“We can be okay with this point” – Enes Alic on St Johnstone 1-1 draw against Falkirk
Enes Alic expressed his delight at scoring first St Johnstone goal and believes he has adapted well to life in Scotland. Enes Alic on his favourite free kick he has scored in his career: “Yeah, maybe. I also scored one for my previous club, but yeah, this one is so good and the first one for this club. On if he had to fight anyone to take the free kick: “No, Ruari said you can take and if it’s for another side, that’s for right foot. I think that this side is for me. I saw the position, and then I score. On the game as a whole: “Yeah, we expect a very hard game. We know that Falkirk come here and play football, and they are a tough team, and I think we deserve the draw, because in the first half they shot two times and the goalkeeper saved good, and then we get an unlucky red card, and of course, in the end, we scored the goal, and for us, now, in that moment, it’s a big point. On if the draw felt like a win: “The coach said before the game we always go to every game to win, so, like I said before, with the red card, we can be okay with this point. So now we’ll go rest and prepare for the Aberdeen game. On his start to life in Scotland: “Yeah, it was hard; we played in ten days four games, and then we rest, and now we play this game, it was hard, but I feel good physically. On playing so many games in a short period: “I’m always working hard; I’m prepared for high level, so, for me, it’s good, because I think that I’m physically good and I’ve adapted good here. On how he’s finding Scottish football: “Yeah, I enjoy it. I know that Scottish football is hard physically and it’s always up and down, strong duels everything, but I think for me it’s good to come here, in this league, this club. On the competition for free kicks: “Yeah, it’s big. Jamie (Gullan) has good free kick, but he’s right foot, and I’m left so I think we have good free kick.”
“We’ve done ourselves out of two points” – John McGlynn on Falkirk’s 1-1 draw against St Johnstone
John McGlynn believes his side done themselves out of two points but believes his side have been fairly consistent thus far despite a tough first seven fixtures. John McGlynn on his side’s first half display in Perth: “Look, the first half was very even; probably St Johnstone had the better of the two chances in it, they hit the bar with one, and Scott Bain has a tip over the bar. Jacob’s (Murrell) has got a good chance; we had a couple attempts. I thought they had the better of the two chances that both teams kind of had, little bit of chess tactically, quite slow, never really got to the level that we had on Tuesday night, no sharp enough, no quick enough, movement was not as good. On the second half: “Second half I thought we were better, started the second half better I should say, more like us, more on the front foot, more incisive, more asking questions and we get a good goal from our point of view and from there we should really kick on, especially after St Johnstone go down to ten men, we should really go on and put the game to bed, fair play to St Johnstone, they keep in the game, we were guilty of giving away too many free kicks and not even the last one that we’ll get into that, so many free kicks we give away, which is just encouragement to put the ball in the box, it becomes pressure and it going into the box all the time, you’re having to deal with it, deal with it, deal with it, and when breaking out we didn’t do so well and that’s how the goal’s come about, cause we actually have the ball and, I haven’t seen it back, so I’m going on my memory, which isn’t brilliant, but yeah it looks like we have the ball, then we give away a free kick and it’s executed very well and of course it’s the last kick of the ball, so we’ve done ourselves out of two points, nobody to blame but ourselves, fair play to St Johnstone, they kind of tried to throw bodies forward, get the ball forward and they’ve managed to get a point from it when we should be going away with all three, so, we’ve dropped two points at Tannadice, last kick of the ball, and two here, we could of been sitting in a very comfortable position in the league, so we’ll be licking our wounds, but that’s what we’ll have to do. On the second yellow shown to Diabate: “To be honest with you, I’m no interested, referee, referee, that’s it. On the season thus far: “We’ve been fairly consistent; we were not happy with the St Mirren game, the very first game of the season, we were not happy with that game. I think after that we’ve been, we’ve had some hard games, you know, really hard games, and St Johnstone have been going well, beat Killie here first game of the season, beat Hibs, got a point at Dens Park, they’re absolutely no mugs, but we’ve been, you know, a draw at Motherwell, and then you go to Celtic Park, you lose a game 2-1, we play Rangers, we do well, we lose the game 2-1, we win the Hearts game, you know, we’ve been fairly consistent, we have been, and today we probably didn’t reach the levels that we, that we wanted to reach, that’s for sure, but no, we’re in the exact same position we were at this time last year. On the plans for the upcoming international break: “We’ve got a bounce game on Monday to make sure everyone’s playing. All the guys that have no been getting enough game time, our team selection, the last couple games, two, three games, has no been lots of changes in it, so we had a break cause we were not in the League Cup, so we fitted in a game against Dundee on the Thursday, that we didn’t have a game against, and obviously then we played Hearts on the Tuesday, so the guys that have no been playing and not away on international duty will get an opportunity to play, then, we’ll come back, we’ll get a bit of training, we’ve got another good bounce game before we get back into playing – Dundee at Dens, so we’re all planned and prepared and ready, as we should be.”
