ANDREW SHINNIE insists Falkirk “bottled it" when their promotion bid came down to the wire last season, throwing away their 1-0 aggregate lead over Kilmarnock in the play-off final when they were battered 4-0 in the second leg at Rugby Park.
And the Hibernian midfielder is determined to effectively end their hopes of going up automatically this term.
“You do get that feeling that there is a little edge to this game,” Shinnie continued. "Falkirk are a tough team to play against, they’re always around the promotion spots.
“They kind of bottled it a little bit against Kilmarnock last year and Kilmarnock had a big win on the day, but if they had turned up they would probably be in the Premiership now. So it will be a difficult game but we are ready for it.
“It would be a big win for us if we could get it and it would be a big blow for them.They’ll look at it and think if they can beat us they’re maybe back in the race. We can’t let that happen.”
Hibs will face the title showdown without two of their star men, with Ofir Marciano and John McGinn on international duty with Israel and Scotland respectively – a situation that manager Neil Lennon described as “surreal".
Shinnie is adamant international week should mean a shutdown for the domestic calendar as a whole – not just the top-flight – to avoid this kind of situation. Nevertheless, has backed Lennon's side to handle the absences.
“I don’t know why the rules are the way they are,” Shinnie added. "I don’t know why the international break isn’t for everyone. Why should a team suffer by losing some of its best players?
“If you’re an international player, the chances are you’ll be one of the most important players in your team. So, if there’s a game, especially at this stage of the season, where you lose them it’s disappointing.
“But we have a lot of good midfielders at the club. Dylan [McGeouch] is back and Fraser [Fyvie] is back from suspension. Ofir will be a miss as well because he has been playing well. But Ross [Laidlaw] has done well whenever he has been in the side. So we have players who can come in.”
Meanwhile, Lewis Kidd is confident Falkirk can spark their late title charge into life with victory at Easter Road.
Peter Houston's side are currently seven points adrift of the league leaders and, having played a game more, the manager has confessed that defeat today would leave them with too much ground to make up.
But Kidd insists he and his team-mates are determined to drag themselves to within touching distance of the capital outfit.
He said: "It's a massive game. We all know that and we will all be prepared for it. It could be narrowed down to four or it could go to 10.
“We are prepared and we believe we can go there and get the result we need. We are all looking forward to it. If we lose it would be a lot harder to catch them but I'm not going to say it would be done and dusted.
“We would just take each game as it comes and if we go about our own business then hopefully we will get the results we need.
“We’re not far away from Hibs. We know our strengths and we know we have a strong squad. Hibs are doing well but we've dropped points in a few games we shouldn't have dropped points. So we could have been even closer to them. We've just got to keep going and try and catch them.”
Falkirk have not lost in their last six matches at Easter Road, stretching back to 2009.
And Kidd, who has started the last three matches for Houston's team, believes being on the road will suit them.
The 22-year-old said: “We've been better away from home in our recent run of form. I don't know why that is, exactly, but we have been.
“It will be difficult at Easter Road but maybe being away from home will help us. It will be a big atmosphere but we feel we can go there and get a result.”
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