Hibs Aim for Comeback Against Malisheva in Conference League
Hibernian know this script. A European tie drifting away after a poor first leg, the mood around Easter Road turning edgy, then a surge, a response, a comeback. Joelle Murray is banking on that history repeating itself on Thursday night.
Malisheva arrive in Leith with a 2-0 advantage from the first leg of the Conference League second qualifying round. It is a serious deficit, but not one unfamiliar to a club that has made a habit of rescuing ties when the odds look awkward.
For Murray, head coach of Hibs’ women’s side and a keen observer of the men’s fortunes, the route back is clear: start fast, play forward, and drag the crowd with you.
“I know the Easter Road crowd can be unforgiving at times,” she told the BBC’s Scottish Football Podcast, a line that will resonate with anyone who has heard the groans after a sideways pass in Leith.
The solution, in her eyes, is simple enough. Be brave.
She wants “forward passes, penetrating passes and just really playing with that intent from the very first whistle”. No easing into the tie, no feeling out the opposition. Hibs, she believes, have to go after Malisheva from the opening seconds and let the stands feel that urgency.
The aim is to land the first punch. An early goal, Murray says, “should hopefully see them progress”. The logic is obvious. Score once, and the noise changes. Score early, and the 2-0 deficit begins to look less like a mountain and more like a familiar climb.
“They've obviously got history of overturning a poor first leg in the second one,” she added. That history is part of the club’s European folklore, and Murray is tapping directly into it. “So hopefully we can replicate that this evening with a similar result and a really good performance.”
The optimism comes with a dose of frustration. Hibs go into the tie still shorn of key options. Wing-back Nicky Cadden remains out, as do new signing Callum Wright and midfielder Jamie McGrath, all sidelined through injury. For a side that needs craft and thrust in the final third, those are heavy absences.
One glimmer: striker Ante Suto could return. Murray knows exactly what that might mean in a game where Hibs cannot afford to drift.
“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 must chase, risk, and trust that Easter Road’s unforgiving edge can turn into a driving force once the first green-and-white shirt hits the net.