“Massive point” – Simo Valakari on St Johnstone’s draw against Falkirk.
Simo Valakari believes that the supporters played a major role in St Johnstone’s draw against Falkirk, and admitted that his side had to adapt to the conditions. Simo Valakari on the impact of the East Stand closure: “I have to say, it was a very difficult game, a very strange game. Starting, we are missing one stand. Those things can happen; it kind of create a little bit of a weird atmosphere inside the stadium, but those things can happen. It was out of our hands, the club’s hands; they did everything – how well the fans, how they adapted to the situation. Okay, our stand is closed; let’s go and support the team, you see it. On his side adapting to the conditions: “First half, very difficult, but I have to say, my old memories, my own experiences, I have played here, exactly same conditions, it is very bright sun, kind of low, very windy, so the grass will get dry very easily, so when you play, as a player, it’s always a little bit of chaos, you don’t see what’s happening there, and I know this is kind of funny things to say. Playing with the black shirt sometimes when you don’t see, you just see the sun. As a player, you are like, ‘What’s happening?’ And that showed, you know, but the boys adapted; it was unbelievable how they adapted, you know, that moment. Of course we were not happy with how we played first half, but sometimes you need to grind out. On bouncing back from going one goal down: “It was a game of two moments of quality. Falkirk score goal; it was, for me, beautiful goal. How they can do it: full back playing inside channel run behind our back line, create cut back, opposite winger coming in, quality finish to goal there and you score a goal, but then, after that, how our boys went through the rest of the match, I kind of enjoyed, and the crowd was pushing; we were fighting every moment, some moments we needed to take some breather, let the opposition have a couple of balls, then we went again, and then comes this moment of quality, and Enes saw it. On the stoppage time free kick: “The biggest thing of this game, as we have seen before, the determination, the grittiness, the togetherness, not giving up, just pushing until the end. That’s what I like. I like our players; everyone wants to be here, or everyone wants to be the star, but we know how good our free kick takers are. We got Jamie Gullan in the stands, we had Ruari Paton there, we had Danny Schmidt, who can take a free kick, we have Enes who can take a free kick, there was Ruari, Danny Schmidt, Enes there. Boys were talking together there and decided in this moment, how the wall is, where the goalkeeper is, it’s best to shoot with the left foot and unselfishly Ruari and Danny give it to Enes to shoot, instead of trying to force the thing, I love that, that they recognise the situation, my teammate is in a better position to be successful, and then comes the quality of our players. On the red card shown to Diabate: It was a yellow card, second yellow card, I think, I want our defenders; they are front footed, they defend. Actually, I’ve not seen it back, so I don’t know yet. On the bench’s frustration regarding the inconsistency from the referee: “For the referee, it’s not the easiest game, because honestly, the ball goes everywhere, because then the players, you know, they’re pumping each other, so it was not easy to call those moments, so of course you leave the moments as everyone could do better. On the first half: “As I said it again, the first half, I did not enjoy it; it was like a training game, it was like a strange feeling, we could not get going, and, as always, the opponent made it difficult for us, okay we had a couple of chances with Taylor, they had their one chance when they went through, but in the end I think, if ever you deserve anything in football, you need to take it, we deserve this one point. On whether the frustrations from the stands motivated the players on the pitch: “It helped, the supporters, as I said it, they were fantastic, they pushed our team forward, they were putting the pressure on the referee, they were pushing our players forward, so, one hundred per cent, it helped. On if the new strip will be worn at McDiarmid Park again: “Not on a sunny day, let’s see, but I really like the shirt; it’s beautiful, the tradition of Scotland as well, so it looks very, very good. On Zach Mitchell’s injury, which brought his game to an end: “I don’t have a clue; I have not seen him after the match. We need to have something to see what’s there. I think it’s a knee, if I heard it right. I ask and he walked past me when he came off, but as I said it, I can’t say anything else. On how crucial that point is: “This was massive, massive point, massive point, think about walking out here, nothing, you have three weeks. Yes, we are realistic; we know that we need to do many things better. We know how tight this league is, it’s one moment you are not there, you will get punished, but to get this one point and walk out, recover a little bit, it comes in a very big moment for, let’s say, Enes Alic, because not that much pre-season behind him and he played now every game in a row, he can get a little bit of rest, and then we can train again, so yes, massive, massive point.”
