goals apiece from Craig Brewster and Francisco Luna - in each player’s case, his first strikes for the club - and one from Tam McManus added up to a score which by no means flattered Hibs.
On the contrary, it flattered Dunfermline, who might have lost seven or eight without feeling too hard done by.
To make matters worse for Jimmy Calderwood’s side, they had Barry Nicholson sent off in the dying minutes for a second bookable offence. Not exactly possessed of an embarrassment of riches, Dunfermline could well do without losing such players to suspension.
They were awful yesterday, especially in defence, and drastic action is required if they are to avoid spending the rest of the season flailing about in the SPL’s morass of mediocrity.
Hibs, by contrast, are on a run of form which is anything but mediocre. Their opponents were so poor that one would hesitate to call this a classic display, but this was all the same the kind of performance which Alex McLeish, the manager at Easter Road, must have hoped for before the club’s European venture.
"That was a good day’s work," McLeish said. "It’s great to see the players playing without apprehension. It’s good for the confidence, no doubt about that.
"[Athens will be] a different game, different tactics, but there’s no reason why the guys can’t do themselves justice."
What is more, while Hibs have had a run of competitive matches in which to find their feet and integrate their key new players such as Brewster, Ulises De la Cruz and Alen Orman, AEK are still only playing friendlies, awaiting the opening day of their league season.
So Hibs will at least travel hopefully, in distinct contrast to the mood Dunfermline must have been in as they crossed back over the Forth. "It was a very, very poor performance," Calderwood stated without any fear whatsoever of being contradicted.
"Everything that could go wrong did go wrong defensively. They know how bad they were. They’ve got to show character."
It did not take long for Hibs’ superiority to become clear, even though a full ten minutes elapsed before they had their first clear chance. That fell to McManus, who was inches away from getting a head to John O’Neil’s inswinging cross.
Two minutes later, Paul Fenwick did make contact with a cross, only to see his header tipped over the bar by Marco Ruitenbeek in the Dunfermline goal.
Ruitenbeek was to make several more such interventions throughout the course of the half, but he could do nothing to prevent Hibs’ opening goal.
The Dunfermline back four were not so free of blame, though, as they were caught ball-watching when Craig Brewster nipped in front of them and swept a cutback from Ulises de la Cruz into the net.
Franck Sauzee came close to putting Hibs 2-0 up after half an hour, but Ruitenbeek tipped his 25-yard left-footed drive past the post. Hibs were finding an increasing number of openings by this time, and they were to find more when, just a minute after Sauzee’s effort, Youssef Rossi went off the park to receive treatment for a cut to the head.
Deprived of the cornerstone of their defence, Dunfermline began to look even shakier, and it was no surprise when Hibs doubled their lead within two minutes of Rossi’s departure.
Brewster was again on target, driving a loose ball into the net from around ten yards out after McManus had done well to send in a low cross from the right.
A minute later, a shot from Orman went just wide, and, although Rossi then came back on, it looked like the damage had been done from the Fifers’ point of view, with Hibs completely in control.
To their credit, though, Dunfermline fought back, and after 38 minutes Stevie Crawford made it 2-1, leaving Nick Colgan stranded by back-heeling into the bottom corner after a David Nicholls header.
Stung by this unexpected riposte, Hibs hit back immediately, and came close twice, through Orman and McManus, before the two eventually combined to make it 3-1.
Orman provided the expertly weighted chip into the box, and McManus contributed the shot on the turn which left Ruitenbeek clutching at air. Again two goals to the good, Hibs would surely not let their advantage slip.
So it proved in a second half which, after the excitement of the first, was for the most part a dull and relatively shapeless affair. Dunfermline were keen enough to get back into the match, but, bereft of inventiveness, laboured away with as much creative spark as a bunch of peasants in a turnip field.
De la Cruz almost put them completely out of their misery when latching on to a through ball with 20 minutes left, but Ruitenbeek stuck out a foot to stop the Ecuadorian’s shot.
A minute later, the goalkeeper was again let down by his defence, and this time the issue was finally settled. Orman’s low cross appeared to carry no threat, but when Andrius Skerla stumbled, substitute Paco Luna was left with the time and space to pick his spot in the net.
With seven minutes remaining, Luna was given even more space in the box, and headed into the net to complete what was a depressing afternoon for Dunfermline, but a highly encouraging one for Hibs.
The Teams:
Hibernian: Colgan, G Smith, Fenwick, Laursen, Sauzee, Jack, McManus, J O’Neil, Brewster, Orman, De La Cruz.
Dunfermline: Ruitenbeek, Rossi, MacPherson, Petrie, Skerla, Thomson, Crawford, Nicholson, Mason, Nicholls, De Gier.
After the disappointment of the call off in Athens, Hibs gave their fans a stunning performance with Dunfermline lucky to escape with just a 5 - 1 hammering.
All the goals were scored by strikers, with both Brewster and Luna picking up their first goals of the season - this will do their confidence no harm. Only Zitelli has yet to score from the forward line, however he can count himself unluck in this game. After coming on as a second half substitute, he took up some wonderful positions only to be starved of the ball.
Frank Sauzee was once again immense at the back, and it was good to see McLeish take him off with fifteen minutes to go - save him for Thursday.
Hopefully, this week will see the AEK Athens match played - unfortunately our reporter (Baldy) was there last week - so it will probably be the view from the TV for this game.
The next league match is at home to St Johnstone next Sunday!
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