2002–03 Hibernian F.C. season

Season 2002–03 was a disappointment for Hibernian, as the team finished in the bottom half of the Scottish Premier League in Bobby Williamson's first full season in charge. The team were also knocked out of the two domestic cup competitions at an early stage. In a preview for the next season, BBC Sport commented that the biggest problem "was a fragile defence that developed a nasty habit of conceding late goals".[2]

Hibernian
2002–03 season
ManagerBobby Williamson
SPL7th
Scottish CupR4
CIS CupR3
Top goalscorerLeague: McManus, 11
All: McManus, 11
Highest home attendance13686[1]
Lowest home attendance7518[1]
Average home league attendance9937[1] (down 1666)

League season

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Hibs got off to a very poor start to the league season, collecting only three points from a possible 18.[3] This included heavy defeats by Hearts and Dunfermline.[3] Former Hibs player Ulrik Laursen commented in the match programme for his new club, Celtic, that he believed former Hibs manager Alex McLeish (now at Rangers) was to blame for this decline in fortunes, due to his decision to release popular players such as Mixu Paatelainen and Stuart Lovell.[4] Hibs lost the game 1–0 at Celtic Park and remained bottom of the early league table,[4] but fortunes immediately improved, as Hibs won their next five league games in succession.

This revival meant that they were in a good league position going into the third Edinburgh derby of the season, on 2 January, where victory would mean that Hibs would leapfrog Hearts into third place.[5] Hibs twice took a two-goal lead, but conceded two goals (both scored by Graham Weir) late in stoppage time to gift Hearts a 4–4 draw.[5] Hibs then lost their next five league games and drifted down the league, eventually finishing in 7th place.

