Hibernian manager Jack Ross insists his side merited their narrow 1-0 victory over Dundee as they eased into the Betfred Cup quarter-finals.
Jamie Murphy’s strike just moments before the interval separated the sides and sent the beaten Scottish Cup semi-finalists a step closer to a return to Hampden.
The teams met just a fortnight ago in the group stage, when Hibs ran out 4-1 winners.
But, after a hard-fought 90 minutes, Ross claimed he was simply happy to see his players book their place in the last eight.
He said: “The most important thing in these games is to get through because it’s not easy to win these games.
“So to get through to another quarter-final is great for the club and for this group of players.
“I am delighted because it was a hard game. When you play a team again so quickly, especially after beating them so comfortably before, the next game is harder.
“That’s the way it worked out so I’m happy to get through.
“We have had a lot of games lately and won a lot of matches, so it’s demanding to keep producing – both physically and psychologically.
“So we have tried to use the squad well and the players who came on helped us win the game.
“It’s a cliche but cup competition is all about getting to the next round. It was difficult but I felt we deserved to go through.”
Murphy proved the match-winner and Ross was full of praise for the on-loan Rangers playmaker after he netted for the second time in three games.
Ross added: “It was an excellent goal from Jamie. We showed a few moments of quality in the game and that was one of them.
“He showed what he can do, he’s getting the benefit of playing consistently.
“We have challenged him to produce assists and goals, which he has been doing lately.
“He’s looking better and better in recent weeks, it’s good for me because he’s improving with each passing match.”
Dundee manager James McPake insisted his team merited more and could be proud of themselves, despite the defeat.
He said: “The boys are gutted in there because there was no way we deserved to lose that game.
“We were not happy with ourselves last weekend but we were miles better here. We played with the aggression and commitment I wanted to see.
“I hate saying it because it means you’ve lost, but there are ways to lose games and the players can be proud of themselves after that.
“If we keep playing like that we’ll win games in our league most weeks.”
