Latest news with #Essen
Scotsman
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
New Hibs signing in goal prediction as Euro hopes boosted by ultra experience
Attacking midfielder hit stride early with goal on home debut Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... David Gray believes his Hibs team's European preparations have been boosted by the experience of playing in front of the fired-up Rot-Weiss Essen ultras. And he's encouraged by new arrival Jamie McGrath making a lightning start to his Easter Road career, predicting that the former Aberdeen attacker will chip in with more goals once the competitive action kicks off. Gray saw his team edge out German third-tier side Essen in a five-goal thriller on Wednesday night, the Scottish Premiership side fielding all of their new faces and giving game time to a couple of youngsters over 90 minutes at Easter Road. The game, a throwback to the clubs' 1955 European Cup encounter in Hibernian's very first UEFA contest, was made more interesting by the Rot-Weiss fans – over 2000 of them – letting off pyros and singing throughout the match. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Hibs travel to Denmark to take on FC Midtjylland in the first leg of their Europa League second qualifying round tie on July 24, with the return fixture in Edinburgh a week later. Gray, who is taking his team to Bournemouth for a friendly next week before hosting Bolton Wanderers in a testimonial for Darren McGregor, believes the Essen experience can only be of benefit. 'It definitely does us no harm at all when you're thinking about European football and what that sort of experience is and different levels of opposition and types of games,' he said, adding: 'Because that sort of atmosphere was great. 'But the level of players you're playing against and different styles you don't get every year in a pre-season friendly. So it was good to have that this year. 'It didn't feel like a non-event, pre-season friendly that I've been involved in as a player many times. And you're just thinking about getting minutes into your legs and having done everything you've done in training during the week and how difficult that is. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Because it is still pre-season. We need to remember that. It is still pre-season. 'It's about getting fitter and getting stronger all the time. But I definitely didn't feel like that. I thought the atmosphere was excellent. 'The fact that probably the way the game went as well, from being 2-0 up, controlling the game, to then being pegged back to 2-2, added to that as well.' David Gray puts demands on new attacking threat Irish attacking midfielder McGrath scored just 73 seconds into his home debut. And Gray says he expects goals to a be a big part of the former St Mirren star's game in the season head. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Definitely,' he said, adding: 'I think he's shown that over his career. He's technically very good. He arrives in the box. 'Tactically very good as well. I've seen that in the very short time I've spent working with him already. He gets it very quickly. 'Another one that's settled in really well with the boys, which is great. And it doesn't do your confidence any harm at all when you can get a goal in your home debut at Easter Road. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'So from that point of view, I'm delighted for him. Delighted for all the players in terms of Josh Mulligan in his first game. He's done really well, looked really strong, really fit. And Rafa (Sallinger) as well. 'And then the rest of the players, obviously coming back into pre-season and having a game like that, rather than a low-level pre-season friendly that was all about minutes. And that's what everybody clearly thinks it is. This was a lot more than that, which was really beneficial for us.'
Scotsman
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Revealed: The 'absolute wizard' who has blown away new Hibs signing
McGrath and Hoilett both hit net as Boyle bagged winner in Euro friendly Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... A scorer with his second touch of the ball, Jamie McGrath could hardly have expected a better first start as a potential Easter Road favourite. If he continues in the sort of form that saw him open his account after just 73 seconds in last night's Euro throwback friendly win over Rot-Weiss Essen, he'll certainly be a favourite with home fans. Ask the summer arrival about his first impressions of life as a Hibee, however, and the Irishman's focus switches away from his own talents – and towards those of his team-mates. With one especially magical figure drawing particularly high praise. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad McGrath, who signed a pre-contract agreement to join Hibs with six months of his deal at Aberdeen remaining last season, considers himself fortunate to have shared a dressing room – however briefly – with Junior Hoilett. So he's thrilled to be reunited with the former Blackburn, QPR, Cardiff and Reading attacker, back for another year at Hibs after a long summer of family talks and contract negotiations. Former Aberdeen star one of 'a special few' Shaking his head in admiration of the goal Hoilett stuck past Essen in an eventful 3-2 home win, McGrath said: "Oh yeah, he's an absolute wizard. I grew up watching the Premier League and you're looking at him week in, week out playing. 'So to play with him now, it's class to learn off him every day. I had the pleasure of playing with him at Aberdeen for six months - and he's still as good as ever. "You saw his finish; he does that every day in training. It's great to play alongside someone of his quality. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "He's a very good character to have around as well. He's always willing to help out, help you out. I'm delighted to be back playing with him again. 'He makes your job easy. You know the ball's going to stick with him or he's going to get out of a tight situation. "He's a joy to play with. His finish against Essen, only a special few can do that. He'll be a big player for us this year.' McGrath has put in the hard yards over pre-season, having fully recovered from shoulder surgery towards the end of last season. A long-time Hibs target who actually signed for the club on one particularly frantic Deadline Day, only for the deal to fall through, he's loving being part of a team who carried real momentum over the second half of the last campaign. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "Ah yeah, you see the quality throughout the pitch,' said the attacking midfielder. 'We can score goals from everywhere. You see the two wing backs getting forward, both Caddens, and Lewis Miller stepping in. Irishman keen to chip in with goals "It's a dream to play as an attacker in here as well because the boys don't refuse putting balls in the box and I was lucky enough I got the goal from that. I think it's going to be hopefully an exciting season. "Yeah, my second touch was a goal, so not a bad start. It was a good exercise, getting 90 in the legs. I think it's my second one in six or seven months, so it was nice to come through that. "This part of the season is just about forming relationships and getting the hard yards done, so a lot of good stuff tonight and a lot to improve on as well. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'I like to chip in (with goals) as much as I can. I've had a good return over the past few seasons, so hopefully I can keep that going now this year. It's important for us all to chip in, to take pressure off the lads up top. "But we know the quality of the boys up top as well, they're always going to chip in. You've seen Martin Boyle and Junior Hoilett scoring, and Kieron Bowie was unlucky hitting the post. So the more threat we have all over, the better for the team. "It was nice to play our first game at Easter Road. It didn't really feel like a friendly at all with the travelling fans and our fans there. It felt like a European game at some stages of the game. So yeah, it was a really positive night. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "We conceded two goals, which we won't be happy about. But at this stage, like I said, it's just about getting the hard yards in and forming partnerships and relationships with each and every one. 'The gaffer said before the game that Europe was 15 days away. So every day we have to train up the levels and make sure we're in our best physical shape for the first competitive game. "We have a tough game against Bournemouth next week and we're playing some very good teams, so that'll stand us in good stead going into the European campaign. At this stage it really is about getting the hard work in and making sure we're in our best physical state in a couple of weeks' time.' Hibs face Bournemouth behind closed doors on the south coast next week, then host Bolton Wanderers in a final pre-season friendly doubling as Darren McGregor's testimonial, before travelling to Denmark to take on FC Midtjylland in the Europa League second qualifying round on July 24. Still short of a striker and a defensive midfielder, with the Nectar Triantis situation looking less promising the longer it's allowed to run on, there will be more new recruits coming. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad McGrath feels the existing squad is well placed to cope with more arrivals, pointing out: 'It's actually a very settled team as well, bringing back Rocky Bushiri and Junior Hoilett. It's not like there have been massive additions in the squad, so that also helps as well because the boys already have that understanding and you saw the run they went on last year. "It's great to have a bit of a blend of continuity and new blood. And I think it's a really good balance."
Scottish Sun
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
Hibs boss David Gray opens up on major double injury sweat after historic friendly win over Rot-Weiss Essen
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) DAVID GRAY hopes some quick thinking saved Lewis Miller and Elie Youan from injury. Martin Boyle's 75th minute strike saw Hibs run out winners against German third tier side Rot-Weiss Essen after first-half goals from Jamie McGrath and Junior Hoilett. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Hibs in action against Rot-Weiss Essen Credit: Kenny Ramsay 3 An emotional Pat Stanton takes the acclaim as stand is named after the Hibs Legend Credit: Kenny Ramsay Aussie ace Miller was forced off after failing to recover from a first half knock then French striker Youan lasted just 17 minutes after coming on at half-time. Gray said: 'It's very early but we're hoping both were more precautionary. Millsy was a kick but he's up walking about so we'll have to assess him. 