Cowden so close to causing a shock
Published 11 Jan 2012 08:00
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Cowdenbeath 2, Hibernian 3.
COWDENBEATH came so close to causing a shock as they spent the last quarter of this William Hill Scottish Cup fourth round tie swarming all over Hibernian at Central Park on Saturday.
In an exciting game the SPL side came back from losing a goal inside 30 seconds to grab a two goal lead early in the second-half.
But instead of the full-time continuing to build on that advantage they saw Cowden pull a goal back then dominate the closing stages.
Time and again in the last 20 minutes the Blue Brazil carved out openings only to see their last pass let them down.
If their was to be a criticism of the home side it would be that they gave away a couple of bad goals which basically let Hibs out of jail.
Thomas Flynn hd no chance with the goals and generally commanded his area well while John Armstrong and Joe Mbu combined effectively with David Cowan and Kenny Adamson to keep tabs on the Hibees' front men, but slip-ups either side of the break gave Hibs a breathing space.
In midfield Cowden player/boss Colin Cameron and skipper Jon Robertson produced their league form and took a complete grip of things after the interval.
Their passing was something the Hibs engine room struggled to match but to be fair to the visitors they managed to keep a hold on Cowden's wide men, Marc McKenzie and Scott Linton, which kept their cup challenge afloat.
Greg Stewart again was a constant threat to the opposition but had he scored when clean through just after half-time it could have had a major impact on the final result.
A crowd of over 2500 saw a dramatic start to the game. Cowden kicked-off and Cameron sent a nice pass through to STEWART who shrugged off his marker before firing an unstoppable shot past Mark Brown.
In five minutes Cowdenbeath threatened again when Stewart was the provider this time but his pass to Linton was on the winger's weaker right foot and his shot went over from the edge of the box.
Hibs started to win some better quality possession and Leigh GRIFFITHS saw Cameron clear from a promising position but in 17 minutes the former Dundee man levelled the tie.
A slack clearance was picked up by the striker and from 30 yards he sent the ball into the net via the underside of the bar.
This settled the visitors and in 23 minutes Flynn gathered a Eoin DOYLE shot but four minutes later he grabbed a second for the Hibees.
The Irishman ended a nice run with a fierce shot which Flynn parried and then beat the 'keeper to the rebound to turn the ball into the net.
Griffiths was never scared to try his luck from distance and on the half hour his 30 yard free-kick was finger-tipped over by Flynn and then he saw Armstrong clear a low shot before, at the other end, Linton's corner fell to Stewart and his shot was just wide.
The second period saw Hibs threaten through Ivan Sproule, who worked a good position for himself but then dragged his shot wide.
Then in 50 minutes Paul Hanlon got into a fankle letting Stewart run clear but he delayed his finish and Brown raced from his line to make a brave save.
Hibs broke up the park and grabbed a third goal in 55 minutes, when Cowden's marking let them down from Danny Galbraith's cross which was met by David WOTHERSPOON and his header beat Flynn.
Cowden responded by pouring forward and Mark Ramsay made ground before testing Brown and then in 69 minutes ROBERTSON pulled one back with a lovely lob from just inside the box after the Hibs cover had been sprung wide open by Stewart. The skipper showed tremendous skill to gather the ball then outfox the defence.
The captain had a chance to level shortly after when substitute Lewis Coult set him up but his fierce shot was too high and then his 25 yard free -kick beat the wall but crept inches wide.
Flynn was a spectator as Cowden went looking for the equaliser but Stewart and Coult were both unable to prize open the Hibs defence for a third time despite finding space in the visitors' box.
Cowdenbeath:Flynn: Cowan, Adamson; Cameron, Armstrong, Mbu; McKenzie, Robertson, Ramsay, Stewart, Linton (Coult 57). Subs not used, Winter, Brett, Milne and Bejaoui.
Hibernian: Brown; Harte, Booth; Hanlon, O'Hanlon, Wotherspoon; Sproule, Stevenson, Griffiths, Doyle (Sodje 87), Galbraith (Towell 80). Subs not used, Scott and Grant.
Referee-Bobby Madden. Attendance-2670.
This article appeared in Central Fife Times 11 Jan 12
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