Match Report: St Johnstone 1-1 Falkirk
St Johnstone show character to rescue a point at McDiarmid Park against Falkirk. After an uneventful start to the match, the first chance of the game fell to the hosts. Fowler did well to pick out Steven, whose effort, from just inside the area, forced Bain into making a diving save. Alic then found himself inside the Falkirk box in a promising position; his initial cutback was dealt with. However, the full-back received it again and picked out Holt, whose effort was well blocked. Falkirk had their first effort of the match on 26 minutes. Krauhaus did well to work the space for a shot, but his effort was tame and was easily saved by Steward. With 10 minutes to go until first-half stoppage time, McAlear’s pinpoint pass found Steven, who found himself baring down on the Falkirk goal, but was denied by a combination of Bain’s foot and the crossbar. On 40 minutes, Diabate was caught in possession by Krauhaus, who slipped Murrell in, and with just the keeper to beat, the striker blasted the ball over the crossbar. Falkirk were awarded a free kick in a promising position, just before the end to the half, which saw Diabate receive the first booking of the afternoon. The free kick, taken by Barbrook, hit the wall and went out for a corner. HT: St Johnstone 0-0 Falkirk Into the second period, St Johnstone were reduced to ten men. Ross spun Diabate, then, in an attempt to recover the situation, the centre back pulled back the forward and was subsequently shown a second yellow. Simo Valakari wasted no time in making a change following the red card, bringing on Finlayson for Campbell. Falkirk hit the front on the hour mark. Eams cut the ball back to Ross, who picked out the bottom corner to give the visitors the advantage. St Johnstone started to pile on the pressure as they looked to get back into the match. Alic had an ambitious shot from far out, which was easily saved by Bain, before Paton saw his cut back deflect out for a corner. Moments later, Paton was found, free, at the back post; however, the substitute’s volley was well saved by Bain. Doherty played MacIver through, but Steven got back and stopped Falkirk from doubling their lead. In the final minute of additional time, St Johnstone were awarded a free kick, which was taken by Alic, who picked out the top corner to rescue a point for the Saints. A dramatic ending at McDiarmid Park.
