Venue: Easter Road Date: 05/01/25 Time: 12:00pm
A perfect hat-trick for Hamza Igamane could not put away a spirited Hibs as Rangers dropped points for the third time in four games.
Having been denied by Jordan Smith in the third minute, the Moroccan striker opened his account when he was first to meet Ianis Hagi’s cross.
Continuing to knock at Hibernian’s door, Igamane doubled his and Rangers’ tally with an excellent header from Nedim Bajrami’s cross.
Never looking like giving in, the home side responded through Martin Boyle, after the striker was teed up by Rock Bushiri’s header.
As David Gray’s men continued to apply the pressure, they were soon rewarded when Ianis Hagi went from hero to villain, briging Chris Cadden down in the box with Boyle dispatching the spot kick to level the score.
Their efforts seemed in vain as Igamane fired home his third and tenth goal in just eleven games after Cerny did well to find the striker with another low ball across goal.
Down but never out, Bushiri’s header to bring the score the 3-3 epitomised the fighting spirit of a side that has gone from the foot of the table to undefeated in six games.
Igamane was furious as he failed to add an remarkable fourth, beating Bushiri and racing through on goal but his shot was just wide as Hibs secured a crucial point.
Both sides had their chances but Rangers will rue not putting the game to bed in the first half.
Bajrami had an opportunity early on as Cerny’s pinpoint ball send the Albanian through on goal but Hibs put bodies on the line to deflect the ball out for a corner and would do the same soon after as Igamane continued to hound the home side’s goalmouth.
David Gray has Jordan Smith to thank for keeping his side in it, denying Bajrami, Cerny and Igamane who continued to unleash attempts on goal lest Smith lose his focus for a split second.
Hibs however grew into the game as Lewis Miller recovered from a nervy start to thunder an effort from outside the box, stinging the palms of keeper Kelly before his header seemed certain to have put his side ahead just a minute later.
Kelly looked a grateful man as he watched the ball bounce off the inside of his post and back into his hands but the message was clear, Hibs were not finished yet.
Following the late equaliser they looked set to hang on for a point until Igamane raced past Bushiri and in on goal with time almost up but his shot could only hit the post.
Rangers have now dropped seven points in their last four games as they look to turn things around away to Dundee on Thursday.
Igamane can’t lift makeshift defence
Not even Clement himself would have predicted that just a few months on from playing in Morocco, Hamza Igamane would be the side’s most valuable player.
Ten goals in eleven games is astonishing improvement on the one he manged in the eleven prior but the striker continues to rescue his team from their defensive woes, having scored both goals in their draw against Motherwell.
Despite a hat-trick, the man who is yet to receive a senior cap could not hide the fact that Rangers continue to be the architects of their own downfall.
Much was expected from the side after trouncing Celtic 3-0 but careless defending and an mishandling of the game tactically meant they gave themselves little to no chance of catching the current champions.
Clement’s problems do not stop there after he watched Dujon Sterling, already playing in an unfamiliar centre-back role due to the absence of John Souttar and Leon Balogun, limp off the field and be replaced by Leon King.
Now as they travel to Dundee in just four days time, they will need to rely on a defender who up until had yet to play a senior minute this season.
Dogged Hibs transformed
After one win from their opening fourteen games, there was little surprise as rumours circulated that manager David Gray was for the chop.
Now with just one defeat in eight, Gray reserves to right to feel a little smug as his side find themselves a hair’s length from the top six.
His remarked determination to confront the club’s problems header looks to have seeped into his players who never gave up despite going two goals down before the half hour mark.
Nicky Cadden continues to look like a fish in water as a wing-back, firing crosses in a causing his opposite number trouble to no end.
The turnaround however, is most epitomised by Martin Boyle whose two goals are indicative of a player who looks to have put one of his most difficult starts to a season safely in distance.
In the post-match conference, Gray joked that he would have laughed if someone had suggested to him that Boyle might one day be captain and yet, he now embodies the fighting spirit that has seen the Hibees pull away from their Edinburgh rivals.
As the race for the top half intensifies, there is plenty of evidence to suggest they could be up and amongst it.
What the mangers said:
Hibs boss David Gray:
“Massive credit to the players for the second half performance and hanging in there in the first half to be honest.
“I’ve had to sit and answer a lot of questions about the character of the group but they’ve answered that numerous times in recent weeks.
“I joke with [Martin Boyle] with quite a lot because when he joined the club, if you’d said to me he was going to turn out to be a Hibs captain one day I would have laughed at you but he’s matured into that role.”
Rangers boss Philippe Clement:
“It’s a frustrating afternoon to lose three points.
“I don’t understand the penalty situation. It’s a small collision between two players at top speed where the attacking player gets Ianis down by getting his legs from behind.
“I got a lot of questions at the beginning of the season why we did that [Igamane] transfer. So it’s good that people see why now. He made giant steps the last three, four months. Technically, tactically and even more physically to cope with the rhythm we play in the league.
“[On January signings] That’s something that Patrick [Stewart] will address towards you guys. He wants to give an explanation on what the plan is for January.”
Attendance: 17,539
Line-Ups:
Hibernian (3-5-2): J. Smith, L. Miller, R. Bushiri, J. Iredale, N. Cadden, C. Cadden, N. Triantis, Hyeokkyu Kwon (N. Moriah-Welsh 54’), J. Campbell, M. Boyle (c), D. Gayle
Substitutes: J. Bursik, W. O’Hora, D. Levitt, L. Amos, H. McKirdy, J. Obita, N. Moriah-Welsh, J. Hoilett, R. Molotnikov
Rangers (4-3-2-1): L. Kelly, R. Yilmaz, R. Propper, D. Sterling (L. King 71′), Jefte, M. Diomande, N. Raskin (c), N. Bajrami (Danilo 70′), I. Hagi (O. Cortes 70′), V. Cerny (C. Barron 81′), H. Igamane
Substitutes: M. Munn, C. Nsiala, O. Cortes, C. Barron, K. Dowell, L. King, R. Matondo, Danilo, C. Dessers
Referee: John Beaton