'Elie felt a stiffness in his back which was hampering him when he was running so we weren't taking any risk in making things worse. Hopefully things settle down quickly.' Essen were Hibs' opponents when they became the first British team to compete in the first ever European Cup back in 1955. The latest clash kicked off the club's 150th anniversary celebrations - and saw first Easter Road starts for McGrath, Josh Mulligan and Raphael Sallinger. It came after the Easter Road men went down 6-3 to European giants Ajax in Holland on Saturday. Despite being in the third tier of German football, Essen brought more than 2,000 fans. It took just 79 seconds for them to fall silent as Miller darted into the box then teed up the onrushing McGrath. Visiting goalie Jakob Golz saved the first shot but couldn't keep out the second. Hoilett grabbed Hibs' second in the 14th minute when he picked up the ball on the edge of the box and deftly dinked it beyond Golz's reach. Hibs chief Malky Mackay on his Celtic team-mate who could've been as good as Henrik Larsson It had been all Hibs before the break but Essen started the second half like a different team. Just 39 seconds after the restart sub Dominik Martinovic slid home. When Martinovic went one-on-one with Rocky Bushiri four minutes later neither the Hibs defender nor goalie Sallinger covered themselves in glory as his low drive crept inside the left post. But Hibs recovered and Boyle slammed in a third with 15 minutes left. Essen blew a great chance to equalise with three minutes left when they won a penalty after Torben Musel latched onto a short backpass from Cadden. Musel's shot was tipped wide by Sallinger but he'd been impeded by Marvin Ekpiteta and ref Sean Murdoch pointed to the spot. Sallinger guessed right to beat away Musel's kick. Gray added: 'The fans added to the occasion and it didn't feel like a friendly. It's about minutes in the legs and we started with good intent. 3 David Gray ponders a potential injury blow for his side ahead of the big kick off Credit: Kenny Ramsay 'We started the second half very slowly but we made changes and reacted so credit to the players. I know it's only pre-season but that's a good habit. 'There's still loads of improvement though, like in the goals we lost.' Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
Scotsman
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
What Hibs fans learned from Euro throwback friendly as two key men crocked
Video as German ultras bring Euro pyro display to Easter Road friendly Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... With 15 days to go until the season kicks off in earnest with a Europa League qualifier of real import, Hibs marked their return to Easter Road with an entertaining friendly win over opponents rooted in the proud continental history of the club. In a game that produced plenty of chances, a couple of injury scares, a brilliant penalty save AND one or two reminders about the inevitable inconsistency of performances at this stage of pre-season, David Gray's men just held on for a 3-2 win against Rot-Weiss Essen. Two-nil up inside 13 minutes, with Junior Hoilett's exquisite finish following the earliest of openers from Jamie McGrath after just 73 seconds, Hibs were pegged back by two quickfire goals from Essen substitute Dominik Martinovic in the opening exchanges of the second half. With subs aplenty in the second half, including Martin Boyle coming on for Kieron Bowie just after the Scotland striker had hit the post on the hour mark, it was hard for either team to find much of a rhythm over the closing half hour. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Boyle banging in a third with his left foot will NOT count towards his competitive total for Hibs. So the wait for a century of goals goes on. What wouldn't everyone at the club give for the skipper hitting the net in Herning in just over a fortnight's time, eh? There was time for late drama as goalkeeper Raphael Sallinger, at fault for the visitors' second goal, pulled off a brilliant penalty save from Torben Musel with just three minutes remaining. And even some handbags in injury time as tempers flared in this 'friendy.' In a game that saw all of the summer signings start, a contest that gave David Gray opportunities to try different formations – a 3-5-2 making way for a 4-4-2 after an hour – and new combinations, there would be danger in reading too much into anything. The only reason for playing a team from the 3. Bundesliga, after all, was the fact that Hibs played Essen in their very first European Cup tie way back in 1955. So what did we learn from this Euro throwback encounter at the start of this 150th anniversary year for Hibs? Let's dive in. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Lewis Miller and Elie Youan injury updates Miller left the pitch with a knock just after the half-hour mark, while Youan lasted just 17 minutes after coming on as a half-time sub, the French forward applauding fans as he hirpled his way round the outside of the pitch. Gray provided an update on both. 'It's very early but both we're hoping were more precautionary,' he said. 'Millsy was a kick, he's up walking about so we'll have to asses him but we weren't taking any risks. 'Elie felt a stiffness in his back which was hampering him when he was running and you could see that so we weren't taking any risk in making things worse. So hopefully things settle down really quickly.' Junior Hoilett is a stone-cold killer of defences The sheer audacity of it. The quiet, subtle, unhurried certainty with which Hoilett scored the second of Hibernian's goals here … yeah, it kind of underlined the value of getting the Canadian international back on board for another season. