Leith’s yellow weather warning was waved off before Rangers arrived in town – but there’s a new high-pressure system set to move back in over Ibrox.
Having broken his Old Firm duck, Philippe Clement set his side a New Year resolution of finding the consistency that had evaded them throughout the past 12 months. But it was back to the bad old habits of of 2024 as they allowed some scintillating attacking play to be undone by all manner of hair-brained stuff at the back.
The showers of snow that were predicted earlier this week failed to appear but it was still Baltic at Easter Road. And it was Gers who got off to a red-hot start as they created a blizzard of early chances. Hamza Igamane took two within the first 20 minutes but when Rangers allowed Martin Boyle to pull one back, they lost their grip.
Igamane completed his hat-trick in the second half but only after Boyle had also netted again from the penalty spot. Gers had victory in sight but just like they did in Paisley and Motherwell before the Bells, they couldn’t get the job done as Rocky Bushuiri capped off a six-goal thriller with another equaliser. With Celtic’s Premiership lead now back up to 13 points, Clement’s position is now back in the spotlight.
He thought he’d bought himself some breathing room with Thursday’s result but he can expect another round of speculation on his long-term future. The sport scientists were given the rubber ear as the Rangers boss named his team. But given Jack Butland, James Tavernier, Leon Balogun and John Souttar were all still unavailable the Gers gaffer didn’t really have much choice to go with the same side that swiped Celtic aside.
But sticking by the team that rampaged to their first derby win in seven attempts was exactly what the travelling Light Blues legions would have wanted. David Gray, meanwhile, couldn’t have done much more to win back the trust of the Leith faithful after a dismal start in the Easter Road hot seat.
A run of four wins and draw earned the former club captain December’s manager of the month prize. But the opening half hour was a replay of the nonsense that at one point had Gray fearing for his job. Rangers were carrying on from where they left off in their derby triumph, snapping into tackles and setting up opportunities to counter.
Hibs, meanwhile, were making all the same sloppy mistakes that cost Celtic. There were just three minutes on the clock when Lewis Miller’s bombscare pass almost put Igamane in. Hibs survived that one – but would found themselves behind just 60 seconds later. Rocky Bushiri should have cleared his lines instead of get involved in an test of strength with the young Moroccan.
When he lost out, Rangers were quick to take advantage. Nedim Bajrami fired the ball wide to Ianis Hagi, who followed up his Old Firm opener with a pin-point pick-out for Igamane to rifle home. It was very nearly two for Gers win eight minutes as they raced away on a slick counter. Vaclav Cerny releases Bajrami but as the Albanian cut inside, Bushiri made some amends with a goal-saving block.
But Hibs were struggling to contain Rangers’ sweeping breakaways. It was taking keeper Jordan Smith to keep them in it as made saves from Igamane, Bajrami and Cerny. But when the Hibs goalie’s handling failed, his side were in trouble again.
With their backline sucked narrow, Gers worked the ball out to Bajrami. As the green shirts scrambled to cover the spaces, they forgot to pick up the victors’ danger man and watched as Igamane thud home from the cross with a bullet header which Smith just couldn’t keep out.
It should have been a canter from Gers from that point. But the balance soon swung. Diomande got away with one on 32 minutes when VAR cleared him of a red-card check for a late challenge on Nicky Cadden. But there was reprieve from Clydesdale House as Rangers conceded from the resulting free-kick.
Miller got first contact on Jack Iredale’s delivery. Campbell couldn’t fire home from the knock-down but Boyle did find the bottom corner as he drilled home from Bushiri’s tee-up. Clement would have been furious to see his makeshift backline handing away such a cheap goal but it gave Hibs the shot in the arm they desperately needed before the break.
It took a strong wrist from Smith again to prevent Gers restoring their two-goal advantage just after the restart as Igamane fired one off towards the bottom corner. But the visitors weren’t playing with the same control as they started the game with and their carelessness cost them the equaliser on the hour mark.
Cerny and Diomande were both loose with the ball in the build up and Hagi was equally reckless as he clumsily bundled Campbell to the ground inside the box.
John Beaton didn’t hesitate in pointing to the spot and Boyle was just as assertive as he slammed the penalty high down the middle past Kelly.
That got the chittering Hibs support off their feet – and they were almost leaping for joy again as Miller craned his neck to direct a header off the post before bouncing into Kelly’s grateful grasp. But with 16 minutes left, the home fans were back slumped in their seats as Igamane rounded off his treble.
For the first time in the second half, Rangers were able to build some secure possession in the Hibs half. Cerny found himself up against Nicky Cadden but with a drop of the shoulder the Czech ace was beyond him, throwing over a loss ball from which Igamane ripped home his third.
That should have been it for Gers. But Clement’s injury-hit backline had already been patched up further by that point with Dujon Sterling off injured. And his replacement Leon King was no match for Bushiri’s brawn, with the big defender out jumping his marker to head home another leveller.
That wasn’t the end of the drama, with Igamane almost grabbing a fourth as he robbed the dawdling Bushiri before firing off the base of the post