Alloa Athletic…......0

Hibernian............…3

Betfred Cup, Group D

ALLOA ended their Betfred Cup campaign with defeat to Premiership side Hibernian as they turned their attentions to the start of their League One campaign.

Having already seen their chances of reaching the knockout stage ended thanks to last Tuesday’s defeat at Montrose, Jim Goodwin’s team were playing for pride as they welcomed last season’s Championship winners to the Indodrill Stadium.

Despite a spirited display from the home side, Fraser Murray’s first-half strike and a double from his namesake Simon ensured the Hibees travelled back to Leith as group winners.

Alloa showed some promising signs early on and Scott Taggart almost found Garry Fleming with a teasing cross, only for Efe Ambrose to head it behind at the near post.

And when the resulting corner was cleared by Dylan McGeouch, Jon Robertson almost found the net with a fierce volley from the edge of the box, the ball flying just wide of the post.

Hibs began to get into their stride and Fraser Murray had Neil Parry worried with a drive from distance which went just the wrong side of the upright.

The visitors were beginning to gain the upper hand and Parry had to be alert to keep Martin Boyle’s shot out after the ex-Dundee man had side-stepped his way into a shooting position.

But there was nothing the big keeper could do about the opener. Boyle was involved again, sliding the ball into the path of Simon Murray. He got to the line and cut it back for his namesake Fraser, whose first-time finish found the top corner via a deflection.

The Wasps were desperately close to an equaliser when Taggart’s cross was flicked away by Ambrose and fell at the feet of Alan Cook, whose low drive was deflected wide.

Robertson was proving a real threat for Alloa and he went close for a second time just before the half-hour mark. Kevin Cawley played the ball into his path, and Robertson’s thunderous shot just cleared the crossbar with Ofir Marciano a beaten man in the Hibs goal.

Murray almost added his second five minutes before the break when he shifted the ball onto his left foot and had a go from a tight angle, but Parry got his fingertips to the effort and sent it out for a corner.

And from that corner, Murray should have scored, but he horribly mistimed his header and sent it over the crossbar.

Hibs continued to have the upper hand in the second half, and Simon Murray fired a shot into the side netting when he could have played in Boyle, who was in a much better position.

But he would make amends just after the hour mark when he doubled the visitors’ advantage in controversial circumstances.

With Alloa claiming that Robertson had been fouled, Boyle burst past Steven Hetherington out on the right flank, and his cross was met at the back post by Murray, who bundled the ball home. The Wasps felt aggrieved, claiming that the striker had used his hand, but referee Willie Collum dismissed the protests.

Alloa were still fighting, and five minutes after coming off the bench Adam Martin saw a shot blocked away by a cluster of green-shirted bodies in the six-yard box, but Hibs would make the points safe with ten minutes to play.

Boyle and Murray combined well once again, the former Dundee winger whipping in a delightful cross for the summer recruit from Dundee United to grab his second of the game with a bullet header off the post.

The Wasps almost had a consolation with one of the final kicks of the game when Paul Hanlon’s slip let Kris Renton in, but he was denied by an outstanding save from Marciano and Hibs’ clean sheet was kept intact.

ALLOA: Parry, Taggart, Hetherington, Graham, Meggatt, Robertson, Cawley, Flannigan, Renton, Fleming (Grant), Cook (Martin). UNUSED SUBS: McKeown, Hoggan, McDonald, Cunningham, McDowall.