If John Lennon was right and life is indeed what happens when you are busy making other plans then John Collins, who was still Celtic assistant manager just last weekend, had cause to contemplate how different things might have looked this week if events had gone a different way.

Had it gone according to the script, Collins would have been at a William Hill Scottish Cup media event this week in a very different capacity to the one he attended yesterday morning on the outskirts of the nation’s capital.

Disrobed now of his Celtic assistant manager’s title after the parting of the ways with the Parkhead club on Sunday afternoon, Collins was speaking from the perspective of a former Hibernian player and manager as he looked to the prospect of this weekend’s Cup Final between Rangers and the Leith side. Alan Stubbs will look to become Hibs’ Beautiful Boy by writing his name into club folklore by becoming the club’s first manager in 114 years to win the Scottish Cup.

Collins can empathise with the sleepless nights that Stubbs will endure in the build-up to Saturday’s game. And with a trio of strikers fighting for a jersey, Collins expects that it is the starting XI will be causing the nocturnal tossing and turning of the Hibs manager this week.

Collins left out the experienced Michael Stewart in favour of the then up-and-coming Lewis Stevenson for the 2007 League Cup Final when Hibs beat Kilmarnock 5-1 – “he has made quite a few bob out of talking about me in his columns,” – and he suspects that a similarly difficult and unpopular decision lies in store for Stubbs.

“ It is what makes or breaks you,” he said. “[Jason] Cummings has been scoring goals all season, special goals, good goals and [James] Keatings has come in and scored two, the second of which was terrific. What does he do? Keatings scores two and is left out? Cummings is your top goalscorer. I think he will be on the pitch, personally, but these are tough decisions.

“Anthony Stokes has got huge talent. He has proved it in the big games. He has that calmness about him and nothing really flusters him. Again, a big decision. I haven’t watched him week in,, week out but he is a talented football player. In a big game you would fancy Stokes to cause Rangers problems.

“It is a tough decision – or can you play the three of them? One through the middle and two out wide? It is an option. I don’t think Alan will do that. He has used the diamond with two up front all season but the last Rangers game he never. He went 3-5-2 or 5-3-2 with three central defenders and it worked – they won the game. So he’ll be thinking about that as well.

“These are decisions that keep managers up at night, tossing and turning, thinking and changing from one day to the next and one hour to the next. Thinking, what should I go with? I am sure his mind is made up with what he is going to go with now.”

Rangers, who saw off Ronny Deila and Collins’ Celtic team on route to the final, appear to have downed tools since the drama of the Hampden penalty kicks. The Ibrox side have been kicking their heels as they have waited for the Cup Final to come around and there is a suggestion that Mark Warburton’s side may feel they done the hard bit by putting Celtic to the sword at the semi-final stage. For Hibs, though, the weight of their Scottish Cup hoodoo hangs heavy on the shoulders.

Whoever handles the occasion best may well be the team who rises to the fore, but Collins was reluctant to pick a winner.

“I think it’s a real close game,” he said. “When I look at them player-for-player there’s not a lot in it. It’s two different systems in play. Rangers play wingers wide at the top of the pitch and Rangers don’t. Hibs play narrow and all the width comes from their full backs. Can Hibs stop Rangers in the wide areas, can Hibs get control of the centre of the park?

They usually have more numbers with their four-man diamond against Rangers three with the triangle. From a coaches point of view it will be interesting to see how the different systems work.”

While Rangers were able to kick back as they waited on this weekend’s final coming round, Hibs, by contrast, were left mentally shattered by the manner of last Friday’s play-off defeat to Falkirk which has ensured another season at least of Championship football. It gives Rangers a weakness to exploit, although Collins expects that the carrot of Cup glory can offer a revival of spirit.

“The good news is that they have a Cup Final to look forward to so they have got to quickly try and forget the result and focus on Rangers,” he said. “It will be a couple of days and bitter disappointment of thinking that they are not going to be in the SPFL next season and it will be the Championship again but after a couple of days the focus will be on Rangers and the opportunity to become heroes in the city.

“They can do something that no Hibs team has done for 114 years. There is a great carrot there for all the players and staff to create something very special.”

*John Collins was speaking at a William Hill media event. William Hill is the proud sponsor of the Scottish Cup*