Hibernians pull off great escape

Hibernians 4
Taki 72 pen.; McManus 86 pen; Hart 90; Cohen 90+;
Qormi 3
Mifsud 16, 83; Frendo 55;

Hibs staged a scintillating comeback last night as two stoppage-time goals gave them a 4-3 victory over Qormi who had been 3-1 up with only seven minutes left.

A rip-roaring Relegation Pool clash conjured up an enthralling finale as the Paolites struck three goals in the final nine minutes to leave Qormi dazed and confused.

When Michael Mifsud hit his second goal of the game with a rasping drive, it looked as though the Malta striker was going to take the centre-stage once more but Hibs drew courage after converting a second penalty given by referee Paul Caruana after Christos Karamanolis was adjudged to have brought down Paul McManus in the box.

The Paolites’ late flourish, capped by a clinical finish from Andrew Cohen, all but ensures Premier League salvation as Mark Miller’s men are now 11 points clear of Vittoriosa Stars.

The first notable chance fell to Qormi when Joseph Chetcuti pulled the ball for Mifsud inside the box but the latter skewed his shot.

The danger for Hibs in these early stages originated from long, diagonal balls from the flanks, especially from the right, but Miller’s men failed to heed the alarm signals.

Punishment for Hibs was not long in coming as, on 16 minutes, Cleaven Frendo’s lofted pass soared over towards Mifsud who advanced before hitting past Muscat.

The erstwhile disjointed Hibs threatened to equalise in their first serious attack as Edward Herrera ran towards the bye-line on the right and crossed for McManus whose point-blank flick was parried away by Matthew Farrugia.

This opportunity enhanced Hibs’ self-belief. Eight minutes from half-time, Miller’s men were unlikely not to level matters as Cohen’s lofted pass from a free-kick caught Qormi unawares as the ball landed at the feet of Abdellilah Taki but his dipping strike hit the base of the post.

Hibs stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half. Richie Hart made a strong run through the middle before releasing Cohen who laid the ball for McManus but the Scottish forward’s diagonal drive brought a good save from Farrugia.

Unimpressed by his team’s tame approach, Azzopardi shouted at his players to show more concentration. His calls appeared to have the desired effect as Qormi improved.

Muscat needed two attempts to block Josue’s inviting cross from the right but the Hibs goalkeeper conceded a poor goal 10 minutes into the second half when Frendo’s strong grounder from a long-range free-kick whizzed through the Hibs’ wall and into the net.

McManus should have reduced the arrears when Herrera’s cross-shot from the right was deflected into his path but the Scottish striker fired wide with the goal at his mercy.

Hibs now intensified their attacking endeavours but a Qormi counter-thrust saw captain Stefan Giglio guide a through-ball to Mifsud who sped forward but his strike was blocked by Muscat.

The Paolites’ cause was not being helped by McManus’s poor finishing as the striker twice spurned inviting openings by firing wide.

At the other end, Qormi should have killed Hibs when their three forwards broke free on the counter but Chetcuti miscued his effort.

Qormi paid dearly for this miss as Hibs pulled one back from a penalty after Karamanolis committed a handsball in the area on 72 minutes.

Barely two minutes passed and Qormi went close to restoring their two-goal lead but Jason Vandelannoite’s diving header from Frendo’s corner flashed against the post.

It was end-to-end stuff now as Farrugia touched Cohen’s swerving chip over the bar

Hibs’ hopes of an equaliser looked to have vanished when Mifsud drifted into the box from the right and unleashed a rising shot that crashed against the underside of the crossbar and dropped behind the line to fire Qormi 3-1 ahead with seven minutes to go.

But, two minutes later, Hibs were given a second penalty after Caruana ruled that Karamanolis had floored McManus in the area and McManus duly converted.

In the first minute of stoppage time, Hibs equalised thanks to Hart’s fierce drive.

The drama was not over yet as Hibs crowned a dramatic fightback when Cohen rammed the ball home after Farrugia had parried away Herrera’s strike.

Hibs: M. Muscat-4, R. Camilleri-6.5, A. Xuereb-6, A. Pulis-5.5, J. Pearson-6 (80 B. Kristensen) P. Osei-5, R. Hart-6.5, A. Taki-6.5 (83 M. Clarke), E. Herrera-7, A. Cohen-7.5, P. McManus-5.5.

Qormi: M. Farrugia-6, J. Vandelannoite-7, S. Giglio-5.5, C. Karamanolis-4, M. Mifsud-7, J. Chetcuti-5, M. Bartolo-5 (69 G. Buttigieg-4), L. Sciberras-5, C. Frendo-6.5, H. Kang-5, Josue-4.

Referee: Paul Caruana.

Yellow cards: Sciberras; Xuereb; Karamanolis; Camilleri.

BOV player of the match: Jason Vandelannoite (Qormi).

Attendance: 531.