Match Preview: St Johnstone vs Falkirk
Falkirk travel to Perth to take on St Johnstone, looking to end their dismal run against the Saints. These two sides have not met in a competitive fixture since July 2018, where St Johnstone ran out 1-0 winners at McDiarmid Park, courtesy of a first-half goal from Scougall. The meeting before that came in 2016, also at McDiarmid Park. Two first-half penalties from Swanson and a second-half goal from MacLean gave the Perth outfit a 3-0 win. In addition, Falkirk have failed to win a competitive match in this fixture in their last seven attempts, with their last win coming in April 2004. In that season (2004/05), Falkirk won all four of their meetings with the Saints. St Johnstone come into this fixture off the back of a narrow 1-0 defeat against champions Celtic at McDiarmid Park. Despite the defeat, it was a tight contest, which they can take positives from, which has been a theme of their start to the league season. All of their six Premiership games have been decided by a singular goal, apart from their match at Dens Park at the start of the month, which finished 1-1. Falkirk picked up their first three points of the 26/27 season in midweek, which doesn’t tell the full story on how their season has gone. The Bairns beat the Jambos 2-1, courtesy of an early goal from Krauhaus and a second-half strike from Eames. St Johnstone have had a solid start to life back in the top flight, and Josh Fowler has been one of the standout performers. The striker netted nineteen times and provided two assists for Queen’s Park during the first half of the 2025/26 season before making the move to Perth, where he scored two in thirteen. However, so far in the Premiership, the 24-year-old has found the net four times and provided one assist in six Premiership matches. Falkirk haven’t had many standout performers so far this season, but two who have had solid starts are Ryan Strain and Scott Bain. Strain, who spent the last two seasons with Dundee United, has offered a real threat going forward. The Australian has created thirteen chances so far, two of which leading to assists, which puts him joint second in the Premiership, only behind Celtic midfielder Benjamin Nygren, who has created twenty-one thus far. Bain, who recently received a deserved Scotland National Team call-up, has prevented five goals so far this Premiership season, which puts him comfortably first, over one ahead of Kilmarnock keeper Max Stryjek. St Johnstone boss Simo Valakari has confirmed that Jamie Gullan, Bozo Mikulic and Zach Mitchell are set to return on Saturday. Valakari on his side’s defeat to Celtic: “You play against the champions and big credit to them. That’s why they are the champions – they find their way to win these matches, even when it’s an even game. “We created enough chances to get something. That’s the disappointment of the evening, that we could not score those. We were in the match the whole match. “It is a performance, not a result. When we keep performing, just taking care of our performances, the results, they will come.” Falkirk boss John McGlynn after his side’s home win against Hearts: “They put so much work in there and played some excellent football and scored some good goals. I thought we were good in and out of possession. “Absolutely delighted to get the monkey off the back, and I think that’ll kick us on now. It’s just getting that first win. “We have been gradually getting better; the transfer window has closed, and we can just concentrate on our football, and we saw the fruits of that.” “The teams above us not winning; it’s tightening up very quickly.”
Sébastien Pocognoli names his first Scotland squad
Seven uncapped players have been included in Sébastien Pocognoli’s first Scotland squad for Nations League action. Goalkeepers: Scott Bain is one of the four goalkeepers Pocognoli has selected. The Falkirk keeper has had a stellar start to the 2026/27 campaign, which has been recognised by the new Scotland boss. The 34-year-old has prevented the most goals in the Scottish Premiership so far this season (4.80). Jon McCracken has also been named in the squad after an outstanding start to life at Bradford City. The keeper, who made 74 appearances for Dundee across three spells, has kept 4 clean sheets in 6 League One appearances, which is the most in the division. In all competitions, the 26-year-old has kept 6 clean sheets in 9. Angus Gunn, who was Scotland’s starting keeper at the World Cup, has made the squad, as has Liam Kelly, who hasn’t played in a competitive match since keeping a clean sheet in Rangers’ 8-0 win over Queen’s Park in the League Cup back in early February. Full-backs: As expected, Andrew Robertson, who moved to Tottenham during the summer transfer window, and Celtic left-back Kieran Tierney both make the squad. In addition, Josh Doig, who has spent 5 seasons in Italy following his move from Scottish Premiership outfit Hibernian, has also made the squad. Just a couple of days ago the former Hibs man played 90 minutes for Sassuolo in their 3-2 win over Italian giants Juventus. In terms of the right-hand side, Aaron Hickey, who played 75 minutes in Scotland’s 1-0 win over Haiti, before being benched for the final group games against Morocco and Brazil, has made the squad, as has Nathan Patterson, who featured in all of Scotland’s World Cup matches. Young Celtic defender Colby Donovan has also been named in the 28-man