Tuesday 26th April 2016
DUMBARTON put in plenty of effort, but eventually went down 4-0 to Hibernian at Easter Road on a chilly evening in the capital.
Hibs dominated proceedings for most of the first half, though Sons came back into the game a little later on.
The home side, eager to improve their promotion playoff placing, went one-nil up on seven minutes. Fraser Fyvie set up James Keatings for a quality strike into the top right-hand corner.
Six minutes later it was 2-0 to Hibs. Dumbarton’s Jamie Ewings sprinted quickly off his line to deny Martin Boyle. But the rebound fell to Niklas Gunnarson, who blasted it across goal for Keatings to tap in his second.
The assault from the Easter Road men, who had enjoyed 68% of possession before the break, continued into the second half, despite some early pressure from Sons.
Ewings (pictured) made one of a series of fine stops with his legs from Anthony Stokes on the hour, as Hibs continued to squander a raft of chances to add to their tally.
Just as it looked as if Sons would continue to frustrate their hosts, up stepped Keatings with a strike that was deflected in by Kevin Cawley for the third goal.
Stokes then made it 4-0 with a scrambled effort in the six yard box on the cusp of time added on.
Dumbarton now go into the final game of the Ladbrokes SPFL Championship at Alloa on Sunday 1st May looking for a winning conclusion to another memorable season.
Full match report, comment, match photos and Sons TV to follow.
Simon Barrow