Rangers v Hibs: Why fearlessness and momentum favour Hibs in SWPL Cup final

Hibs captain Joelle Murray believes her team have a winning mentality, while manager Dean Gibson is convinced his squad has momentum as they face the “best Scottish team ever” in the SWPL Cup final at Tynecastle Park on Sunday.

Murray, is one of the most well-known Hibs players in their history, preceding over their most successful era. Going into the final, she believes that the team has the winning mentality she has been born with. “History shows and proves in the past that we have done very well in cup competitions irrespective of the opposition”, she stated. “I would like to think that will work in our favour on Sunday.

“I am a born winner; I want to win anything”, she added. “I want to win games in training, I want to win cup competitions and Sunday will be no different. To win a trophy with the current group of players will be something I will be very proud of.

“Everyone from within the team has it installed in them [being a winner]. I think as a footballer you need that trait if you are playing at the top level. You can see the competitiveness in training whether it be a game of head tennis or small sided games, everyone wants to win.”

Rangers manager, Malky Thomson, capain Kathryn Hill, Hibs captain Joelle Murray and manager Dean Gibson line up ahead of the SWPL Cup final. Picture: Malcolm Mackenzie.

Going into the final, Hibs are the most successful team in the competitions history, winning the cup seven times. However, on Sunday they face SWPL Champions Rangers who are currently unbeaten in the league since May 2021. The experienced defender has no doubts that the team can compete believing that “form goes out of the window” for a final.

“There is no denying they are the form team”, she would go on to say. “However, form goes out of the window in any cup competition especially a final. We will certainly approach the game as we always do, we will press, we will be positive, we will work hard across the week and we will certainly go in Sunday’s game with the belief that we will win.

“We have got a mixed group, a group that have played in occasions like this and players that possibly haven’t. Certainly, that won’t faze them, we have young players such as Rosie Livingstone who are absolutely fearless so. We have a really good group of players, young and old who are very experienced on occasions like this.”

Gibson joined the club in 2020 making this final his first of his Hibs managerial career. On their way to the final, they have overcome both Hamilton and Kilmarnock 8-0 as well as beating current league leaders Glasgow City 2-1. Despite the level of opposition, the club are set to face, he hopes that the momentum the club have gain over the course of the cup run and the league can make the difference on Sunday.

“Momentum is a key word, the one thing we do have is momentum”, he stated. “Our performances over the season have been very consistent. There have been certain games where we have not taken our chances, the Hearts game is a good example of that. Most people who have an interest in women’s football who watched it, we had seven or eight clear cut chances in the game and had the same outcome as Hearts which was a point. That’s been our story all season. If you have a striker that’s not getting chances, that’s a bigger problem than strikers missing them. As a team we are getting chances we are just not taking them so that’s going to come eventually.

“We are actually playing very well this season and I think we are doing better than they have ever played in my time and we finished fourth twice. It shows how well we are playing and eventually if we keep doing what we are doing our results will turn. But the one thing I have had in the cup is goals and performances so hopefully that can continue on Sunday.”

As the final approaches, Gibson is aware of the quality Rangers possess. The Glaswegians knocked out fellow Edinburgh side Spartans in the semi-finals of the cup and have already beaten Hibs 1-0 earlier in the season. Gibson believes that the opposition is the ‘best side Scotland has seen’ but is also confident in his team’s ability to get the job done of Sunday and hopes they will be in more finals in the future.

“In my opinion I think that Scottish Women’s League has seen”, he said. “As a group they have got a lot of players that have won trophies at both Hibs and Glasgow City. There is a lot of experience in that group and a lot of players that have won the trophy as well. We know what we are up against but also so confident in our abilities and we feel we can beat anyone; especially in a one-off game which Sunday is. We have a lot of confidence in ourselves, but we are fully aware of the qualities Rangers will provide.

“Getting to semi-finals and finals is the benchmark for this club. The league then is how high can you be, how consistent can you be. We certainly think in cup competitions, semi-finals and finals shouldn’t be something that comes in every five or six. It should be happening more often and hopefully that is where we are back to now. Its where we should be, and we need to continue that season upon season.”