Hibs ace on breaking Easter Road legend Pat Stanton's European record - and why he's still 'hurting'
Former greats McBride and Gordon also surpassed as Martin Boyle sets new UEFA high mark for club
Martin Boyle stands alone in the Hibs record books, leading the all-time standings as the leading scorer in European competition. But it will come as no surprise to anyone that the Easter Road skipper would gladly swap this incredible distinction for a place in the UEFA Conference League.
Boyle’s 102nd goal for the club, a fine finish to put Hibs 2-1 up on Legia in last night’s absolute thriller of a play-off in Warsaw, was his ninth in all European competitions for Hibs. It took him past an illustrious trio of greats in the history books, bettering the eight-goal hauls of Pat Stanton, Joe McBride and Alan Gordon.
A magical moment in Warsaw
But a 3-3 draw in the Polish capital wasn’t enough to see Hibs through the play-off, as Legia won 5-4 on aggregate after extra time. The Socceroos star revealed that he had been completely unaware of his record-breaking moment.
“I wasn’t aware of that,” said the stand-in captain, still deputising for the injured Joe Newell. “It’s a nice achievement but obviously I’m still hurting from the performance.
“It would have been nicer if we’d qualified. But it’s a nice personal achievement for me.
“I feel I still have a lot to give to this club and hopefully I can just keep going. And the boys that come on tonight, I hope I can keep giving advice and helping boys because obviously I know I'm not going to be here forever.”
Chasing silverware – and a challenge at business end of Scottish Premiership
The character and grit shown by Hibs during their six-game European campaign, carving out a win in Belgrade to eliminate Partizan after going toe-to-toe with Midtjylland in the Europa League, shows how effectively Gray has rid his boyhood club of any hint of softness. The players now want to ride their newfound mental toughness all the way to a trophy – and more European qualification through the league table.
“We’ve come a long way in the last nine months or so,” said Boyle, the veteran forward adding: “We were bottom of the league. We've really dragged ourselves up and we've really been competitive.
“The depth in the squad that we have now, we're ready to compete. And hopefully we can do that.
“We want to try to win silverware this year, win a cup. Or challenge at the top end of the table. We’ve had a good start to the season so far, so we want to make it continue.
“We can be proud of what we’ve achieved this European campaign. And it was a really disappointed dressing room, quiet, after the game.
“But we need to get our heads up, dust ourselves down because we have a massive game at home to St Mirren Sunday. The fixtures don’t stop.
“These are the European fixtures we want to be playing in. So hopefully we will have a great campaign this year, get back to this stage - and hopefully progress.”
Boyle had run himself into the ground by the time he was replaced in the 90th minute. At that point, Hibs were going through to group/league stage football for the first time in history, with a 3-1 lead on the night giving the visitors a 4-3 aggregate lead.
Should key goal threat have stayed on?
The livewire attacker admitted to feeling frustrated as he watched Legia grab an injury-time goal that forced another half hour of play. Setting up the ultimate killer blow in extra time.
“Yes, obviously I gave what I could,” said Boyle. And sometimes you've just got to put your hand up and say: ‘I can't take anymore.’ I took a few bumps and bruises.
“Obviously, in hindsight, if I could stay on, I would. I’m not one to throw the towel in.
“But yes, I gave my all and if you have to put your hand up and get fresh subs on, then you do. But we've got a fantastic bench. We know that. The depth in the squad that we have and the subs have made an impact. So it's obviously reassuring.”
Losing late goals ‘not good enough’ - Socceroos star
As Hibs reflect on a European campaign of multiple highs and lows, the loss of late goals – in all three ties – will obviously form part of their analysis, Boyle insisting: “Well, obviously we have to stop them. It's not good enough for us. We know that. That's why it was probably so quiet in the dressing room.
“In those crucial moments from good teams, we get punished. And we have. Ultimately, we've paid the price. Not good enough from our part. And it has cost us Conference League football.
“But we won't throw anyone under the bus. It could have stopped from the attack, in the midfield, there could be mistakes along the way.
“We all take responsibility at the end of the day. We're a team and you can see the togetherness that we do have.”