Hibs hero Rankin deeply dippy over 'squiggler'

Hibs 2
Celtic 0

HE didn't make it on to the park but, even from the bench, Derek Riordan made his influence felt as Hibs recorded an impressive victory over Celtic.

The emergence of the "squiggle" – a technique Riordan has taught his team-mates since rejoining the club from the Hoops in the summer – was enough to leave Hibs in heaven and Artur Boruc with yet more egg on his face at Easter Road.

While to some it may have looked like a hit and hope from fully 45 yards, goal hero John Rankin revealed that the opening strike is something he and Riordan have practised for many hours in training from the same area of the park, trying to perfect their skills. The idea is to catch the ball sweetly, hitting across and under at the same time, allowing it to travel at a steady height for some distance before suddenly dipping and swerving.

Riordan is believed to have first seen the move performed by Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo in a televised match and tried to copy it for himself, and it seems that all of the work on the training field has paid off, not only for him but the rest of his team-mates as well.

Conceding that 90 per cent of their attempts might end up high in the stand, Rankin reckons it's a great way to catch opposition keepers out because there's little they can do to predict what is coming at them.

The midfielder, who hit Hibs' opener while making a vital contribution to an entertaining match in which a Colin Nish strike sealed the points, said: "We had to train at Easter Road on Thursday because of the weather and, just before the warm-up, myself and Deek were out practising. Why we were hitting shots from that distance I have no idea, but we were. It never usually comes off but yesterday I just looked up and saw the midfield backing off. Rather than drive at them, I just hit it. To be fair, the ball did move but whether that contributed to it going or not, I don't know.

"A few people have said that it was a goalkeeping mistake – but I am not really fussed about who has made a mistake or what has happened. The ball has crossed the line and that is all that I am concerned about."

Explaining the technique he continued, Rankin continued: "It was a squiggler. That's when you get the ball in the air and as soon as it's in the air it travels a distance at the same height and then all of a sudden it will move and dip.

"I don't know how hard it is for goalkeepers to deal with because I have never been on the receiving end but, from the angle that you hit it from, it certainly moves a great deal.

"Deek came to the club a couple of months ago and it was his word. We just all took it on board and whenever anyone gets the ball in training now they try to squiggle it. It's the way that you hit it more than anything else. It took me a couple of months to realise how he was doing it, you kind of get under it and cut across it at the same time. It rises and goes at the same height and all of a sudden it moves. It is a strange technique but, at the same time, it worked for me yesterday and I am sure that I will use it again in the future.

"Sometimes you use it and sometimes you don't, nine times out of ten you probably wouldn't hit the ball that way but I just thought I would try it.

"As soon as I hit it I thought it had a chance of going in and when it eventually started to dip and move I thought it had a really good chance so I wasn't surprised when it did go in – but a few people probably were!"

Ranks topped his spectacular goal with an equally eye-catching celebration, a rocking-the-baby motion in honour of the arrival of his daughter Maya. The midfielder's first child with fiancee Maria arrived six months ago – but Rankin has had to wait that long for his first home goal to mark her birth and laughed: "I had a wee girl six months ago – I might have been better doing a 'walk-the-baby' celebration instead of 'rock the baby' because it has been that long in coming!

"I said to my fiancee when she was born that I would do that celebration the next time that I scored a goal at Easter Road.

"It's been a wee while in coming but I am just glad that it has come around at last. I scored at Motherwell a couple of weeks ago but I wanted to wait until I got one at home and I'm delighted with the way it all happened."

Hibs had an early chance to open the scoring when Nish was brought down 25 yards from goal by Celtic defender Glenn Loovens. His strike partner Steven Fletcher stepped up to take the free-kick and floated the ball into the box only for Loovens to send it straight back out again, but only as far as Steven Thicot who saw his shot go straight at Boruc.

The visitors came close in 23 minutes when a ball in from the left by Maloney fell almost right at the feet of Cillian Sheridan. The Celtic player looked certain to burst the net from ten yards out only for Ian Murray to slide in with precision timing to block his effort and deny the Bhoys the lead.

Hibs had the best chance of the first half, though, with just under half an hour gone when Rankin produced a brilliant diagonal ball to release Fletcher. The Hibs hitman raced clear of the Celtic defenders and got to the ball before Boruc, who had come racing off his line, but instead of finishing it off, he could only blast wildly over the bar.

Celtic had another golden opportunity to edge in front with just under ten minutes of the first half remaining when a cracking ball in from Mark Wilson should have been turned home by Scott McDonald from just a yard or two out but somehow every player along the Hibs goal-line – including the home defence – managed to miss the ball and it whistled past harmlessly.

Rankin's goal came ten minutes after the interval.

It had started with a break from Celtic, but Scott Brown gave possession away after being hassled and harried by Murray. Brown's intended pass to a team-mate fell instead to Rankin in the middle of the park and, despite shouts to pass it to another Hibs shirt, the midfielder had a go from fully 40 yards out and, as it swerved towards the net, Boruc slipped after going the wrong way and could only watch as it sailed past him into the net.

Gordon Strachan's side could have levelled matters on the hour when a cross from sub Georgios Samaras, who had come on in the madness which followed the opening goal, sent in a perfect cross for McDonald, but this time the striker could only send his effort high over Ma-Kalambay's crossbar.

Hinkel came close a couple of minutes later, hooking his effort inches wide of the base of the big keeper's right-hand post. Paatelainen's side doubled their advantage in 69 minutes and it was a well-worked goal this time.

Good inter-play between Fletcher and Nish sent Alan O'Brien to the bye-line on the left. It looked as though he had taken it too far but the Irish winger managed to cut it back across goal and, after the ball was helped on by Rankin, it was left to former Killie man Nish to turn the ball home from close range.

Celtic boss Strachan wasn't quite as impressed with Rankin's goal as the player himself but insisted his side could be proud of the way that they had performed at Easter Road.

He said: "I can't believe that I am talking about a defeat after the possession and chances we had – and the lack of chances we restricted the other team to. But that's what has happened and we just have to get on with it. It's always disappointing to lose but a lot of my players can be proud of their performance, they had a right good go at it.

"The first goal was self-explanatory. I don't know how Artur feels about it."

And, when asked if he thought Hibs deserved credit for the way they performed, Strachan would only add: "If you mean getting behind the ball, creating very little chances and hoping for a speculative goal like that the I have got to hand it to them. They worked very hard and moved the ball about side to side. That's fine. I'm sure though that Mixu's tactic wasn't to hit the ball from 45 yards and hope it goes into the net."