The dream of a big day out at Hampden at the end of May has disappeared once more, but Ghana defender Francis Dickoh claimed there were 18 “cup finals” facing Hibernian as they battle for Scottish Premier League survival.
The Danish-born star admitted he’d never felt so low as he did in those mind-numbing few minutes after the Easter Road side had fallen victim to a Scottish Cup giant-killing act, shocked by the part-time players of Ayr United.
“Embarrassing,” was the word the 28-year-old used to describe events at Somerset Park but today, he insisted, he and his red faced team-mates had to get over the hurt of that 1-0 defeat as they fight to avoid an even greater humiliation – relegation.
Out of the Cup to a Second Division team and hovering just four points above bottom place in the table certainly wasn’t what Dickoh anticipated when he moved from Dutch club FC Utrecht to Edinburgh last summer.
But now he’s found himself in that predicament he’s determined to do all he can to ensure better days lie ahead for Colin Calderwood’s squad, one which, he argued, hadn’t fulfilled it’s potential.
The Ghanaian internationalist said: “Obviously we should be in a different position, but the table doesn’t lie and, likewise, I didn’t expect us to go out of the Cup in the way we did.
“It’s the lowest I have ever felt because our potential is greater than we are showing, everyone is playing below average and without confidence, it seems to me.” Dickoh revealed he’s never been on the receiving end in such an upset throughout his career, an experience he admitted he’s in no hurry to repeat.
He said: “I’ve played in cup games in Denmark and Holland and been to places like Somerset Park before – you don’t get to play in stadiums like Ibrox and Celtic Park every time. But I’ve come out a winner every time before so Tuesday night was a shock, embarrassing was the word I would use.
“Yes, we had three taken off the line and their goalkeeper had a fantastic game but we didn’t take our chances and lost a sloppy goal, so there are no excuses.
“However, for all the hurt we are feeling we now have 18 league games left, every one of them a cup final and we have to focus on winning those matches and lifting ourselves up the table.”
Hibs haven’t won since they defeated tomorrow’s opponents, Motherwell, 2-1 at Easter Road on November 13, having also beaten the Steelmen on the opening day of the season but, Dickoh insisted, those results will have no bearing on tomorrow’s clash at Fir Park.