Iwill get my day out at Hampden!
Marciano defiant despite hand of fate denying him FIVE chances to return to scene of that near miss
WHEN asked to recount a big Hampden memory, Ofir Marciano has but a solitary game to draw on, albeit one packed with a season’s worth of drama. Hibernian’s 2017 Scottish Cup semi-final against Aberdeen saw the club return to the national stadium for the first time since David Gray’s header had brought the trophy back to Easter Road for the first time in 114 years.
The day began with the concession of a first-minute goal and ended with the remarkable sight of the Israeli goalkeeper trying to emulate Gray, only for his opposite number Joe Lewis to deny him his hero status with a diving save.
Just as Hibs fans have worn out the tape on footage of Gray’s big moment, a version of that one has been running on a loop in Marciano’s head for three years.
For in that length of time, he has craved a shot at Hampden redemption yet a mixture of injury, curious team selections and now the coronavirus pandemic has thwarted him on five separate occasions.
Yesterday, he ought to have been between the posts for new Hibs boss Jack Ross’s team in a hotlyanticipated semi-final against Edinburgh rivals Hearts.
Now firmly established as No1 for his country, he also should have started for Israel in the Euro 2020 play-off against Scotland in Glasgow last month.
UEFA had intended to reschedule
that game for June but backtracked on that optimistic projection. No one knows for sure when either match will be played.
‘I would have loved to think the games would go ahead in June,’ says Marciano. ‘That would make me happy because it would mean we have done it, that we have managed to beat this horrible disease and make everyone safe.
‘But I don’t think anyone truly knows. We have to wait until it is safe to play. That is the most important thing.’
For Marciano (below), the semifinal with Aberdeen was both the biggest game of his career and also the most eventful. Exposed by some truly dreadful possession play from kick-off involving John McGinn and Darren McGregor, he had no chance of stopping Adam Rooney’s opener after just 12 seconds. But, by half-time, he had been badly caught out by a curling Ryan Christie free-kick at his near post. Hibs would persevere but, after pulling the game back to 2-2, a deflection took Jonny Hayes’ shot into the net late in the second half.
Trailing 3-2 as the clock ticked beyond 90 minutes, manager Neil Lennon urged Marciano to sprint forward for the final set-piece.
The leap to meet Jason Cummings’ cross was impressive, the header just about as good as a proven striker might manage in the circumstances. Dramatically, he was denied by Lewis.
‘I remember it so well,’ recalls the Israeli international. ‘I’d never come up for a corner before but this was a desperate situation and if I could even distract the defenders I thought it might help. It wasn’t a bad effort but I have relived it on so many occasions, imagined my header hitting the net.
‘Each time I can’t help wondering what it’d be like to run to the fans and celebrate.’ If current events weren’t so grave, he might even wonder if there is a curse preventing him crossing the stadium’s white line to make amends. During his second year in Scotland, Marciano was dropped by Lennon in favour of Ross Laidlaw for a League Cup semifinal against Celtic. Hibs lost 4-2 and Marciano was reinstated the following week. Earlier this season, Paul Heckingbottom thought it wiser to select Chris Maxwell in a re-run of that fixture and was sacked after a 5-2 loss.
In between, injury denied him a shirt for Israel’s Nations League visit to Scotland in November 2018.
For now, Marciano is stuck at home with wife Shelly and child Sun in Edinburgh. The family gave careful thought to following the lead of friends Nir Bitton and Hatem Abd Elhamed, who were given leave by Celtic to return to Israel.
Ultimately, they decided to remain in Scotland.
‘It had been even worse over there and I would need to have been in quarantine for 14 days, so we decided to stay for the moment,’ he explains. ‘Sun would normally be attending nursery but we’ve had to keep him home because we understand the situation. It’s important everyone stays at home.
‘It was no surprise to me UEFA decided to call off the play-off. As soon as they started talking about it being behind closed doors, I knew.
‘At the moment, we need to stay away from the training ground and, like every other Hibs player, I have a programme.
‘I try to get outside and run in the park, for me that is so important. The fresh air and exercise is vital.
‘But it’s not the same as training every day with your team-mates.’
It will be several weeks before Marciano experiences that camaraderie again but it’s safe to say he has felt more secure in his environment since Ross replaced Heckingbottom in November.
‘Jack Ross gave me the chance and the confidence,’ adds the 30-year-old. ‘He trusts me and I feel I have done well for him but, still, I need to do better.
‘I want to be the best I can and I have expectations for myself. I don’t want to let down people who trust me.
‘When he came in, he told me that he thought I was a good keeper. I needed to work hard and then play well when I got my chance.
‘He assured me that if I was patient it would come. Since he walked in, you can see the results have improved. Look at where we were and compare it to where we are now.’
Barely a month has passed since Hibs were defeated by Daniel Stendel’s Hearts team at Easter Road yet that 3-1 defeat seems to belong to another age.
Both sets of players have had to confront harsh financial reality — Hearts proposing wage cuts while Hibs pursue a pay-deferral course.
Things are likely to look very different if and when the clubs eventually convene for that semi-final.
‘We were not good enough that night and we will be determined not to play so badly again,’ he says. ‘I know how much the cup means to our supporters.
‘I came here in 2016 when everyone was still on a high. You could still feel it around the club and in the city everyone was very happy.
‘It’s hard to win the championship here with Hibs because Celtic and Rangers make it very difficult. But the cup is different.
‘I have never experienced a Hibs v Hearts game outside of Edinburgh. It’s an amazing fixture, both at Easter Road and Tynecastle.
‘When we win the home derbies, it’s a such a good feeling. Our song,
Sunshine On Leith, is one of the best in all of football.’
Talk of that Proclaimers anthem prompts one final, and utterly hypothetical, question.
If Marciano could pick scoring a Hampden goal, would he rather do it to keep Israel in contention for Euro 2020, or attain hero status among the Hibs fans by netting against Hearts?
‘Neither,’ he quips. ‘If you’re sending the keeper up for a corner, then you know you’re in trouble.’
I’ve relived it many times, imagining my header hitting back of the net