Cohen floors jaded Msida

Msida St Joseph 1
Hibernians 3

Hibernians finally showed some resilience yesterday when bouncing back from a 1-0 deficit to storm to a convincing 3-1 victory over Msida.

Coming into this match on the back of three consecutive defeats, Hibs badly needed a win to raise their low morale and claw their way back into contention for a top-three placing.

In the end, Hibs reached their objective thanks to the individual brilliance of striker Andrew Cohen.

The Malta forward scored two fine goals in the space of a minute late in the first half before setting up his team's third early in the second period to give Hibs a much-needed push. The Paolites have now leapfrogged Birkirkara in fifth place and are only four points behind third-placed Valletta whom they face on Saturday.

It was also sweet revenge for Hibs coach Robert Gatt who finally got a win over the team managed by his nephew Patrick Curmi after the two matches in the first phase had produced emphatic wins for Msida - 3-0 and 4-0.

Gatt yesterday welcomed back striker Andrew Cohen and defender Adrian Pulis after both missed the 3-1 defeat to Marsaxlokk through suspension. Cohen regained a place in the starting formation but Pulis had to be content with a place on the bench.

Terrence Scerri was out through suspension but Jonathan Pearson was included in the 18-man list after a long spell out through injury.

Ibrahim Babatunde earned a recall to Msida's 18-man squad but Curmi did not give in to the temptation of naming his Nigerian livewire, who has yet to fully recover from a knee injury, in the first team.

The two sides took some time to settle into a decent rhythm with the result that goalmouth action was rare in the early stages.

It was Msida who made the first mark on the game on 14 minutes when Burkina Faso midfielder Ousseni Zongo sped into the area and fell under the challenge of Hibs defender Aaron Xuereb. Referee Kevin Azzopardi immediately pointed to the spot and Tyrone Farrugia coolly dispatched the ball into the roof of the net to the delight of the Msida clan.

Hibs tried to get back into the match but were denied an equaliser by a fine save from Omar Borg who parried Matthew Bartolo's piledriver from outside the area on 20 minutes.

The Paolites toiled to take the match to their opponents but their forward play lacked the flair needed to trouble the solid Msida defence.

Hibs badly needed some form of inspiration to level matters and that was duly provided by Cohen who hit a quickfire double to turn the match on its head.

The clock marked 38 minutes of the game gone when Hibs won a free-kick in a central position just outside the area. Cohen stepped up for the kick and curled in a delightful shot that had the better of the diving Borg. A fine goal indeed.

Still coming to terms with that setback, Msida suffered another blow a minute later.

Andre Rocha Da Silva won possession in midfield and intelligently served Ndubisi Chukunyere who quickly released Cohen. The latter had little difficulty firing the ball past the onrushing Borg.

At the start of the second half, Curmi turned to a Hibernians old boy to bolster his team's bid for an equaliser. Roderick Baldacchino came on for Dino Cachia, a move intended to speed up Msida's incursions down the left flank.

Hibs threatened to add a third goal on 53 minutes when Bartolo's firm shot was repelled by Borg. That was only a temporary reprieve for Msida as a minute later, they fell two goals behind.

Cohen's teasing cross from a free-kick fell in front of the unmarked Xuereb who headed the ball firmly into the corner of the net.

This goal seemed to take the fight out of Msida who were finding it hard to get out of defence, let alone threaten the Hibs rearguard.

On 63 minutes, Bartolo should have made it 4-1 for Hibs when he was put through on goal by an excellent pass from Julian Vella but the young midfielder saw his shot blocked for a corner by the onrushing Borg.

At the other end, it was the turn of Hibs goalkeeper Mario Muscat to distinguish himself with a fine save on Zongo's fierce shot.

Curmi played his last card when bringing on Babatunde for the unconvincing Stefano Grima.

On 73 minutes, the Paolites failed to deal with a Shaun Bajada free-kick, the ball landed in front of defender Josef Mifsud who shot high from a good position.

Cohen came close to completing a hat-trick on 85 minutes when he dummied his marker before unleashing a powerful drive that hit the side-netting.

On the stroke of time, the woodwork denied Chukunyere the satisfaction of a goal. The Nigerian forward had created space for himself inside the box but his effort hit the upright.

In time added on, Cohen again made headway into the Msida area, turned past Borg but his shot was blocked on the line by Farrugia.

Msida: O. Borg-6, P. Sciriha-5, S. Grima-5 ('66 I. Babatunde-5), T. Farrugia-6, J. Mifsud-5, D. Cachia-5 ('46 R. Baldacchino-5), P. Fenech-5.5, S. Bajada-5.5, A. Farrugia-5, D. Nwoke-5.5, O. Zongo-6.

Hibernians: M. Muscat-6.5, A. Xuereb-6.5, J. Caruana-6, K. Cassar-5.5 ('46 E. Agius-6), C. Failla-6.5 ('82 A. Pulis), J. Vella-7, M. Bartolo-7.5 ('90 J. Pearson), A. Cohen-8, P. Doffo-7, N. Chukunyere-6, A. Rocha Da Silva-7.5.

Referee: Kevin Azzopardi.

Scorers: Farrugia 14 pen; Cohen 38, 39; Xuereb 54.

Yellow Cards: Sciriha; Chukunyere; Bajada; Grima; Babatunde.

BoV Player of the Match: Andrew Cohen (Hibs).