Results

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3 August 2002 SPL Hibernian 1–2 Aberdeen Easter Road, Edinburgh
Luna   31' Mackie   64'
Clark   90'
Attendance: 13,340
Referee: Toner
11 August 2002 SPL Heart of Midlothian 5–1 Hibernian Tynecastle, Edinburgh
Kirk   18'
de Vries   40', 66', 90', 90'
Murray   51' Attendance: 15,245
Referee: McCurry
18 August 2002 SPL Hibernian 2–4 Rangers Easter Road, Edinburgh
Townsley   35'
O'Connor   89'
de Boer   6'
Ferguson   45' (pen.)
Løvenkrands   65', 87'
Attendance: 11,633
Referee: Dallas
24 August 2002 SPL Dundee 2–1 Hibernian Dens Park, Dundee
Caballero   79'
Lovell   90'
O'Connor   10' Attendance: 6,411
Referee: Young
31 August 2002 SPL Motherwell 0–2 Hibernian Fir Park, Motherwell
Townsley   15', 72' Attendance: 5,888
Referee: Clark
11 September 2002 SPL Hibernian 1–4 Dunfermline Athletic Easter Road, Edinburgh
Paatelainen   42' Walker   11'
Brewster   24', 57'
Crawford   32'
Attendance: 9,837
Referee: Dougal
14 September 2002 SPL Celtic 1–0 Hibernian Celtic Park, Glasgow
Hartson   31' Attendance: 56,703
Referee: McDonald
21 September 2002 SPL Hibernian 2–0 Kilmarnock Easter Road, Edinburgh
Murray   8'
McManus   11'
Attendance: 8,680
Referee: Rowbotham
28 September 2002 SPL Hibernian 1–0 Livingston Easter Road, Edinburgh
Murray   45' Attendance: 9,541
Referee: Freeland
5 October 2002 SPL Hibernian 2–1 Dundee United Easter Road, Edinburgh
O'Connor   29'
Murray   51'
Thompson   76' Attendance: 9,175
Referee: Underhill
19 October 2002 SPL Partick Thistle 0–3 Hibernian Firhill Stadium, Glasgow
O'Connor   44', 88'
Paatelainen   81'
Attendance: 5,946
Referee: Rowbotham
27 October 2002 SPL Aberdeen 0–1 Hibernian Pittodrie Stadium, Aberdeen
Brebner   70' Attendance: 12,321
Referee: Clark
3 November 2002 SPL Hibernian 1–2 Heart of Midlothian Easter Road, Edinburgh
Paatelainen   36' McKenna   86'
Stamp   90'
Attendance: 15,560
Referee: Young
10 November 2002 SPL Rangers 2–1 Hibernian Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow
Mols   11'
Arveladze   35'
McManus   45' Attendance: 48,798
Referee: McCurry
16 November 2002 SPL Hibernian 2–1 Dundee Easter Road, Edinburgh
Paatelainen   12', 49' (pen.) Novo   90' Attendance: 8,870
Referee: Dallas
23 November 2002 SPL Hibernian 3–1 Motherwell Easter Road, Edinburgh
Paatelainen   59'
McManus   64'
O'Neil   90' (pen.)
Ferguson   47' Attendance: 8,859
Referee: McDonald
30 November 2002 SPL Dunfermline Athletic 1–1 Hibernian East End Park, Dunfermline
Crawford   66' McManus   57' Attendance: 7,515
Referee: Fyfe
4 December 2002 SPL Hibernian 0–1 Celtic Easter Road, Edinburgh
Petrov   76' Attendance: 12,042
Referee: McCurry
7 December 2002 SPL Dundee United 1–1 Hibernian Tannadice Park, Dundee
Wilson   3' Murray   7' Attendance: 5,673
Referee: McDonald
14 December 2002 SPL Livingston 1–2 Hibernian Almondvale, Livingston
Brinquin   90' Murray   55'
James   66'
Attendance: 6,501
Referee: Brines
21 December 2002 SPL Kilmarnock 2–1 Hibernian Rugby Park, Kilmarnock
McSwegan   63'
Fulton   88'
Luna   83' Attendance: 5,814
Referee: Dallas
26 December 2002 SPL Hibernian 1–1 Partick Thistle Easter Road, Edinburgh
O'Neil   89' (pen.) Burns   78' Attendance: 10,317
Referee: Thomson
29 December 2002 SPL Hibernian 2–0 Aberdeen Easter Road, Edinburgh
Paatelainen   70'
McManus   85'
Attendance: 11,604
Referee: Rowbotham
2 January 2003 SPL Heart of Midlothian 4–4 Hibernian Tynecastle, Edinburgh
Pressley   30' (pen.)
de Vries   62'
Weir   90', 90'
Townsley   11'
McManus   17'
James   89'
Brebner   90'
Attendance: 17,732
Referee: Dougal
29 January 2003 SPL Hibernian 0–2 Rangers Easter Road, Edinburgh
Ferguson   58'
Caniggia   85'
Attendance: 13,686
Referee: Clark
8 February 2003 SPL Motherwell 2–1 Hibernian Fir Park, Motherwell
Clarkson   31'
Fagan   41'
O'Connor   71' Attendance: 4,999
Referee: Richmond
15 February 2003 SPL Hibernian 1–3 Dunfermline Athletic Easter Road, Edinburgh
O'Connor   67' Mason   20'
Crawford   39', 55'
Attendance: 9,175
Referee: McCurry
25 February 2003 SPL Dundee 3–0 Hibernian Dens Park, Dundee
Rae   9'
Milne   86'
Murray   90' (o.g.)
Attendance: 8,414
Referee: Freeland
2 March 2003 SPL Celtic 3–2 Hibernian Celtic Park, Glasgow
Hartson   1', 23'
Mjallby   90'
McManus   37', 60' Attendance: 57,512
Referee: Young
9 March 2003 SPL Hibernian 1–1 Dundee United Easter Road, Edinburgh
McManus   3' McIntyre   69' Attendance: 7,518
Referee: Somers
15 March 2003 SPL Partick Thistle 0–1 Hibernian Firhill Stadium, Glasgow
McManus   15' Attendance: 4,551
Referee: Mitchell
5 April 2003 SPL Kilmarnock 6–2 Hibernian Rugby Park, Kilmarnock
McDonald   11'
McSwegan   24', 42', 47', 62'
Boyd   90' (pen.)
Murray   18'
Jack   83'
Attendance: 5,558
Referee: J Underhill
12 April 2003 SPL Hibernian 2–2 Livingston Easter Road, Edinburgh
Orman   44'
Riordan   53'
Wilson   87'
O'Brien   89'
Attendance: 8,150
Referee: Rowbotham
26 April 2003 SPL Dundee United 1–2 Hibernian Tannadice Park, Dundee
McCracken   32' McManus   58' (pen.)
Murray   90'
Attendance: 6,758
Referee: McCurry
3 May 2003 SPL Hibernian 3–1 Aberdeen Easter Road, Edinburgh
Jack   42'
Riordan   61', 72'
Tiernan   88' Attendance: 7,904
Referee: Richmond
10 May 2003 SPL Hibernian 1–0 Motherwell Easter Road, Edinburgh
Brebner   66' (pen.) Attendance: 7,809
Referee: Young
17 May 2003 SPL Livingston 1–2 Hibernian Almondvale, Livingston
Pasquinelli   87' Brown   38', 69' Attendance: 5,423
Referee: Fyfe
24 May 2003 SPL Hibernian 2–3 Partick Thistle Easter Road, Edinburgh
Jack   8'
Brown   34'
Britton   29'
Rowson   52'
Burns   86'
Attendance: 9,286
Referee: Underhill

