High five from Hibs Ladies but Hunter demands more

Hibernian Ladies swept aside Paisley Saints to move into the last 16 of the Henson Scottish Cup but defender Siobhan Hunter admits her side will have to play a lot better if they are to go on and win the competition.

The Hibees ran out 5-0 winners against their First Division opponents thanks to goals from Susan Fairlie (2), Caroline Weir, Laura Kennedy and Lizzie Arnott. They struggled, however, at times to break down a well-organised visiting team.

“We are pleased with the result because in cup football winning is all that matters, however our performance was far from our best,” said Hunter. “I think we gave them too much respect and should’ve played our normal game.

“Paisley are a good side; they fight hard and are well-organised which made it hard for us to break them down.

“We’ve had a few tough games recently and with a number of the girls struggling with knocks Willie decided to rest a few, but the girls that came in did well and have the potential to force their way into the side on a regular basis.”

Recent signing Fairlie grabbed the headlines with a double on her full debut and Hunter predicts a bright future for her new team-mate.

She said: “She can be very pleased with her performance having contributed a lot, both individually and for the team, and her movement makes it very difficult for opposing defenders.”

It was a good weekend for the Easter Road club with all three of their senior teams progressing into the third round.

Hibernian Reserves defeated Claremont Ladies on penalties after a 2-2 draw whilst Hibernian 1875 recorded the result of the weekend by defeating Premier League side Falkirk 3-1.

Elsewhere, it wasn’t such a great weekend for Edinburgh’s other clubs as Hutchison Vale was thrashed 6-1 by Celtic Reserves, Spartans Reserves went down 5-1 at Rangers and Heart of Midlothian lost by the odd-goal-in-seven against Cowdenbeath in Fife.