Don’t let all last year’s hard work go to waste
SAYS HIBS STAR MARTIN BOYLE
FOR Martin Boyle, last week’s remarkable comeback by Hibs against Asteras Tripolis felt like the footballing equivalent of being taken off a life-support machine.
Neil Lennon’s men suffered a rapid shock to the senses — not once, but twice — when Georgios Kyriakopoulos scored a double for the visitors inside the opening 35 minutes of their Europa League clash at Easter Road.
Despite staring down the barrel at an early exit from the tournament, however, the Leith oufit produced a stunning revival after the interval.
Goals from Efe Ambrose, David Gray and, in the dying seconds, Flo Kamberi ensured they take a narrow — but crucial — 3-2 lead to the Theodoros Kolokotronis Stadium tomorrow night.
After escaping what looked like certain dismissal from the competition in a breathless night in Edinburgh, fleet-footed forward Boyle says it’s now imperative that Hibs don’t give the Greeks another head start in the return leg of their second round qualifier.
‘We’ve given ourselves a lifeline, absolutely,’ said the 25-year-old. ‘We don’t want all our hard work from last year to go to waste by going out early.
‘We really want to give this a try, although we know it’s a tough ask to win over here.
‘They will make it tough and, obviously, they want to win as much as we do.
‘We knew ourselves the first half wasn’t good enough last week. We were huffing and puffing and went two goals down — and we needed that kick up the backside at half-time.
‘We stood off them and they scored two goals and we could maybe have avoided that.
‘But we eventually came into our own and we could have scored much more than the three goals.
‘We now need to build on that. The vital thing is not to give away any more cheap goals.
‘I’m sure this squad will get better but we need to concentrate on this game.
‘Hopefully, we can finish it off. It’s going to be a tough ask away from home but we’ll play our normal game, we’ll attack, and hopefully we can keep the ball and cause them problems.’
Hibs will encounter not only searing 30-degree heat but a Tripolis side determined to bounce back from their late collapse at Easter Road.
After being guilty of some acts of naivety in the first leg, Boyle admits Neil Lennon’s men need to be more streetwise if they are to reach the third qualifier.
‘I’ve not played abroad a lot, it will be very hot and the weather conditions will come into it,’ said the former Dundee and Montrose player. ‘We’ll have a few days to train and adapt and, hopefully, we play our normal game and have no worries.
‘Europe requires you to set the tempo and keep the ball.
‘In the first half of the first leg at home, we weren’t as patient as we could have been.
‘We were also sloppy with the ball but in the second half we were much more patient and stuck to the task of breaking the opposition down. We then started making opportunities and getting crosses into the box.
‘Doing that once again will be the key to the game in Greece.’
Hibs jetted out of Edinburgh Airport yesterday afternoon minus 50 supporters whose bookings on the official charter had to be cancelled at late notice.
An enforced switch of aircraft meant there was no longer room to accommodate the unfortunate fans. Boyle is now desperate for the team to set up another European trip for those affected by the cancellation, with Norwegian side Molde potentially lying in wait if Hibs can make it past the Greeks.
‘We need to give our all no matter the circumstances,’ he said. ‘It’s out of our hands what’s happened (to the fans) but it’s certainly not nice.
‘They were all desperate to get on the flight to support us and it’s been a massive disappointment but now all we can do is try to make sure we get qualified for them.’
With Celtic, Rangers and Aberdeen all in with a chance of progressing from their respective games, Boyle knows Scottish football could be given a timely shot in the arm this week if all four participants go through to their next rounds.
‘As long as we put in a good performance, we’re always confident,’ said Boyle.
‘Last week was a good week for Scottish clubs in Europe. Rangers, Celtic and Aberdeen all did well and if we can all qualify this week, it will be good for the country.
‘Reaching the group stage is the main aim. We believe that it’s achievable but we’re taking the ties game by game.
‘It’s not set in stone. We’ve got a big job to do in Greece and only then can we look forward to the next stage.’