Hibernian 1 – 5 Heart of Midlothian

The 2012 Scottish Cup Final received the biggest build up many have ever experienced to a match and neither Rangers nor Celtic were anywhere to be seen. Saturday was Edinburgh’s day as 52,000 football fans travelled down the M8 to Hampden Park.

Labelled as the ‘Salt n Sauce Cup Final’, it was a day that many fans were anticipating and dreading for the month between the semi finals and the final. Hearts fans were confident of lifting their cup as they were undefeated in their last ten games against their city neighbours. Hibs finishing second bottom of the Scottish Premier League filled the Jambo’s fans with confidence.

Meanwhile, the Hibees turned to fate for their belief. It has been 110 years since they last won the Scottish Cup and they believed it was their time, it was their turn, to win the Scottish Cup again and when better to do it than against their biggest rivals. Both sets of fans feared losing almost as much as they wanted to win the match which meant there was a fear factor added in to the mix.

In the immediate build up to kick off the fans were excellent, the Hearts fans swinging their scarves above their heads whilst the Hibs fans waved their green and white flags creating a fantastic image and atmosphere. Sadly the game was to be much more one sided than the evenly matched crowd.

Straight from the start the Jambo’s were on top and it was not long before they were ahead. With thirteen minutes on the clock Darren Barr pounced on a loose ball inside the six yard box to fire the favourites ahead. At odds of 50-1 he was not the most likely goalscorer but it was a goal worthy of a seasoned penalty box striker.

It was a more renowned striker who doubled Hearts lead in 26^th minute as top goalscorer Rudi Skacel had his shot from the edge of the box deflected into the net. The deflection did not cause the ball to deviate much from its original direction but it did make the ball dip past Hibs goalkeeper Mark Brown as he dived across goal.

Hearts were dominating the game all over the pitch whilst Hibs struggled to get out of their own half for any extended period of time. Suso Santana came close to adding a quick third as his shot beat Mark Brown in the Hibs goal but captain James McPake was on hand to turn it behind for corner. Ian Black was bossing the midfield whilst Isaiah Osbourne and Jorge Claros appeared to be letting the game pass them by.

Hibs manager Pat Fenlon was preparing a change in the midfield and some Hibs fans had already headed for the exit when Hibs got themselves back into the match. James McPake managed to get a toe on Tom Soares cross and put it past Jambo’s keeper Jamie McDonald, injecting the life back into the match.

The Hibees goal in the 40^th minute gave their fans renewed hope that their team could come out in the second half and overturn their neighbours, whose fans were already winding them up. Sadly for Hibs the course of the game was changed significantly when Pa Saikou Kujabi was adjudged to have fouled Hearts winger Suso Santana in the box by referee Craig Thomson. The referee awarded the Jambo’s a penalty and sent Kujabi off for a second bookable offence although replays showed that Hibs were hard done by as the foul had occurred outside of the penalty box.

It was left back Danny Grainger who stepped up to fire the spot kick into the top corner and restore Hearts two goal lead. Their fans were still celebrating when the game was put beyond doubt two minutes later as Ryan McGowan capitalised on more calamitous Hibs defending to put them 4-1 ahead with a close range header.

The fourth goal proved to be the catalyst for Hibs fans to head for the exits with their heads bowed. They were unable to watch their team collapse without a fight, listen to the goading coming from their rival fans or even contemplate what the final result could be as there was still thirty minutes remaining.

However, the rout was completed with 75 minutes gone as Rudi Skacel scored his second of the match, which could also be his last for the club. Skacel’s shot from the edge of the area evaded the despairing sliding challenge from James McPake and went in after hitting the post leaving the Hibs ‘keeper stranded.

Hearts maintained possession comfortably for the last fifteen minutes to win the Scottish Cup with an ease that caught everybody by surprise. Hibs failed to turn up for what is likely to be the biggest game of the players’ careers. It was a huge letdown for both the fans and the manager who had been looking for a much better performance and hoping for a better outcome. After the game Hibs manager Pat Fenlon, who was sent to the stand during the match, told the BBC ‘It was desperately disappointing, we never turned up. No complaints’.

Saturday 19^th May will be forever remembered by everyone involved with Hearts as they day they beat their city neighbours 5-1 to win the Scottish Cup. Meanwhile the Hibees wait to lift the Scottish Cup ticks over to 111 years and counting. It was the Jambo’s day and they will never let the Hibs fans forget it.

Bayern Munich 1 – 1 Chelsea (AET) Chelsea win 4-3 on penalties

Not everything went to plan for Bayern Munich in Bavaria last night as Chelsea upset the odds to win the Champions League Final 4-3 on penalties. Thomas Mueller had put the Germans ahead in the 83^rd minute at the Allianz Arena only to be pegged back by a bullet header from Didier Drogba with only two minutes remaining to send the game into extra time.