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Having given him time to speak with his family and weigh up other offers, the Hibs hierarchy were always keen to re-sign a player who made a real impact last season. Played up front here, before being replaced by Youan at half-time, he looked as sharp as ever. McGrath also showed some nice touches, apart from his goal, before he faded in the second half. A few looked leggy at a time when they're still putting in heavy training sessions ahead of the new season. It all went a bit mad for a spell there … Credit Rot-Weiss Essen for dragging themselves back into the contest with two quickfire goals at the start of the second half. But Hibs can't be happy with how they conceded. The first was a tap-in, never a good sign for a defence. And the second? Goalkeeper Raphael Sallinger did not look impressive in being beaten at his near post, from range, by a low shot that could hardly be described as a screamer. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The Austrian keeper dropped an easy cross into his midriff soon after. Inspiring some inevitable jitters among Hibs fans. But his penalty save was genuinely outstanding, diving full length to his right to stop a decent effort. New/old signings given a chance to shine While Hoilett was his usual clever self, fellow summer re-signing Rocky Bushiri – handed the captain's armband from the start – will have benefited from the 60 minutes here. McGrath scored, Sallinger made amends for his one error, while Josh Mulligan put in a shift. All will feel they have more to offer. And they'll get chances to prove it soon enough. Rot-Weiss ultras lived up to reputation Famed for their passion that saw them draw five-figure crowds even as they languished in the regional leagues, the Essen support turned up in numbers – over 2000 on the night – for this Euro throwback friendly. Now in the third tier of German football, ultra groups flying banners declaring themselves the Red Barons, Wrecking Crew, Northside Crew and even the 'Freaks' put on a pre-match pyro display that would have had local safety officers more than little concerned. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The visiting support, who arrived early and en masse at Easter Road, were loud, enthusiastic and relentless. Imagine what they'll be like if/when Rot-Weiss return to a more deserving position in the Bundesliga pyramid.
Scotsman
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Hibs' European adventure starts early: 2000 German fans, pyro, eye-catching ref, mini-rammy and two injuries
A nod to history at Easter Road on Pat Stanton's big evening Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... European football came a few weeks early to Easter Road as Hibs kicked off the festivities to mark their 150th anniversary with a 3-2 win over Rot-Weiss Essen. A match organised with the German third-tier outfit to mark their encounter 70 years ago in the European Cup, there was a carnival atmosphere on a balmy summer's night in Leith. Back in September 1955, the two teams played out a 1-1 draw on the back of Hibs winning 4-0 at the Georg-Melches-Stadion. Neither club is at the lofty perch of yesteryear, although unlike Essen, Hibs at least have genuine continental competition to look forward to this term. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad This will have been a useful exercise for Hibs head coach David Gray and his players in terms of European opposition, although one wholly expects Danish side FC Midtjylland to be a whole lot stronger than the Germans when they meet later this month in the second qualifying round of the Europa Conference League. Owe Koschinat's 3. Liga side were plucky and summoned a spirited second-half revival, but they had their limitations. Rot-Weiss Essen were cheered on by a large support at Easter Road. | SNS Group What FC Midtjylland may struggle to match is the sizeable travelling support that made its way over from North Rhine-Westphalia to witness what was essentially a glorified friendly. More than 2000 Rot-Weiss Essen followers packed into the South Stand to noisily cheer on their team. A generation of their fans have not watched their team outside of Germany. They soaked up the pre-match sunshine in central Edinburgh and put on a sort of pyrotechnic display when the teams emerged that the SFA does not like. There was also the celebration of Pat Stanton, the Hibs legend who now has Easter Road's East Stand named after him. He was warmly welcomed on to the pitch and looked emotional as he gazed up at his structure. In terms of the match, which was refereed by former Hibs reserve goalkeeper Sean Murdoch, Gray named a strong Hibs team in what has become a trademark 3-5-2 formation. They moved 2-0 ahead early on, Jamie McGrath opening the scoring on two minutes before Junior Hoilett doubled the advantage on 14 minutes with a lovely chipped effort. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Essen fightback Essen changed their team after the break and netted on 47 minutes through Dominik Martinovic from close range to give the visiting support something to cheer about. Their joy was doubled on 51 minutes when the same player netted with a daisycutter that didn't make Hibs keeper Raphael Sallinger look too clever. Hibs looked leggy at this points, but the introduction of Martin Boyle livened them up and he put Hibs back in front with a left-footed strike on 75 minutes and should have scored again rather than blazing over towards the end. That allowed Essen to fashion one last chance and it came when Marvin Ekpiteta gave away a penalty on 88 minutes. However, Sallinger more than atoned for any sloppiness with the Essen leveller by plunging to his right to save Torben Musel's effort. Tempers threatened to boil over just before full-time with a mini-rammy, with the Germans desperate to leave with a draw.
