Right place, right time to enter Hibs folklore
League Cup and the latter stages of the Scottish Cup, sitting second in the league, so I knew something great would happen. To end the season this way is brilliant.
“I’ve been here five months and won this, so I feel very lucky. That happens in football. Hibs haven’t been too lucky in the Scottish Cup, but today everybody can be proud.”
On a personal level the defender, who replaced Paul Hanlon for the closing 10 minutes of the match, jokingly observed that he had now justified his decision to stick with football as a youngster.
“It was definitely the right decision to give up karate when I was a kid. It’s absolutely fantastic, the feeling I have now. It was really special to go out there and experience that atmosphere. I’m so proud to have done something that the club have been waiting to do for 114 years, that I’m going to be in this great club’s history. It’s unbelievable.”
Gunnarsson has been on loan at Hibs since January and said that while he was aware that the team was in the running for three trophies when he joined, the full importance of this particular competition was only brought home to him later that month.
“I learned about the Scottish Cup and how important it was to this club after the semi-final in the League Cup,” he said.
“The lads all told me it was big to come to a League Cup final, but it was nothing compared to being in the Scottish Cup final.
“I don’t know how long it will take to sink in, but this is a day I will remember for the rest of my life. It’s the same for the rest of the lads.”