26th Mar 1994 Partick Thistle 1 Hibernian 0 (SFL Premier Division - game 34)

matches:1993-94: ← 41game 4243 →

53y, 0m, 24d	John Lambie	Alex Miller

David Byrne; Grant Tierney
Callum Milne; Alex Taylor

Roddy Grant (1-0, 79 mins)

		David Farrell (Graeme Donald); Kevin McAllister (Steven Tweed)

22y, 9m, 26d	Craig Nelson	Jim Leighton
33y, 0m, 21d	David Byrne	David Farrell future Jag
28y, 3m, 2d	Bobby Law	Graham Mitchell
23y, 6m, 5d	Gregg Watson	Billy Findlay
32y, 5m, 15d	Grant Tierney	Dave Beaumont
30y, 10m, 27d	Willie Jamieson	Gordon Hunter
32y, 2m, 23d	Albert Craig	Kevin McAllister
27y, 7m, 2d	Ian Cameron [i]	Brian Hamilton future Jag
27y, 6m, 10d	Roddy Grant	Keith Wright
22y, 4m, 14d	Isaac English	Darren Jackson
30y, 9m, 15d	Chic Charnley	Michael O'Neill

28y, 3m, 25d

25y, 8m, 6d	Andy Murdoch	Jason Gardiner
31y, 3m, 9d	Bobby Barnes	Graeme Donald
20y, 5m, 14d	Tom Smith	Steven Tweed

TTA report

Until Grant scored from a cut-back when a defender dithered (79) it looked as if Leighton the Hibs keeper was unbeatable with his string of fine saves. 4th top Hibs for all their neat play, seldom looked like scoring. Cameron hit the bar then English missed a sitter from 5 yards before he set up Grant's vital winner.

Media report

28-Mar-1994, The Scotsman

IT WAS a choice between Firhill and the local home-furnishings emporium. By midway through the first half, sofas had acquired a whole new seductive appeal. On the away terracing, green-clad Hibs fans sat down or reclined in the sun. From a distance they might easily have been mistaken for basking monitor lizards. Spring was in the air, but distinctly lacking from the step of either team. Openings were prodded for; long balls were pumped forward. Yet despite the apparent caution of this strategy, neither side seemed at all nervous. Fortunately for the paying customers, the players seemed to regain their professional self-respect at half-time, and re-emerged determined to make a game of it. The match was thus good value for £3.50.

Partick Thistle should have taken the lead long before they did, but such is the tightness of the relegation race that their single-goal victory raised them to seventh place, and gave their spirits a considerable lift. Whether their morale and league position survive tomorrow night’s game against Rangers, and Saturday’s with Motherwell, is another matter. Still, a meagre haul of half a dozen points from their remaining ten matches should see them safe. If they play as they did latterly against Hibs they will succeed.

In that second half Thistle displayed a pleasing – and, for their supporters, reassuring – blend of solidity and guile. David Byrne had a fine match, nullifying the threat of Michael O’Neill, and providing menace of his own in his forays upfield. Ian Cameron, always a cultured player, began to find gaps in the Hibs defence. And the strikers, Roddy Grant and Isaac English, finally did the business after spurning several chances to open the scoring. The goal, with little more than ten minutes left, arose from a defensive error. Gordon Hunter swithered between knocking the ball behind for a corner and passing it back to Jim Leighton. His hesitation allowed English to step in and cut a ball back for Grant, who finished with an accuracy which had deserted his colleague minutes earlier when presented with an equally good scoring opportunity.

There was sufficient organisation about Hibs’ performance to show why they have had a good season. They remain a side with the potential to entertain and even delight, although that potential remained unrealised on Saturday. Hibs’ playing staff presumably earn enough to pay for their private trips to Europe. With this sort of display they won’t be going there on club business next season.

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