Hibs’ goalkeeper Ofir Marciano played his last game at Easter Road on Saturday and kept another clean sheet with an outstanding performance.
Marciano has been a popular figure in the dressing room since his arrival at the club under Neil Lennon and he is generally considered to be the finest Hibs’ keeper since the days of Scotland internationals Alan Rough, Andy Goram and Jim Leighton.
Photos by Ian Jacobs
At this time it is not clear whether he will play or indeed feature in Hibs’ Scottish Cup final squad on Saturday as Matt Macey has played in every Scottish Cup tie so far and is likely to retain his place.
Speaking to Hibs TV after the final whistle on Saturday, an emotional ‘Rocky’ said: “ First of all I feel proud because it’s a massive club and when I was a little boy I dream of playing for clubs like this so for me it’s been a dream come true so I appreciate every moment I have had with this club.
“I’m happy that today we managed to finish on a high against Celtic. This year has been particularly very good because I enjoyed coming every day to the training centre and working with the staff and the other players and we’ve finished in a position that we haven’t finished for a while and have a good chance of winning the cup.
“For me it’s the best season I’ve ever had here. I came here when the club were in the ‘second division’ and we managed to get up and get the club to Europe and finish third and a chance to win the cup so it’s been amazing progress and an amazing journey and I am happy that I have been part of it.
“If I take something bad from this season it’s that our amazing fans couldn’t be here so this is the only negative thing I could say about this season, but even when the stadium is empty we still feel our fans and still feel the love that we get and that’s something you don’t get with every club so we appreciate them.
“Shelley and I are always going to be Hibs’ fans and we will never forget our time here and you never know what happens in the future so I am just happy that I served the club and have been part of successful years.”
David Gray added: “He’s been fantastic for the club in the five-years he has been here. He is brilliant every day in the training ground, the way he trains, the way he plays. He’s well liked within the dressing room by all the boys as well. He will be a miss and hopefully he can go on and achieve big things in his career and I’m sure he will wherever he moves on to from here because he is a fantastic player and a very good professional and I want to wish him all the best for the future.
Darren MgGregor added: “I’ve said it to the boys but not to him because I don’t want him to get a big head but he is probably the best keeper I have played with in all the clubs that I have been at. He’s so consistent. A lot of fans that come here as well probably agree with that. He’s one of the best keepers that I can remember playing for Hibs in my time so that just goes to show how big a miss he will be but you get to a certain age and you want to try different experiences and push yourself so there is nobody holding anything against him and we wish him all the best.
“I think we have an adequate replacement in Matt Macey and we’ve got Kevin Dabrowski and I’m sure we will get somebody else in as well so Ofir passes the torch to them and we will see well they do.”
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
