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THE last time Hearts defeated Hibs in a Scottish Cup Final they prepared for three weeks in a hotel that now houses a funeral parlour.

Paulo Sergio will be hoping the historical omens stretch only as far as the outcome of the big match back in 1896 when the Jambos won 3-1 on a ground at Logie Green in Edinburgh that has long since been swallowed by a supermarket car park.

Hibs and Hearts are two of the biggest clubs in Scotland and yet, astonishingly, their head to head 116 years ago was the last time they met in a major final and also the last time the showpiece was held outside Glasgow.

Attention to detail is not peculiar to 21st century football as Tynecastle’s Victorian forebears proved with their preparations aimed at maintaining dominance of their Edinburgh rivals.

The 1890s were salad days for Hearts, who won the league twice and finished runners-up twice, while their 1896 success in the Cup added to a previous victory in 1891.

Hibs, on the other hand, had been on their uppers for almost a decade as newly-formed Celtic raided Leith for players, often with the promise of pubs and substantial paychecks – the Parkhead club were not alone among Scottish clubs in riding roughshod over rules forbidding professionalism in the game.

However, the tide was beginning to turn in 1896 – and Hearts knew they had to act to preserve their status as the top side in the capital, with Edinburgh also boasting a successful club in St Bernard’s, who leased their ground to the SFA for the final as Scotland were playing England in a rugby international at Hampden that day.

Hearts historian David Speed said: “Hibs went into decline following the formation of Celtic, losing many of their finest players to the new club and also their ground at the bottom of Easter Road to housing developers.

“As a result, they failed to play in the first Scottish League season in 1890 and Hearts were dominant but a challenge had emerged by the mid-1890s. Hibs had won the old Second Division twice, in 1894 and 1895, and when they were invited to play in the First Division – the same season they reached the final – they finished third, one place ahead of Hearts.

“The pressure was all on Hearts going into the 1896 final, they had to win it. Their rivals were back and making a serious challenge to be considered the top club in the city again.

“The Hearts committee made every effort to have their players in peak physical condition for the final, so they moved them all into the Union Hotel on Lothian Road for three weeks.

“It made sense because players frequently picked up injuries grafting in hard, manual industries – and the Hearts team at that time included miners, printworkers, a blacksmith, a dairyman and a plumber. They lived in miners’ rows with no bathrooms or inside toilets, their diet wasn’t particularly healthy and footballers at the time also enjoyed a pint or two.

“The Union hotel was owned by a Hearts fan, Tom Kay, who undoubtedly gave the club preferential rates. There was no way this was a prison camp for players. A soft bed and good food? It would have been treated like a holiday.”

Logie Green boasted a capacity of 23,000 and 17,000 turned up on a March afternoon, which was a great attendance in comparison to previous finals. It would have been more but football fans who believe legal wrangling between clubs and the SFA is a recent development should think again.

Speed added: “The attendance was good but could have been more. It snowed in the week leading up to the final, which put a few people off. Others felt the ground wasn’t big enough to host a sizeable crowd and were scared off attending for fear of being crushed.

“Amazingly, the game was only given the go-ahead the day before after Renton failed to secure an interdict at the Court of Session. They claimed a Hibs player, Tom Robertson, should have been ineligible in the semi-final, which they lost 2-1.

“Robertson and Hibs argued his appearance the previous summer in a match for Kirkmuirhill against the wonderfully named Larkhall Unknowns didn’t mean he was committed to another club. Robertson argued he only joined in the equivalent of a bounce match when he spotted it being played during a walk in the country. The law lords found in his favour.”

As it was, Hibs may have been better off without the hapless Robertson, who handled three minutes into the final, allowing Hearts to open the scoring from a penalty by Davie Baird. Alex King and Willie Michael were also on target before Jo O’Neill’s consolation.

Speed said: “One newspaper reported at the time that Hibs seemed to suffer anxiety as Hearts won comfortably but defeat was taken in a sporting manner. For sure, the hotel preparations put in place were significant.

“Hearts held off Hibs’ challenge and still proved to be dominant for the next few years but this was a strong time for the game in the capital as Hibs won the Cup in 1902 and the title the season after.

“The Cup-winning team of 1896 had four players who won the competition in 1891 so they were experienced and not overawed. Current players such as Andy Webster, Marius Zaliukas and Rudi Skacel are carrying a level of experience at international level Hibs can’t match, so here’s hoping it proves the difference again in 2012."