squad. The 20-year-old, out with the match against Rangers at Ibrox, where he struggled up against Gassama, has had a solid start to the 2026/27 campaign, stepping up for the injured Johnston. Central defenders: Jack Hendry, who has featured in every league match for Al-Ettifaq so far this season and played every minute in Scotland’s World Cup campaign, has been named in the Scotland squad, as has Scott McKenna, who played 90 minutes against Brazil. Luke Graham, who impressed at Dundee last season and has been a standout in the early stages of his Stoke City career, has been called up to the squad, as has Stephen Welsh, who also impressed in the Premiership last season, with Motherwell, before earning a move to Swansea City in the English Championship, where he has featured in every league game thus far. Luis Binks has also been named in the squad for the first time. The 25-year-old is the current captain of Danish outfit Brøndby and should the defender feature, he will become the first player to play for Scotland from the Danish league. Midfielders: Ryan Christie, Lewis Ferguson, John McGinn, and Kenny McLean all retain their places, and Billy Gilmour, who missed out on the World Cup due to injury, returns. After missing out on the World Cup squad, Lennon Miller makes Pocognoli’s first Scotland squad. The midfielder has spent one full season in Italy with Udinese following his successful time with Motherwell. Wingers: Ben Gannon-Doak and Findlay Curtis are the only attacking players from the World Cup who keep their place, albeit Adams misses out through injury. Following a sensational start to the 2026/27 campaign with Hearts, Josh McPake, who has scored twice and provided 3 assists in his opening 5 games in the league, has been included. Findlay Curtis has also been included. The young winger played a total of 8 minutes in America. Strikers: Pocognoli has opted for a completely different selection of strikers. Robbie Ure has been included. The striker scored 31 goals in 50 matches for Sirius in Sweden, 15 in 15, while providing 2 assists this season, which earned him a move to Sevilla, where he is yet to find the net. Oli McBurnie returns to the Scotland setup following a five-year absence. The 30-year-old played a pivotal part in Hull City’s promotion from the Championship last campaign, scoring 18 league goals. James Wilson, 19, has done enough to earn a call-up. The young forward has scored 4 in 8 matches for Hearts thus far in all competitions. And last but not least, Kieron Bowie has been included. The striker is fresh off the back of scoring against Juventus in Sassuolo’s 3-2 win. There are a total of 12 players who were part of the 2026 World Cup squad who have not made this squad. Craig Gordon announced his retirement from football in July. The 43-year-old made a total of 84 appearances for the Scotland National Team. Scott McTominay, Che Adams and Lawrence Shankland all miss out through injury. John Souttar, Grant Hanley, Anthony Ralston, Dominic Hyam, Tyler Fletcher, Lyndon Dykes, George Hirst and Ross Stewart have all been omitted. Some fresh faces and a few players returning. The start of an exciting new chapter for the Scotland National Team.
“It was a team effort” – Ante Suto on Hibernian’s win over Ross County.
Ante Suto expressed that Saturday’s win was a team effort and also stated that County should be playing in a higher league. “We showed from the start, we set the tempo, and we showed why we’re favourites; it was a team effort, and we could have scored more, I could have scored more, but job done, we’re through to the semi-final. Suto on whether he thought it would be one of those days after missing a couple of chances: “I always have the confidence, so you miss one, you score the other one, but it’s like that. On Klidje scoring: “We as a team all play for everyone, so whoever scores we are happy, so today was him, me and Adam, and we’re all happy for everyone. On playing with Klidje: “I can play with everyone, so whoever plays we know each other well. We have been together for a few months now, but I like to play with Thibault. On how much pressure he feels to deliver due to the competition upfront: “When I’m on the pitch I don’t feel anything; I just want to do my best for the team, and, as I said, my first thought is not to score goals, it’s to help the team, and when you do all these things, the goals come, so no pressure, but when I’m playing I’m enjoying it. On the prospect of playing at Hampden and the Ross County challenge: “Of course, we were talking before the game; we knew how big of a game this is, and I’ll be honest, this team is not a League One team. I think they should be playing in a higher league because they were very good, and it’s always tough in these cup games. When you come in and they’re playing in front of the home crowd, they have nothing to lose; all the pressure is on us, but we were calm, and, as I said, we set the tempo from the start, and we showed today we are the better team. On the opportunity to win silverware: “Everyone dreams of the trophy, and it would be a big thing for us, for the club, and we’ll try our best to win it. I want to win everything, so we’ll try our best. On the influence of having a manager who has experience of winning silverware with Hibs: “He always says enjoy these moments, cause you never know if it’s going to happen again, so I think if we win it, we’re going to for sure enjoy it.”
