2012 Scottish Cup final

The 2012 Scottish Cup Final was the 127th final of the Scottish Cup. The match took place at Hampden Park on 19 May 2012 and was contested by the Edinburgh derby rivals, Hibernian (Hibs) and Heart of Midlothian (Hearts). It was Hibs' 12th Scottish Cup Final and Hearts' 14th. It was also the first time the clubs had met in a Scottish Cup Final since 1896.

As Scottish Premier League (SPL) clubs, Hibs and Hearts both entered the competition in the fourth round. Hibs won all four of their ties at the first attempt, defeating two other SPL clubs and two Scottish Football League clubs. After winning against Junior club Auchinleck Talbot in the fourth round, Hearts defeated three other SPL clubs to reach the final. Hearts needed a replay to eliminate St Johnstone then they beat St Mirren, then beat cup holders Celtic in the semi-final.

The match was Hibs' 12th appearance in the Scottish Cup final and Hearts' 14th. Hibs had previously won two finals and Hearts had won seven. Because both teams were from Edinburgh, many of the city councillors requested that the final be held in Edinburgh at Murrayfield Stadium, instead of the traditional venue of Hampden, in Glasgow. The previous final between the two clubs in 1896 had been held in Edinburgh but on this occasion it stayed in Glasgow.

Hearts won a one-sided match 5–1. They took an early 2–0 lead by goals from Darren Barr and Rudi Skácel. Hibs reduced the deficit to 2–1 at half-time through captain James McPake. Soon after half-time, however, Pa Kujabi was sent off and conceded a penalty kick, which was converted by Danny Grainger. Hearts scored two further goals with their one-man advantage to complete the scoring.

Scottish Premier League club Hibernian entered the competition in the fourth round. They began their campaign against Second Division leaders Cowdenbeath at Central Park, which was suggested as a possible cup upset due to Hibs' poor league form. Cowdenbeath took the lead after just 15 seconds, but Hibs recovered to win 3–2. Hibs then took on fellow SPL club Kilmarnock at their home ground, Easter Road, having made several signings in January 2012. An early goal by Irish striker Eoin Doyle was enough to give Hibs a 1–0 win.

In the quarter-final Hibs were drawn against the other senior club from Ayrshire, away to Ayr United. Again the match was tipped as a possible cup upset, as Ayr had beaten Hibs (after a replay) in the 2010–11 Scottish Cup competition. Hibs scored two early goals and progressed to the semi-final with a 2–0 victory. In the semi-final, Hibs took on Aberdeen at Hampden Park. Garry O'Connor scored an early goal, and Rory Fallon equalised for Aberdeen in the second half with a spectacular looping volley. Hibs won 2–1 thanks to a late winning goal by Leigh Griffiths.

Heart of Midlothian, also a Scottish Premier League club, entered the competition in the fourth round. They began their campaign against Junior club Auchinleck Talbot in a home match at Tynecastle Stadium. A late goal by Gordon Smith gave Hearts a 1–0 victory. Hearts then faced fellow SPL side St Johnstone in the fifth round. Hearts led 1–0 after a David Templeton goal. Despite St Johnstone defender Dave Mackay being sent off after 74 minutes, Cillian Sheridan equalised to force a replay. In the replay, Murray Davidson put St Johnstone in the lead with an 83rd-minute goal. St Johnstone then could have been further ahead before Jamie Hamill converted a controversial stoppage-time penalty to force extra time. During extra time Marius Zaliukas scored the winning goal from a corner.

In the quarter-final Hearts faced another SPL side, St Mirren. Hearts conceded early on after a Graham Carey free-kick before Craig Beattie scored and then set up Rudi Skácel to put Hearts in front. Zaliukas then scored a late own goal after deflecting a Nigel Hasselbaink shot into his own net to level the match. In the replay at St Mirren Park, Carey had an early penalty saved, after a handball by Zaliukas, and Hasselbaink then scored a goal which was ruled out because the referee had not given St Mirren an advantage. Hearts then came back into the match as Hamill and Skácel scored to give Hearts a 2–0 win. In the semi-final at Hampden Park, Hearts were drawn against cup holders Celtic. Skácel scored shortly after half-time for Hearts before Gary Hooper scored a late equaliser for Celtic. Hearts were then awarded a stoppage-time penalty which former Celtic striker Beattie converted. There was controversy around both Hooper's goal and Beattie's penalty after the match as Hooper had looked offside when he scored his goal and Hearts' penalty was considered to have been wrongly awarded by the referee.