Chance after chance fell Bayern’s way during the regulation ninety minutes but they failed to capitalise on those opportunities to become the first side to win the Champions League in their own stadium since 1965.

Chelsea entered extra time with their tails up after their Drogba’s late equaliser but the Ivorian turned from hero to villain, conceding a penalty four minutes into extra time after needlessly tripping Franck Ribery inside the box.

It was left to Arjen Robben to keep Munich’s dreams of lifting the famous trophy alive but his drilled penalty was saved by Petr Cech who got down well to his left hand side before smothering the loose ball.

The additional thirty minutes played out much the same way as the initial ninety minutes. Bayern dominated possession, territory and chances without making the killer breakthrough. As each opportunity to score bypassed the German side it appeared that it was Chelsea’s time. Chelsea remained organised and resilient in defence throughout keeping their opposition at bay.

As the game entered into penalty kicks, many of the Chelsea players will have been reminded of the agony they felt after losing the final Manchester United on penalties in 2008.

The 2012 penalty shoot-out appeared to be treading a similar path as Bayern quickly went ahead. Philip Lahm scored the opening penalty for the German side whilst Manuel Neuer saved Juan Mata’s opening effort for the Blues. Bayern’s Mario Gomez and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer maintained the pressure on Chelsea whilst David Luiz and Frank Lampard kept them within reach at 3-2.

The momentum in the shoot-out shifted dramatically as Ivica Olic had his penalty saved by Cech before Ashley Cole’s expertly taken kick found the bottom corner. With the score’s level at 3-3 after four attempts each the game entered sudden death.

Instrumental Bayern midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger, who scored the decisive penalty in their semi final victory over Real Madrid, stepped up to the mark. If the German side could have chosen anyone to take their fifth penalty it would have been him. Nonetheless, the pressure of the situation got to him as his stuttered run up did nothing to commit Petr Cech before he struck the post with his attempt.

Chelsea were within touching distance of the trophy, one successful penalty and they were Champions of Europe. Few expected them to be in with an opportunity to win before the match began, many believed it was destiny that Bayern would win it. Prior to the start of the shoot-out, the commentators rhymed off statistics appearing to tip the likelihood of victory massively in the German sides favour but Chelsea had the chance to make history of their own.

It was down to Chelsea hero Didier Drogba, in what could be his last game for the club, to win the game and the competition for the London side. One swipe of his right foot and the team would be remembered forever. As he walked confidently from the halfway line to the penalty spot, Manuel Neuer threw the ball thirty yards to him, as he did each Chelsea player, in an attempt to psyche them out. Drogba placed the ball on the spot before taking a short run up and slotting the ball past the 6’ 4” German keeper.

He wheeled away in jubilation as the rest of his team mates thundered down the pitch to congratulate him. Chelsea had done it, they had won the Champions League, becoming the first London club ever to do so.

Meanwhile, the defeated German side lay sprawled around the centre circle in disbelief. They had been built up so much before the game, they were favourites and they were playing in their home stadium. As the teams walked out of the tunnel at the start of the game, their fans unfurled banners saying ‘Our City, Our Stadium, Our Cup’. The expectation was high and the players ultimately failed to rise to the occasion. Throughout the game, which they dominated from start to finish, they scorned almost every opportunity that came their way. The final they had dreamed of since the venue was announced in 2009 had ended more like a nightmare.

Every single person involved with Chelsea had a smile as wide as the River Thames spread across their face. Owner Roman Abramovich greeted every player with a warm embrace as they walked up to receive their winner’s medals. However, the biggest one was kept for caretaker manager Roberto Di Matteo who has led the Blues to the FA Cup and Champions League double since taking over from the sacked Andre Villas-Boas. He was a legend as a player for the club and now as a manager but he is not guaranteed the job on a permanent basis despite his achievements this season. It remains to be seen who will be manager of the European Champions next season.

Man of the Match: Ashley Cole

The Englishman really showed why he is regarded as one of the best left backs in the world handling the threat of Arjen Robben and Phillip Lahm expertly during one of his best games for the club.

After the Scottish Cup and Heineken Cup finals, Saturday’s blockbuster day of sport reaches a pulsating climax as Bayern Munich take on Chelsea in the 2012 Champions League Final. Billed as the final leg of the ‘Day of Destiny’, it is set to be an intriguing match with a lot riding on the outcome for both sides.