“We’ve shot ourselves in the foot” – Brian Graham on County’s defeat to Hibs.
Brian Graham believes County can take positives from Saturday’s defeat to Hibernian, but admitted that they shot themselves in the foot. He stated: “I just think when you’re on a football pitch it does not matter the football score you’ve got to keep going, you’ve got to have the belief that you can try and get back into it, it wasn’t to be today, we’ve been great up until this point, bitterly disappointed, when you’re playing against a good side, who are as fit as they are, as athletic as they are, as quick as they are, you cannot gift them goals, i feel as if we’ve shot ourselves in the foot today (Saturday). The striker added: “The manager said after the game that we didn’t make it a cup tie because of the manor we ship the goals in the first-half, we then changed shape second-half, listen we take the positives out of that we don’t concede another goal but we did want to give our fans something to cheer, we wanted that goal, but at this level you can’t make silly mistakes because you get punished and that’s what’s happened today (Saturday), David Gray’s going down the road happy, they’ve got themself into the semi-final, but for us, we regroup very quickly, we’ve got a massive game come Tuesday night, but yes it’s a bitterly disappointing afternoon, but it won’t define our season. Graham on the learnings that County can take going forward: “Of course there is, listen it doesn’t matter what age you are, if you are at my end of the footballing career, or these younger boys who are just starting their football career, everyday is a learning day, we’ll go over the game and we’ll pick out where we can get better, we know the manor we lost the goals was very, very cheaply and that’s what’s probably hurting right now and it will over the course of the night, but we’ve got to put it to bed very quickly, as i said, that game on Tuesday night, the game in hand we’ve got in the league, where we’ve got three points to go and join Hamilton so we need to make sure we go and win that game against Queen of the South, Graham added: “Going back to today’s (Saturday’s) game, if you look at the stats, i don’t think there’s much in the game and that’s probably the annoying part, from our side, where there’s not a lot in the game, the game was kind of going back and forward, but when they’ve got that quality, whereas we’re getting the ball in the final third, we’re making that wrong decision, you’re taking that extra touch, you’re no getting by these guys with that, the athleticism they’ve got, the power they’ve got, you need to touch and play and that’s a learning curve for the younger players that are in the squad because if they want to get aspirations to go to that level, then they’ll need to take a lot from the game today, because everyday is about learning and developing, these guys are playing at the top level for a reason. Brian Graham has enjoyed a stellar career and at thirty-eight years old the striker is still keen to create more footballing memories. Graham stated: Probably last season with Falkirk when we lost to Dunfermline that was probably the bitter blow because you’re at Hampden, you’re at a semi-final, you’re probably favorites to get to the final, that was probably the bitter blow, that was my last hope of getting to the national final, but listen I’ve been lucky over the course of my career, I’ve won the League Cup, I’ve played in the Scottish Cup Final, so, I’ve been very lucky, some people don’t get to experience the joys that I’ve had in football and i want to continue having more, it doesn’t matter that I’m thirty-eight, i still really enjoy coming to work, i show enthusiasm every day and when you’ve got these younger boys round about you, they give you that buzz and belief to keep going, we have a laugh about it everyday.”