Final table

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation[a]
5 Dunfermline Athletic 38 13 7 18 54 71 −17 46
6 Dundee 38 10 14 14 50 60 −10 44 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[b]
7 Hibernian 38 15 6 17 56 64 −8 51
8 Aberdeen 38 13 10 15 41 54 −13 49
9 Livingston 38 9 8 21 48 62 −14 35
Source: Scottish Professional Football League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
Notes:
  1. ^ Teams played each other three times (33 matches), before the league split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six) for the last five matches.
  2. ^ As Rangers, the 2002–03 Scottish Cup winners, qualified for the UEFA Champions League via their league position, the place in the UEFA Cup was passed onto Dundee, the cup runners-up

Scottish League Cup

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As one of the SPL clubs who had not automatically qualified for European competition, Hibs entered at the last 32 stage (second round) of the competition, in which they defeated Alloa Athletic 2–0. Hibs were then drawn against Rangers, managed by former Hibs boss Alex McLeish, at home in the last 16.[6] The match proved to be a "miserable night" for Hibs, as the tie was lost 3–2 despite taking an early lead.[6] The lead was quickly turned into a deficit by an own goal and a defensive error by Derek Townsley.[6] Despite Garry O'Connor's goal levelling the score midway through the second half, Rangers scored what proved to be the winning goal soon afterwards.[6] Gary Smith was sent off late on, reducing Hibs to ten men.[6] To top things off, midfielder Alen Orman had what appeared to be an epileptic seizure during the first half and had to be substituted.[6]

Results

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24 September 2002 Scottish League Cup Alloa Athletic 0–2 Hibernian Recreation Park, Alloa
Brebner   59'
O'Connor   72'
Attendance: 1,842
Referee: McCurry
24 October 2002 Scottish League Cup Hibernian 2–3 Rangers Easter Road, Edinburgh
Murray   6'
O'Connor   72'
Townsley   22' (o.g.)
Caniggia   25'
Løvenkrands   78'
Attendance: 10,000
Referee: Dallas

Scottish Cup

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Results

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25 January 2003 Scottish Cup Dundee United 2–3 Hibernian Tannadice Park, Dundee
O'Donnell   70'
Hamilton   79' (pen.)
Brebner   10', 28', 87' Attendance: 8,986
Referee: Brown