Bayern Munich are firm favourites, largely due to the game being played at their home stadium, the Allianz Arena. They are already the first side to reach the final of the competition when it is being played at their stadium and will be looking to use their familiar surroundings as an advantage as they look to overcome a resilient Chelsea side. Meanwhile, The Blues will be looking to win their first Champions League crown after their disappointment in Moscow 2008, when they lost to Manchester United on penalties.

En route to the final both sides have faced tough opposition with Bayern defeating Basel, Marseille and Real Madrid. Similarly, Chelsea have faced arguably, an even more difficult road to the final. On the road to the final, they overcame Napoli, Benfica and favourites Barcelona. Chelsea also have renowned big game players Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard to call upon in Munich.

Coming into the game, both sides have played in their national cup final with differing fortunes. Chelsea overcame Liverpool 2-1 to win the FA Cup at Wembley meanwhile Bayern fell to a devastating 5-2 defeat at the hands of Borussia Dortmund in the DFB-Pokal final. As a result, the German media has played down Munich’s chances of winning the match and coach Jupp Heynckes recently stated ‘If Chelsea can beat Barcelona over two legs, how are we supposed to beat them?’. It appears that no-one wants to be tagged as favourites for this clash but I believe Bayern are slight favourites in the lead up to the match.

Both teams have been hit by suspensions in the build up to the top match of the European club season. Bayern will be without Luis Gustavo, Holger Badstuber and David Alaba whilst Chelsea will be missing four players. Branislav Ivanovic, Raul Meireles, Ramires and John Terry will all sit out the match.

Bayern and Chelsea have players of the highest standard in world football. From boasting two of the best goalkeepers in the world, to possessing some of the most exciting attacking talents, this game is set to have it all. Bayern are undefeated in their last fourteen games in Munich whilst Chelsea have scored in each of their last thirteen Champions League game.

Taking these facts into consideration this is set to be a mouth-watering finale to yet another exciting season. Bayern have had the pressure piled on them as favourites, however, Chelsea will be enjoying the fact they are not expected to win and will be able to play without great expectation on their shoulders. It will be a close game that I believe will be edged by Bayern Munich after extra time.

Key battles

Anatoliy Tymoshchuk v Didier Drogba

It looks like the veteran Ukrainian midfielder Tymoshchuk will be filling the void left in the centre of defence for Bayern and will have to deal with the power house that is Didier Drogba. Tymoshchuk is an experienced central midfielder and will have to be wary of the physical threat posed by Drogba and be up to the battle. This will be an area Chelsea will look to exploit and use to their attacking advantage in the Allianz Arena. 

Bastian Schweinsteiger v Frank Lampard

Both players have played against each other before and looking back at previous performances may provide the key to who will come out on top. Notably, in the 2010 World Cup, Schweinsteiger nullified Lampard’s threat for the vast majority of the game allowing Germany to win the game comfortably. The German midfielder has been at the heart of Bayern’s midfield all season and will be aiming to continue his highly influential role in the final. Similarly, Stand in captain Frank Lampard will be looking to pick out his trademark passes and positioning at the edge of the penalty box in attack. 

Franck Ribery v Jose Bosingwa

Perhaps the biggest weakness Bayern will see in Chelsea’s defence is Jose Bosingwa at right back. The Portuguese defender is often more inclined to attack than defend and will need to remain much more disciplined as he comes against Bayern’s Franck Ribery. The Frenchman’s quality is unquestionable and this will be the main passage of attack for the Bavarians. It will be interesting to see if Roberto Di Matteo can shackle Bosingwa’s attacking style and cancel out Ribery’s flair and pace.

Arjen Robben v Ashley Cole

Two of the best players in the world go head to head in attack and defence on Saturday as Dutch winger Arjen Robben is likely to face up to English left back Ashley Cole. Being former team mates at Stamford Bridge the players will know each other well. Cole’s job will be to nullify Robben’s pace and trickery and he will require the support of the wide midfielder in front of him to ensure this task is achievable. Although this will be a feisty battle, it is possible Bayern could avoid this side of the pitch exposing weaknesses elsewhere in the Blues defence.

 Mario Gomez v Gary Cahill

Gary Cahill will have his work cut out against the talismanic German striker in the Allianz Arena on Saturday night. Cahill will be thrown in at the deep end after recovering from injury in the build up to Saturday’s match. Gomez has netted twenty times in his last seventeen matches including four times against FC Basel in the second leg of their Round of 16 tie. Bayern’s front three will be a real handful for the Chelsea defence and may lead to the Londoners looking to steal a goal on the counter attack as they attempt to keep out a front three which can only be described as frightening.

