Easter Road favourite backs former club to throw off 'Hibsed it' tag and win another Scottish Cup

Hibs Scottish Cup winner Marvin Bartley has backed his former club to repeat the heroics of 2016 and once again silence the ‘Hibsed it’ doubters.
Former Hibs star Marvin Bartley with the Scottish Cup. Picture: ContributedFormer Hibs star Marvin Bartley with the Scottish Cup. Picture: Contributed
Former Hibs star Marvin Bartley with the Scottish Cup. Picture: Contributed

Jack Ross’ men are in the semi-finals after defeating Motherwell on penalties in the last round. Drawn against Dundee United, they are now the tournament favourites with the bookmakers after Rangers were knocked out by St Johnstone on Sunday evening.

It is the third time Hibs will play at Hampden Park in the last year having faced Hearts and St Johnstone in the Scottish Cup and Betfred Cup semis, respectively.

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Both of those matches ended in defeat, which encouraged a return of the ‘Hibsed it’ tag – a popular description of the Easter Road club’s struggles in big games prior to the 2016 victory over Rangers.

Bartley sees parallels between the current side and the team he was part of in 2016 as he called on them to show the type of “arrogance” needed to triumph.

He said: “Hibernian are the favourites for me but that is probably my heart ruling my head. Hibs and St. Johnstone are the teams to beat I think. St Johnstone will be confident after their Betfred Cup Final success and beating Rangers.

“I really hope Hibs do it again though. They have gone through some disappointments in big matches lately, but that was similar to us in the lead up to winning the cup in 2016.

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“The ‘Hibsed it’ term should have stopped there and then but you still hear it. It wasn’t something I was aware of until I was getting people tweeting me it. In terms of the team now, they’ll be full of confidence. They have to be as they’re the third best team in the country and the top two are out.

“Everyone likes to go into games as underdogs but it’s now time for Hibs to have that arrogance in believing they are a really good team. In order to be the best, you need to have that swagger. That’s something they’re beginning to get. Jack Ross will be telling them that they’re the favourites and they now need to perform.”

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