Gravediggers are no match for the Down Undertaker
Aussie Boyle smashes goal ton to silence Partizan punters
ROSS PILCHER AT PARTIZAN STADIUM Ā· Aug 8, 2025
Boyleās ton of trouble
HIBS all but buried Partizanās Conference League chances with a first-leg win. And it was super centurion Martin Boyle who proved deadly as the Australia international all but killed off the third round qualifying tie in front of the noisy Gravedigger fans in the Serbian capital with his 100th and 101st goals for the club.
Hibs started brightly, Boyle crossing for Kieron Bowie to send a looping header towards goal before the architectās low shot was deflected into Marko Milosevicās arms.
Boyle was then alert when Milosevic raced out to clear but only sent the ball so far.
The 32-year-old tried to catch him racing back to his line but could only find the side-netting. There was a real let-off for Hibs when Demba Seck took the ball down at the back stick but blazed over as Jordan Smith watched on. And that was all within the opening five minutes.
Nikola Simic then went close with a thumping header from a free-kick. And Jamie McGrath thought heād silenced the home fans with a free-kick that looked destined for the top corner, only for Milosevic to tip it wide.
Smith then kept out Nemanja Trifunovicās stinger after he dropped a shoulder to put Warren OāHora on his backside. But a pivotal 30 seconds saw the game swing in the Hibeesā favour.
It was Rocky Bushiri to the rescue as the defender somehow stopped Milan Vukoticās effort on the line before scrambling away the rebound.
From almost taking the lead, Partizan found themselves down to 10 men as Vukasin Durdevic upended Bowie, having already clattered Boyle.
That meant an early night as ref Philip Farrugia flashed a second yellow then red. The decibel level was then turned right down as Hibs made the extra man count ā and then some. Jordan Obitaās corner was flicked on by OāHora and Boyle was free at the back post to smash home before taking off to shoosh seething home fans.
It should have been 2-0 when McGrath ghosted into the box to be left with a completely free header but he could only send it wide with Milosevic rooted.
The keeper was the only reason Hibs didnāt kill the game within minutes of the restart.
Dylan Levitt got across the front to turn Obitaās cross goalwards and Milosevic had to tip over. The Serbs werenāt without a threat and Jovan Milosevic should have done better than head straight at Smith after Vukotic stood up a cross. The stuffing was then knocked right out of them as a delayed VAR check resulted in a spotkick for Bowie being pulled to the deck at a corner, although no one spotted it at the time.
It was another brave call and Boyle stayed cool amid the cacophony of boos to slam home down the middle.
RED BUT NO STAR
Itās not a colour youād see anywhere near this stadium except on Eternal Derby day. The Grobari didnāt much like seeing it flashed at Durdevic.
His first foul on Boyle sent the Hibs man two feet in the air, although the one that earned him a red from the Maltese ref could be seen as soft. You canāt question the ref ās cojones to make a call like that with tens of thousands of screaming fans around you.
MAR-TON BOYLE
Itās 101 not out for Boyle as he edged past a century of Hibs goals. So often heās been the clubās talisman on the big stage and he produced yet again.
He was pinpointed in the build-up by Partizan coach Srdjan Blagojevic as the biggest threat but he assured everyone there was a secret plan to try to deal with him.
Whatever it was, it didnāt work and he was the coolest man in the stadium in slotting home the killer second.
USING GRAY MATTER
He might be new to this but David Gray is proving a dab hand at managing in Europe. His players were a minute and penalties away from his game plan against Midtjylland paying off, only being undone by three goals that were all better than the last with the final one the most spectacular and heartbreaking.
In Belgrade, he got it spot on as Hibs handled both the atmosphere and younger, less experienced team pretty much perfectly. Replacing Josh Mulligan on a yellow card at half-time was sensible.
PARTIZAN BY NAME, PARTIZAN BY NATURE
One thing Partizanās young team do not lack is backing. Two hours before kick-off, fans surrounded the stadium in numbers. Once in it, the noise they make is incredible and, if anything, they only got louder after going down to 10 men, then again after conceding.
The choreographed chanting between different stands is impressive to see as well as hear and it only makes Hibsā positive result and performance all the more impressive
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