Hibs shed Hearts Hampden baggage as club gets vitamin pill it so desperately needed

Hibs arrived at the national stadium with a lorryload of baggage against this opponent here and plenty of doubters. Hearts were odds-on to deliver a fifth victory over their neighbours at Hampden and despite taking a fourth-minute lead through Claudio Braga, they unravelled in the first half and could not find a way back in the second period.

This was a historic moment for Hibs - and potentially a watershed one for a club that has had little to shout about this season. They sacked David Gray in September and brought in 35-year-old Dutchman Marink Reedijk, whose four matches prior to facing Hearts read three defeats and one draw. They went into this match bottom of the Premiership.

Hibs did not play like a team flirting with relegation. They showed admirable courage to recover from an early set-back and seized upon a Hearts team that never took control of proceedings and suffered from two first-half injuries to Tomas Magnusson and Calvin Miller.

Reedijk got his team selection and tactics spot-on in a first-ever win over Hearts at Hampden. His midfield engine of the excellent Joe Newell, Miguel Chaiwa and Josh Mulligan played with purpose and energy. They pressed Hearts at the right moments and the deployment of Martin Boyle in the unfamiliar left-wing role to capitalise on the weakest sector of the Jambos' team was a feather in Reedijk's cap.

Hibs had to dig in. Hearts flooded forward in the second half in search of a leveller after Hibs took a 2-1 lead to the sheds. They bombarded the Hibs penalty box but the two centre-halves in Jason Kerr and Marko Ivezic held firm. When goalkeeper Raphael Sallinger was called upon, he was solid. Heroes in green and white everywhere.

None more so than Boyle, who battled illness all week ahead of the match and was restored to the starting XI. His equaliser on 19 minutes was his sixth career goal against Hearts and Hibs looked a better team for his presence.

Reedijk contended pre-match that Hibs had improved game-on-game since he took over. Wednesday's 1-1 draw at St Mirren was ugly but this win was beautiful for Hibs, so beautiful for the 19,000-plus fans who made the journey to Hampden.

Hibs did not sell out their allocation. Sunshine and Leith was belted out after the final whistle, players and fans reunited after weeks of disharmony, where ultras group Block 7 have been banned and pelters thrown at the club's hierarchy.

A penny for the thoughts of sporting director Malky Mackay, who has been savaged by some sections of Hibs fanbase for recruitment over the summer. He and the board have a final to look forward to.

This should also act as the biggest vitamin pill for Reedijk, who has changed the way Hibs play. They commit more men forward, press higher and take risks. It had not paid off prior to visiting Hampden but a win of such magnitude should surely supercharge those in the Hibs dressing room.

It was another sobering afternoon in Glasgow for Hearts, whose last two visits were a 7-1 trouncing by Celtic and that cataclysmic title loss to the same team back in May. Hopes were high that Wouter Vrancken's side could be the one to end the club's long wait for the League Cup - they have not won it since 1962 - but they find new ways to inflict pain on the fanbase when it comes to this competition.

Too many Hearts players just didn't hit their stride. Braga's header on four minutes, a simple finish after a lush delivery from Miller, was the perfect start, but for the rest of the first half they toiled with Hibs' aggressiveness and energy.

Hearts' heavy schedule caught up with them. Eight first-team players missed this game due to injury and competing on three fronts, Magnusson and Miller were the latest to be added to the list. Magnusson suffered a head knock in a challenge with Jason Kerr and could not continue, while the influential Miller pulled up clutching his hamstring and last 37 minutes. The playmaker in particular was a huge miss.

Even still, there was enough in Hearts' armoury to make a fist of things. But whether it was heavy legs or the sheer desire of the Hibs players, whose work off the ball was impeccable, the rest of the opening 45 minutes belonged to Hibs. Boyle scurried on to Owen Elding's clipped ball over the Hearst defence to net via keeper Beau Reus and the post on 19 minutes and then three minutes before the interval, McGrath slotted home after Newell's fierce drive was blocked.

Vrancken has won plaudits for the way Hearts have attacked this season, but defensive fragility remains a hallmark of this team. Hibs were able to capitalise on space in behind their rivals and remained a threat after the break, although it was at the other end where they really excelled.

Hearts chucked bodies forward and all manner of crosses were flung into the box. Josh McPake was their chief outlet but bar one ball that was fizzed dangerously across the face of the Hibs goal, there wasn't enough quality. Sallinger made two smart saves from Braga and Laurent Mendy. They stood tall when many would have backed them to fold.

The full-time scenes will live long in the memory of Hibs supporters. Sunshine on Leith blared loudly over the tannoy as, arm in arm, the players took the acclaim of their adoring faithful.

After missing out agonisingly on the Conference League, after losing the first derby of the season at Easter Road, after parting company with a club legend, after sliding down the table, this was the historic result Hibs craved. They will now hope it is the catalyst for more success.