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As Forster acknowledged, this semifinal was a strange game. When Hibs got the ball on the ground, they caused Celtic some problems and yet, had two chances just after halftime hit the net rather than posts, it might have become truly ugly for the Easter Road side and, more specifically, their already under pressure manager Paul Heckingbottom, pictured right.
When James Forrest was taken off by Neil Lennon in preference for the more defensively minded Hatem Abd Elhamed after 66 minutes, it prompted a shout from behind the press seats: “C’mon Hibs, they are shi**ing themselves!” It was 4-2 to Celtic at the time.
Florian Kamberi’s half-time introduction did help ignite Hibs for a spell, and he added a fine headed goal to Melker Hallberg’s opportunist effort eight minutes before half-time.
Are such bursts of spirit enough to save Paul Heckingbottom? Is a twogoal comeback against Livingston last midweek, and now this, fending off total collapse, what owner Ron Gordon is looking for? The two forthcoming league games against St Johnstone and Motherwell are sure to tell us more about the manager’s long-term prospects.
“We need to put this (defeat) to bed now,” said skipper Paul Hanlon. “It was a chance to get to a cup final, but it’s gone now and it’s important to start putting points on the board in the league.
“I think it’s down to small margins,” he said, when asked whether he’s confident Hibs can start moving up the league. “We’ve had a lot of draws in there. But we’ve definitely dropped our standards in games, like Livingston when losing two quick goals really put us on the back foot.
“We need to cut it out right away and put in a 90-minute performance, which we haven’t done for a while.” Former Rangers and Scotland international defender Russell Martin has been appointed manager of MK Dons, writes Patrick Mcpartlin.
The 33-year-old, pictured, who made 17 appearances for the Ibrox side during a loan spell in the 2017/18 season, has succeeded Paul Tisdale – just months after completing his coaching badges in the summer.
The League One side parted ways with Tisdale on Saturday night and have named Martin, capped 29 times for his country, as his replacement.
The Brighton-born former Norwichcentre-backmovedto Stadium MK in January 2019, initially on a short-term deal until the end of the 2018/19 season, but extended his stay into the following campaign. He has so far made nine appearances in all competitions this term. Martin told MK Dons’