Transfers

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During this period, Hibs were experiencing severe financial problems, due to a "collapse in television revenues".[7] Hibs chairman Ken Lewandowski stated that the club's debt burden at the financial year end would be approximately £17M, and that the club could only continue to operate due to the support offered by majority shareholder Tom Farmer.[7] At the end of the season, the club explored the possibility of selling Easter Road and sharing a new ground with Edinburgh derby rivals Hearts.[8] During the summer of 2002, Hibs somewhat addressed these financial deficits by selling Ulises de la Cruz and Ulrik Laursen. De la Cruz was sold just one season after Hibs had bought him for a club record fee.[9]

Player stats

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During the 2002–03 season, Hibs used 30 different players in competitive games. The table below shows the number of appearances and goals scored by each player.[10]

No. Pos Nat Player Total SPL Scottish Cup League Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
GK   SWE Daniel Andersson 3 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
GK   ENG Tony Caig 6 0 6 0 0 0 0 0
GK   EIR Nick Colgan 35 0 30 0 3 0 2 0
DF   SCO Allan Dempsie 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
DF   SCO Mark Dempsie 3 0 3 0 0 0 0 0
DF   FRA Mathias Kouo-Doumbé 15 0 13 0 2 0 0 0
DF   CAN Paul Fenwick 36 0 31 0 3 0 2 0
DF   ENG Craig James 25 2 22 2 2 0 1 0
DF   HUN Janos Matyus 15 0 14 0 0 0 1 0
DF   SCO Gary Smith 37 0 32 0 3 0 2 0
DF   SCO Steven Whittaker 6 0 6 0 0 0 0 0
DF   FRA Yannick Zambernardi 31 0 28 0 1 0 2 0
MF   FRA Frederic Arpinon 9 0 8 0 1 0 0 0
MF   SCO Grant Brebner 37 7 32 3 3 3 2 1
MF   GER Mathias Jack 21 3 19 3 2 0 0 0
MF   SCO Ian Murray 40 10 36 8 3 1 1 1
MF   SCO Kevin Nicol 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
MF   SCO John O'Neil 24 2 21 2 3 0 0 0
MF   AUT Alen Orman 28 1 25 1 1 0 2 0
MF   SCO Alan Reid 7 0 7 0 0 0 0 0
MF   SCO Darran Thomson 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
MF   ENG Derek Townsley 30 4 25 4 3 0 2 0
MF   FIN Jarkko Wiss 27 0 24 0 1 0 2 0
FW   SCO Scott Brown 4 3 4 3 0 0 0 0
FW   FRA Frederic Daquin 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0
FW   ESP Paco Luna 20 2 18 2 0 0 2 0
FW   SCO Tam McManus 39 11 35 11 3 0 1 0
FW   SCO Garry O'Connor 28 9 23 7 3 0 2 2
FW   FIN Mixu Paatelainen 29 7 24 7 3 0 2 0
FW   SCO Derek Riordan 11 3 10 3 0 0 1 0

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "Average Home League Game Attendances". fitbastats.com. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  2. ^ "Room for improvement at Hibs". BBC Sport. BBC. 4 August 2003.
  3. ^ a b Brewster destroys Hibs, The Daily Telegraph, 12 September 2002.
  4. ^ a b Laursen blames McLeish over Hibs, The Daily Telegraph, 16 September 2002.
  5. ^ a b High drama in Edinburgh derby, BBC Sport, 2 January 2003.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Hibernian 2 Rangers 3, Sporting Life.
  7. ^ a b Kwik-Fit keeps Hibs afloat, BBC Sport, 25 June 2003.
  8. ^ Capital groundshare plan, BBC Sport, 16 June 2003.
  9. ^ De la Cruz for Villa, The Guardian, 26 July 2002.
  10. ^ "Hibernian 2002/2003 player appearances". Soccerbase. Retrieved 13 December 2009.
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