WILLIAMSON’S COMMENTS

"It was a very frustrating afternoon, I thought we had a lot of possession and a lot of pressure. Celtic defended well as you would expect. I thought we could have got something out of the game. To lose it 4-0 I feel flattered Celtic and we're disappointed we have managed to concede those goals."

"We conceded some bad goals. It's always going to be difficult because Celtic are prepared to concede corners and not goals. We knew it would be difficult at the start of the second half and then the third goal made it even harder. There don't come any harder weeks than this past week. We've lost the cup final and quite a lot of people expected us to win."

"We never expected to win but we hoped to win and gave it our best. On the day we just never got the breaks and they did, which was the difference. But against Celtic I felt we started the game very positively and we did trouble them at times. It's difficult to look at the positives if you have suffered defeat. We have got to pick the bones over the positives in the next few days and look to the next game."
 

EVENING NEWS

"Hibs are handed a harsh lesson in finishing school"

HIBS’ vulnerability at the moment isn’t down so much to a defence which has conceded 44 League goals but an attack which has claimed just one in its last six matches.

When you are scoring at an average of just 0.88 goals per SPL game as Hibs have with 27 matches now gone, then the chances of winning are radically reduced.

Prior to this encounter with Celtic, a side which in stark contrast has now claimed an astonishing 93 goals, Easter Road boss Bobby Williamson had bemoaned his side’s lack of an experienced striker.

The presence of Henrik Larsson in the opposition ranks on this occasion simply served to underline his point, the Swede taking his tally for the season in all competitions to a remarkable 32 with yet another masterclass in finishing.

For the time being Williamson can only hope that his young strikers, full of potential as they are, took note, the youthful endeavour of Hibs - eight of the side aged 23 or under - no match for experience.

THE SCOTSMAN

"Famished Hibs fail to make amends"

AS PERHAPS predicted, roughly five in seven of the Hibernian fans who followed the team through to Hampden a week earlier had something more pressing to do than attend Easter Road yesterday in a game which held only nourishment-value for either side. Hibs were looking for a pick-me-up after that dispiriting defeat against Livingston, while injury-haunted Celtic were simply hoping to present some players who might be rushed into action at the Nou Camp on Thursday with a much needed preliminary run-out.

In the event, the champions-elect feasted while Hibs, again, starved. A second consecutive Sunday brought nothing in the way of goals but everything in the way of disappointment for Bobby Williamson’s struggling side, who slipped to their biggest home defeat of the season and had Jonathan Baillie sent-off in the final minutes for pressing his forehead into Craig Beattie’s chest. The match endured a crazy spell in these closing stages, the frustration which settled upon the home side after former Hibs player Didier Agathe had added the fourth with ten minutes remaining provoking a string of wild challenges, chief of which was Tom McManus’ rash kick at Agathe on the far touchline.

DAILY RECORD

"BOBBY BLASTS REF "

BOBBY WILLIAMSON blasted referee Dougie McDonald after his young side lost the plot while going down 4-0 to Celtic.

The Easter Road boss was furious Neil Lennon escaped censure when he appeared to kick out at Scott Brown off the ball and suggested Henrik Larsson's first goal should not have stood because the Swede fouled keeper Daniel Andersson.

Celtic boss Martin O'Neill hit back, saying Hibs had to learn to take the kicks if they were dishing them out.

Hibees' Jonathan Baillie was sent off near the end of the game for sticking his head into the chest of Craig Beattie as several wild tackles were put in in the closing stages.

THE HERALD

Poor Hibs – done-in again and still lying low in the SPL. It must be enough to make Bobby Williamson tear out the remaining tufts of his well-scratched head. After their CIS Cup final defeat at Hampden, the Hibs support here was back to its threadbare best, and some of those who did gather weren't slow to let Williamson know what they thought of this. Frankly, Williamson might be better rewarded going off to scrape out the hulls in Rosyth dockyard.

After an afternoon of incident and bookings galore, the game ended in minor uproar when Tam McManus, a permanently luckless Hibs hero, took a few hacks at Didier Agathe as the Celtic winger danced between tackles.

The incident took place near the touchline by the easily-inflamed East Stand, where some of the Hibernian troops immediately swarmed like gorillas to harangue Agathe and Dougie McDonald, the match referee.
Moments later, Jonathan Baillie was ordered off for, of all things, plunging his head into Craig Beattie's stomach. Hibs really ended this game in disrepute.

The match had an enjoyable openness about it and witnessed a truly remarkable series of botched opportunities in front of goal, quite apart from Larsson's extraordinary second goal for Celtic after 35 minutes.
That incident left Hibs and, in particular, their goalkeeper, Daniel Andersson, simmering with injustice, but Mr McDonald, together with his standside linesman, seemed to call it correctly.

BBC NEWS ONLINE

The home team were moving the ball around well and Scott Brown was causing Celtic problems with his pace and close control.

But it was Celtic who went in front when a speculative cross from McManus flashed across the penalty box and Agathe beat the dithering Roland Edge to steer the ball in via the post.

Agathe should have doubled his tally a minute later when Andersson pushed an angled shot from Pearson into his path but the winger mis-timed his lunge and the ball bounced over him just a few yards from goal.
 

OFFICIAL WEB SITE

"No end to the misery for Hibees"

There was no immediate end to the current misery for Hibernian today, as a make-shift side went down 4-0 to Celtic at Easter Road - taking to ten the goals the Parkhead side scored without reply in two SPL encounters against the Hibees. Hibs had started brightly enough, but Celtic took the lead against the run of play after 18 minutes - and just 8 minutes later Hibs shot themselves firmly in the foot by gifting a second to the Parkhead side. From then on it was an impossible task, and in the end the misery was complete with two further goals, a serious looking injury and an ordering off.