Hibs midfielder John McGinn admits he is desperate to become an Easter Road legend by ending the club’s agonising 114-year wait for Scottish Cup glory.
The Leith outfit will bid to move one step closer to realising that dream when they take on Dundee United, whom they have already beaten 3-0 in the League Cup this season, in tomorrow’s semi-final at Hampden.
Alan Stubbs’ side head into the lunch-time clash short of form and confidence having seen their Championship play-off push stall amid a barren run of one win in eight.
Hibs’ last visit to the national stadium in March also ended in heartbreak following a late defeat to Ross County in the League Cup final but Scotland internationalist McGinn has urged his team-mates not to let this opportunity pass them by.
McGinn said: “I know how much it annoys the supporters. They just want it, it is so coveted.
“It is a massive incentive for the boys. They could become legends, like the ones in 1902. We are hungry to go and bring the trophy to Edinburgh.
“We know it is not going to be easy. We are playing against a Dundee United side that has rallied in the second half of the season, and if we get through we have got one of the two big Glasgow clubs.
“But the incentive is massive. It is something the club is craving, and rightly so.
“These opportunities don’t come around too often, especially for the boys coming towards the end of their careers.
“You need a bit of luck and we don’t want to let it pass us by.
“I want another medal – I want to get as many as I can – but I don’t fancy another runners-up one.
“Hopefully, we will get to the final and get a gold medal this time.
“We know we need to be at our best and hopefully cut out the mistakes we have made in the last few weeks to give us the best chance to go and win this trophy.”
Hibs have already beaten top-flight sides Aberdeen, United, Hearts, St Johnstone and Inverness in cup action this season but have seen their charge for promotion thrown off course by a woeful run of form, which includes five defeats in eight of those games.
The Easter Road side threw away a two-goal lead against ten-man Falkirk in the final three minutes on Tuesday and McGinn admits he is at a loss to explain their worrying slump.
He added: “It’s difficult to put your finger on it.
“We are conceding goals we were not at the start of the season, we are looking vulnerable and we are not scoring enough or making enough chances.
“It’s something as a team we have been working hard to rectify and for the large part of the game against Falkirk we managed to do that.
“But we had two lapses in concentration and we got punished, and that’s what’s happened the past few months.”
