Hibs Aim for Comeback Against Malisheva in Crucial Second Leg
Joelle Murray has seen enough Hibernian turnarounds to know this tie is not done. Not yet.
Two goals down to Malisheva after a flat first leg in Kosovo, Hibs return to Easter Road on Thursday needing another of those European rescue acts that have become part of the club’s folklore. Murray, head coach of the women’s team and a lifelong observer of the club’s rhythms and moods, believes that history matters now.
Hibs have "a history of overturning a poor first leg in the second one," she reminded listeners on the BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast, and that memory – that muscle – is what she wants to see tapped into under the lights in Leith.
The message is simple: start fast, or suffer.
Murray knows exactly what the Easter Road crowd can be like when the stakes are high and the performance is slow. "I know the Easter Road crowd can be unforgiving at times," she said, a line that will ring true with anyone who has watched nerves and impatience ripple through the stands on big European nights.
So the blueprint is clear. Forward passes. Penetrating passes. Intent, from the first whistle. Hibs cannot afford to ease their way into this. They need to jolt the tie back to life.
An early goal is the obsession. Score first, and everything changes – the noise, the belief, the body language. "With an early goal, that should hopefully see them progress," Murray argued, leaning on the club’s habit of repairing damage in second legs. "So hopefully we can replicate that this evening with a similar result and a really good performance."
The optimism is not blind. The team sheet still carries problems.
Wing-back Nicky Cadden remains out. So does new signing Callum Wright. Jamie McGrath, a key figure in midfield, is also still missing through injury. Those absences strip Hibs of craft and balance in key areas, just when they need every weapon they can muster.
Yet there is one shaft of attacking light. Striker Ante Suto could return, and Murray did not hide how significant that might be for a side chasing the game from the first minute.
"Another attacking player is good because that's what we need from the get-go, getting on the front foot, getting an early goal," she said.
The equation is stark. Hibs are wounded, short of important players and trailing 2-0. But they are at Easter Road, under pressure, with a crowd that can turn unforgiving fury into a ferocious driving force if given even the faintest hint of a comeback.
This is exactly the kind of night that defines whether that famous second-leg reputation still truly belongs to them.