Talking Points: Ross County 0-3 Hibernian
Five talking points from Hibernian’s convincing cup win over Ross County. Step too far for County. Ross County enjoyed a brilliant run to reach the quarter-final stage, finishing top of the group phase, beating Dundee on penalties after a 1-1 draw, before beating Championship side Dunfermline in the Last 16, however, Hibernian proved to be too much for Stuart Kettlewell’s side. County did create more in the second period, however, the damage was done in the first period, as Hibs went into the interval three goals to the good. County can now turn their attention to league action, where they will look to continue their fine start to the season against Queen of the South on Tuesday night in Dingwall. Should the Staggies win, they will move level on points with league leaders Hamilton Accies. Big win for David Gray. With back-to-back league defeats, against Hearts at Easter Road in the Edinburgh Derby, then a 2-1 defeat against newly promoted St Johnstone in Perth, going into yesterday’s cup tie, it felt like a must win for David Gray, and his players delivered. The Hibees can now look forward to back-to-back home league matches against Kilmarnock, who go into that game on Tuesday night off the back of a defeat on penalties against a struggling Aberdeen side after over 120 minutes, before facing Aberdeen, who will go into it with confidence after also booking their spot at Hampden. Strikers on the scoresheet. Klidje and Suto both netted in Hibs’ 3-0 win over Ross County and having striker’s full of confidence is crucial, especially when you are struggling. Suto could have had a couple more, the striker did well to get to a cross from the left-hand side, but headed over and also found himself with space on the edge of the County box and had a shot, but his low effort was smartly saved by Foster. Lowe also came off the bench and could have had a goal himself, but his header from Mayor’s cross went wide. However, to have three of your four strikers fit and amongst the goals, and having Elding back available is a major boost for Hibernian. Full-backs on fire. Passlack and Mayor, who were Hibernian’s starting full-backs on Saturday, both had excellent games. Both were solid enough defensively, however, going forward, both looked threatening. The German played the cross in for Klidje, who gave Hibs an early lead, before whipping in a corner which resulted in a penalty, which was dispatched by Mayor, who found the roof of the net from 12 yards. That’s now 2 assists and a goal in 5 matches for Passlack and 2 goals and an assist in 6 games for Mayor. Hibs are Hampden bound. Hibs will be back at the National Stadium for the first time since 2023 as a result of their convincing cup win over County. The Hibees will face either Hearts, Aberdeen or one of Rangers and Celtic in the next stage. The draw will take place following the conclusion of the first Old Firm Derby of the 2026/27 campaign.
Match Report: Ross County 0-3 Hibernian
Hibs ease past Ross County to book their place at Hampden. On 7 minutes, Hibernian hit the front. Passlack played a brilliant ball into the County box, which found the head of Klidje, whose header found the corner to give Hibs an early lead. On 14 minutes, Hibs were awarded a penalty for a foul in the box from a corner. Mayor stepped up and found the roof of the net to double Hibs’ advantage. The dream start for David Gray’s side in Dingwall. 2 nearly became three on 23 minutes. Hibs initially worked the ball well down their left-hand side, before Mayor received it and whipped in a dangerous ball, which Suto got on the end of, but the striker headed over. Suto found space on the edge of the box and had a shot, which was well saved by Foster, who got down low to deny the forward. Hibs eventually got their third on 39 minutes. Mulligan and Wright combined well, before Wright’s deflected cross found Suto, who converted from close range, to put Hibs in a commanding position. Emslie worked the ball onto his left foot and had a shot, which was deflected over the bar. HT: Ross County 0-3 Hibernian Just shy of the hour mark, Passlack played another dangerous ball into the County box from a corner, which was met by Kerr, who headed over. Just past the hour mark, substitute Diack found himself with plenty of space to shoot on the edge of the box but dragged his shot wide. With just under 15 minutes to go, Mayor’s cross found the head of Lowe, who headed wide from close range. With just under 5 minutes until stoppage time, Forrester found Phillips, who failed to get the ball under control in a position of promise. After no additional time, the referee drew the game to a close, a big result and a much-improved performance from David Gray’s side, who will find out their semi-final opponents following the conclusion of Rangers vs Celtic tomorrow afternoon. Ross County: Foster (5), Strapp (6), Wright (5), Reid (5), Randall (6), Graham (6), Lindsay (5), Smith (6), McCarvel (6), Turner (5), Emslie (6). Substitutes: Wade, Forrester (6), Phillips (6), Hamilton (6), Diack (6), Macleod, Docherty (6), Williamson, Reid. Hibernian: Sallinger (7), Mayor (8), Kerr (8), Mulligan (7), Newell (7), Iredale (7), Klidje (8), Suto (8), Wright (7), Passlack (8), Megwa. Substitutes: Owens, Elding, Lowe (6), Boyle, Williams (6), Chaiwa, Cadden (6), Devaney (6), Abdulai.