Ex-Hibs assistant Billy Brown recalls ‘soft’ Colin Calderwood, not as good as Hearts ‘vibe’ and 2012 cup final tactics error

Former Hibs coach Billy Brown reckons the belief at Hibs that they were equal to or better than Hearts didn’t change until the appointment of Neil Lennon.

Brown has experience of being the No.2 on either side of the capital.

After being the right-hand man to Tynecastle legend Jim Jefferies, he got an insight into Easter Road after being appointed Colin Caldwerwood’s assistant boss in 2011 before working under Pat Fenlon.

Across two seasons he was part of a struggling Hibs set-up having been brought in when things weren’t going well under Calderwood.

Through it all he got a “vibe” that there wasn’t a strong enough mentality, especially when it came to Edinburgh derbies.

“They wanted me to try and help Colin,” he told Si Ferry in an Open Goal interview. “Colin’s a lovely boy, great lad, nice person. Nothing like he was as a player. He was a real hardman as a player but he was too soft as a manager.

“I don’t know why Hibs ever brought me there because I didn’t actually do anything. He had a fitness coach and Gareth Evans.

“After a few days I said: ‘Colin, why did you bring me here? In fact what are you doing here? We’re just watching training. We should be taking training, that’s what I do’.

“So things changed after that but he was too soft, Colin. Too many players that needed sorting out but he didn’t do it.”

He added: “When I went to the Hibs, I had been at Hearts for quite a long time in the two spells I was there. I always got the feeling that when Hearts played Hibs we always thought we were going to win. When I went to Hibs I got the impression Hibs hoped they might.

“That was the mindset at the time. Neil Lennon changed that mindset at Hibs. Neither Colin or Pat changed that mindset.

“There was a feeling in the building, I just got that vibe they didn’t think they were as good as Hearts. It’s changed now.”

‘Worst day’

The difficulties at Easter Road came to a “culmination” in the 2012 Scottish Cup final, which Brown wished had been between Hibs and Celtic rather than an Edinburgh derby final.

“We beat Aberdeen on the Saturday and Hearts played Celtic on the Sunday,” he said. “I didn’t want Hearts to get to the final. Jim and I brought all those Hearts players there, we formed that team.

“One of the worst days in football I had, that drubbing. Hearts could have beat Hibs by more that day.

“There were too many loan players, plus we had played a diamond against Dunfermline, beat them 4-0. That’s what he (Fenlon) thought was the answer.

“I said: ‘Look Pat, Hearts’ two full-backs and wide men are going to give us a big problem here and if you let Blackie (Ian Black) dominate the game, which he is going to because the system we are playing, we’re going to have problems’.

“And that’s what happened.

“It wasn’t a good day to be involved. Hibs let their supporters down badly that day.”