One of my abiding memories of this match will be the sight of Ulrik Laursen trudging disconsolately from the field shortly after making the blunder that led to Dunfermline’s equaliser. He looked clearly unfit to me and I don’t think he should have been playing. He was certainly a shadow of the player that so excited the Hibs fans at the beginning of the season, and Dunfermline attacked relentlessly down his flank during the first half in particular. It is a measure of the esteem in which the Hibs fans hold Laursen, however, that he still got a warm round of applause as he left the park.

Laursen’s inclusion was the one major change to the Hibs line-up, which now has a very familiar look to it. Stuart Lovell played on the opposite flank with Tom Smith resting a niggling injury.

I felt that Dunfermline started the brighter of the two teams and it was clear from the start that they would play an intelligent passing game, in much the same style that Hibs are now known for. Several times in the first twenty minutes, they gave the Hibs defence problems but luckily for us, their final ball into the box let down their good approach play. Laursen struggled for sure and a lot of attacks came down his side of the park, but no-one in the Hibs defence looked too clever during this period. Fenwick, in particular, was finding the muscular Moss hard to handle. Moss reminded me a lot of Paatelainen, in the way he just stood up and forced defenders to foul him from behind.

Hibs looked better going forward than they did defending and this set the pattern for the whole game. It must have been a good match for a neutral to watch because offences were on top, there was a lot of crisp passing, attacking football and plenty of chances at both ends.

The first major chance for Dunfermline fell to ex-hibee, Stevie Crawford, who met an inviting cross with a powerful header which Colgan did well to touch over the bar. It was the first time that Dunfermline had managed to play a telling final ball and it so nearly reaped a reward.

Shortly after this, however, Hibs took the lead through a penalty. A hanging cross was dropping to Paatelainen at the far post and as he went for the header he was bundled over from behind by Bullen, I think. We were sitting behind the goals at the other end so it was difficult to tell how much contact there was but Paatelainen was adamant after the game that he was pushed. Latapy was coolness itself as he stepped forward and placed the kick in the corner.

The first half ended more evenly than it had begun with Hibs beginning to gain the ascendancy. Hibs also started the second half brightly, attacking the very large, green and white clad, contingent who had forced their way to East End Park through the frustrating bottleneck that the Forth Road Bridge has become.

However, after only three minutes of that second half, Laursen made his well publicised error. Trying to shepherd a long forward ball out of play, he was dispossessed by Nicholson who swung in a cross for the unmarked Moss to nod home. That point is worth noting: Laursen may have made the initial error but why was Moss standing all alone in the Hibs box without a defender in sight ?

The second half developed in to an evenly contested affair with loads of chances. I felt sure that the game would finish 2-1, though for which team, you could not guess. Hibs used two substitutes during this half. Ian Murray for Laursen and David Zitelli for Paatelainen. The big Finn had taken constant abuse from the home support after the penalty decision, had spoken with the referee several times and had been booked so it was probably a wise precaution.

Maybe I am biased but I felt we had the more clear cut chances to win the game. Three or four instances come to mind. John O’Neil nodded a near post header just wide when I thought he would score, Latapy had a blinding run which ended in the keeper saving low at the near post and then Zitelli headed a cross from just six yards out which the keeper parried without knowing too much about. Finally, Zitelli blasted an effort into the side netting when you felt he should have cut it back. On top of this, Sauzee had a series of good freekicks but Roetenburg always seemed to be in the right place to save.

Dunfermline’s best chance of the second half was a run and curling shot from Stevie Crawford which missed the far post by about a foot with only minutes remaining.

For the last ten minutes, I thought both teams looked dead on their feet and even the urging on of Hibs big travelling support was not enough to lift the players for a final effort. So, a draw was probably a fair result, though with just a touch of luck I think we could have nicked it.

Hibs Team 3-5-2

Subs not used : Westwater, Brebner, McManus