John Hughes bills County match as 'biggest of the season'

NORMALLY managers insist that league games take priority, but being in charge of Hibernian requires that the focus is placed just as firmly on the Scottish Cup.

John Hughes yesterday described Saturday's Active Native Scottish Cup clash with Ross County as his team's "biggest match of the season" and called for the club's supporters to turn up in numbers against the First Division opponents.

Trepidation might put off some. Every Hibs supporter is alert to the years of hurt stretching back to 1902, when the club last lifted the Scottish Cup. This year is being identified as the one which could see the side finally end this remarkable famine. The draw so far has been kind to Hughes' side, with the team having been pitched against Irvine Meadow, Montrose and now Ross County. But Hibs are in no position to treat a match with a side challenging for promotion from the First Division as a straightforward assignment, particularly in a competition where heartache has lurked so consistently.

Hughes noted that Ross County have already sold out their allocation of more than 1,500 tickets for the match, and urged Hibs fans to show the same kind of enthusiasm for the tie. With the East Terrace, home to some of the most fervent Hibs fans, having been knocked down ahead of redevelopment work, Hughes is keen to retain a positive atmosphere.

"They (the Ross County fans] will be right up for this game but we cannot let them out-sing us," he stressed. "I'm asking our supporters to make sure they get down here and ensure we have a full house, because they have a massive part to play in helping us through to the semi-finals. So my message to our supporters is please make sure you do what you can to get there, we need everyone behind us to create that special atmosphere that will lift our team. A few players commented after the game on Saturday how they liked having our supporters making a noise behind both goals, they do notice these things.

Hughes looked ahead to next season, when the new East Stand will be completed. He is desperate for the new stadium to be graced with European football – and Hibs are currently fighting on two front to achieve this aim.

"Easter Road is going to be a fantastic place to play and watch football," he said. "Right now we have to do everything we can to make sure that when it is all ready next season we are playing on the European stage. To help towards that, Saturday's game is the biggest of the season by far, so we are all really hoping our supporters fill the place and help push us a big step towards our aims."

Meanwhile, Hibs have revealed that the home league fixture with Dundee United on 24 March – which has a 7.45pm kick-off – will be staged with the help of temporary floodlights. The demolition of the East Stand, together with four floodlight columns, has led to the need for additional lighting being put in place in time for the midweek clash. Two trucks, each with 30 lights attached to a 36 metre-high shaft, will be parked in position along the east touchline on the eve of the match.

"Each light has its own remote control tilt-and-focus function so it's possible to get the optimum spread of light from the 60 lights," a club spokesman said last night. "At the end of the game they just pack up and drive away again."

The club might be required to turn to this light source again before the end of the campaign. A midweek round of matches is scheduled for after the league-split in April, with Hibs facing the possibility of hosting another evening fixture at Easter Road.