With the 2011/2012 Scottish Cup Final imminent, Glasgow is preparing to host an occasion that will excusively belong to Edinburgh. Over 40,000 fans will be descending upon the national stadium for the biggest capital city derby in over a century when Hibernian and Heart of Midlothian play each other in the Final of the Scottish Cup for only the second time in the competition's history. The first time the sides met in the final, Hearts triumphed and lifted their second Scottish Cup with a 3-1 victory over their city rivals; a result that Hearts are strongly expected to emulate this time around.

For the two sides, this final comes on the back of greatly contrasting seasons. For Hearts, it has been a relatively successful campaign. For every newspaper headline about unpaid wages and the threat of an unaffordable tax bill, there has been a story about a well earned 3 points and a dogged performance. The culmination of this was a deserved 5^th place in the SPL and, with that, a crack at Europe next season. The season was looking as though it would turn into another farce for Hearts when the ever eccentric owner Vladimir Romanov relieved manager Jim Jefferies of his duties barely a month into the season. However, the surprising appointment of the Portuguese Paulo Sergio has seen Hearts quickly move on from the previous regime as though nothing had happened. The league provided one particularly positive omen for Hearts as amongst their league fixtures this season are 3 victories over their city rivals and cup final opponents, Hibs. Going back a few more years shows that Hearts are undefeated in the last 10 Edinburgh derbies, winning 7. Add to this a series of positive performances against the Old Firm sides – including the semi-final victory over league champions Celtic – and Hearts are a side that can beat any team in Scotland on their day.

For Hibs, however, their torrid run in Edinburgh derbies pales in significance to what is perhaps the best known fact in Scottish football; Hibs have not won Scotland’s premier cup competition since 1902. That is a staggering 110 years through which we have gone through two world wars and are on our fifth reigning monarch. More freshly in the minds of Hibs fans, though, is the post-mortem that is needed to diagnose what went wrong in a frankly terrible league season. The cup final is the only saving grace in a campaign that saw Hibs face the daunting prospect of relegation until the penultimate game of the Scottish Premier League. Although this is the case, some encouragement can be taken from a slight upturn in performance in the 6 months that Pat Fenlon has been in the managerial hotseat. Under his predecessor, Colin Calderwood, Hibs looked like a side who did not enjoy their football and the poor run of results saw a change of management in November. Under Fenlon, Hibs seem to have found a man who is generating some improvement in both performance and results, albeit gradual. This is due in no small part to the massive revamp of the squad that occurred during the January transfer window. 7 players arrived to the club, the majority on loan, and the side has not been burdened by the first half of the season as a result.

In light of the comparison of the two sides, a few key battles can be highlighted through which the final could be won and lost for either side:

Craig Beattie vs. James McPake: Craig Beattie faces a race against time to be fit for the final, but if he does manage to play a part he will be a key weapon in the way Hearts play. James McPake is likely to be the man charged with halting his progress. Beattie will use his physical presence to cause problems and confusion in the Hibs backline and if Hibs fail to act accordingly, they will concede goals.

Garry O’Connor & Leigh Griffiths vs. Andy Webster and Marius Zaliukas: The two Hibs forwards got the better of the Aberdeen defence in the semi-final with a goal each. Aberdeen's defence was not as strong as the Hearts backline, however, and if they are at their unforgiving best, then the Hibs pairing will have to use all the craft and guile to get past; something they are more than capable of.

Ian Black vs. Isiaah Osbourne: In what will be his final outing for Hearts, Ian Black will be instrumental in the Hearts midfield trying to pick holes in the Hibs defence. Isiaah Osbourne is likely to be the man responsible for breaking up the play when Ian Black receives the ball and if he does this efficiently enough, he can have a major influence on the way Hibernian attack as well.

In spite of the contrasting seasons and men to watch, fans of clichés will be happy to know that in cup finals and derby matches, form is known to go out the proverbial window. With the stakes as high as they are, the fear of losing must eclipse the anticipation of delirious celebration. For fans of both sides, the emotions behind this game go beyond description and it would be highly unlikely that the players of both clubs will have avoided these pre-game jitters. The managers, for their part, have tried to play down aspects of the tie in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to calm any nerves. Paulo Sergio has been keen to point out that he is treating this game as if it was against any normal opponent, while Pat Fenlon has been keen to state this is his first go at the Scottish Cup and that the 110-year hoodoo does not matter to him. However hard they try, though, the inescapable fact is that this is not just any normal opponent to the Hearts fans, and the Hibernian cup hoodoo matters a great deal to followers of the club who will have never seen Hibs lift the world’s oldest football trophy in their lifetime. When the dust settles on Saturday, half a city will be crushed while the other half will be jubilant after the biggest Edinburgh derby in over a century.