David Gray praised his side for seizing control in the second half of their 2-1 victory over Hearts after he became the first Hibernian manager to win back-to-back Edinburgh derbies in the league since Mixu Paatelainen in 2009.
Hibs extended their unbeaten run to 15 matches and strengthened their hopes of finishing third in the William Hill Premiership when centre-back Jack Iredale popped up with a stunning 74th-minute winner.
Martin Boyle had given the home side a sixth-minute lead but it was swiftly cancelled out by Jambos midfielder Jorge Grant.
Gray – named Premiership manager of the month for February ahead of kick-off – said: “When you think back to the week we’ve had, three real tough games, to beat Celtic here, to go up to Dundee United and win and then to finish that off by beating your local rivals at home, I’m delighted.
“First half we looked a wee bit nervy, turned the ball over too much, second half we were much more like ourselves. We really deserved the game based on our second-half performance and we saw the game out really well.”
Hibernian enjoyed a rousing rendition of Sunshine on Leith for the first time this season after last weekend’s victory over Celtic and they were able to experience that thrill once more – this time with coach Eddie May, who was recently involved in a car accident – after backing up their Boxing Day triumph over Hearts at Tynecastle.
It was the first time they had won back-to-back derbies since 2017, when they won in the Scottish Cup and then the league under Neil Lennon, and the first time they had achieved the feat in the league alone since 2009.
“I think we’re building something here all the time,” said Gray. “Yes, it was a derby against your local rivals, but there’s loads of records that we’ve set and broken today.
“Back-to-back for the first time in 16 years in a league game or something like that. And also it’s one defeat in 18 (in all competitions since late November).
“I’ve touched on it a lot with the players about can we keep moving forward and can we keep changing history in a real positive way? Before we played Hearts at Tynecastle it was five years since we won at Tynecastle, so that tells you – history tells you – these are difficult games to come out on top.
“And before today, the last team to win at Easter Road in a derby was Hearts, so we needed to make sure we corrected that. Loads of little incentives to try and drive the players on and we’re responding well to that at the minute, which is brilliant.
“To stand in the middle of the pitch (at full-time) and really feel that connection between the players, the staff and the supporters, that’s why we do it. And to get Eddie on the pitch at the end there, it was emotional at the same time because he’s been through a lot.”
Hearts failed to muster a notable chance in the second half as Hibs took control and Neil Critchley admitted his side, who are now back in the bottom six, got what they deserved.
“Look, it’s a bad defeat,” he said. “It’s a derby defeat so it’s not nice at all. The players have had enough praise in the last few months. Today we’ll get criticised and rightly so for the way we played in the second half. That was not us on the pitch.
“First half, we were the slightly better team. And then in the second half, I think we just lost belief in what we were doing a little bit, which is not like us.”
David Moyes believes James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid a red card for his reckless challenge on Alexis Mac Allister as Everton were beaten 1-0 by Liverpool on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal, which Moyes claimed should have been ruled out for offside, gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were...
Jack Grealish dedicated his goal to his late brother after scoring in Manchester City’s 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Leicester on Wednesday.The England international hit his first Premier League goal for 16 months, on his first start in the competition since last December, as City moved back into fourth with a comfortable success at the Etihad Stadium.It came on the 25th anniversary of...
David Moyes bemoaned an “offside” goal that gave Liverpool a 1-0 win over Everton – but admitted James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid an early red card on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were left unhappy with decisions from referee Sam Barr...
Eddie Howe hailed Sandro Tonali’s shooting power after seeing him cap a fine display with a stunning winner to edge Newcastle into the race for Champions League qualification.The 24-year-old Italy international brought an incident-packed encounter to a fitting conclusion with a 74th-minute piledriver which beat goalkeeper Mark Flekken from an improbable angle to hand the Magpies a precious 2...
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery believes Marcus Rashford is “progressively getting better” in all aspects of his game following his first Premier League goal for the club.The on-loan Manchester United forward set Villa on course for a comprehensive 3-0 win over fellow European hopefuls Brighton with a 51st-minute finish at the Amex Stadium.Rashford’s milestone strike came three days ...
Southampton boss Ivan Juric vowed to keep fighting as relegation moved sharply into focus after Crystal Palace denied them only a third Premier League win of the season.Substitute Matheus Franca’s stoppage-time header, to secure a 1-1 draw for the Eagles, means Saints will be down at the weekend if they lose at Tottenham and Wolves beat Ipswich.If relegation is confirmed on Sunday, Southampt...
Derby boss John Eustace insists his side are reaping the rewards for the hard work they have put in since he was appointed as manager after the Rams earned a 2-0 win over Preston to climb out of the Sky Bet Championship relegation zone.Derby came out firing after a lacklustre opening period and Craig Forsyth coolly slotted the hosts in front with his fourth goal of the season.The Rams doubled thei...
Notts County manager Stuart Maynard hailed a “massive” three points as his side comfortably saw off MK Dons at Meadow Lane to maintain their promotion challenge.Two stunning strikes from David McGoldrick and Will Jarvis from the edge of the box, either side of Nick Tsaroulla’s close-range effort, earned County a convincing 3-0 win.“I think every three points is massive now,...
Kieran McKenna was not getting too giddy dreaming of a miracle escape from relegation after Ipswich beat Bournemouth 2-1 to pick up their first Premier League win of 2025.Goals from Nathan Broadhead and top-scorer Liam Delap did the damage as Ipswich put a further dent in Bournemouth’s hopes of qualifying for Europe.McKenna, whose side are still nine points adrift of 17th-placed Wolves who t...
Liverpool re-established their 12-point lead at the top of the Premier League with Diogo Jota’s strike against Everton settling a second controversial Merseyside derby of the season.Jota’s first league goal since mid-January was potentially one of his most important of the campaign as the 1-0 victory kept second-placed Arsenal at more than arm’s length.It also ended Everton manag...
- 1 Hot WAG flaunts 'astonishing' washboard abs in bikini
- 2 Danny Rohl hails Sheffield Wednesday resilience in draw at Cardiff
- 3 Alfie May double sends Birmingham step closer to Championship
- 4 Marcus Rashford scores first Premier League goal for Villa in win at Brighton
- 5 Ryan Lowe and Conor Hourihane felt team deserved more as Wigan and Barnsley draw
- 6 Mat Sadler hails Taylor Allen set-piece skills after Walsall snatch draw
- 7 Chris Davies says Alfie May’s goal drought never concerned him
- 8 Football fan 'eats' raw pig's head in ultimate insult
- 9 Marcus Rashford still looking to improve after firing Villa into FA Cup semis
- 10 Chelsea prepare €70m for Barcelona defender