Jonnyboy
03-11-2018, 07:32 PM
Every team has a bogey team and from a Hibs perspective, that team is surely St. Johnstone. Prior to the meeting today the last four fixtures had resulted in three draws and a win for the Saints. Today they added to the wins column and in truth they deserved to do so as we never really got going and with more luck the winning margin might have been greater.
With Kamberi suspended, Lenny brought Jamie Mac in as a straight replacement and there were starting places too for Horgan and Hyndman to the exclusion of McGregor and Slivka which meant starting with a back four as Whitty and Lewis flanked Efe and Milli.
The game started slowly and it seemed apparent from early on that Hibs, like the atmosphere, were flat and our proud 2018 home record was soon under threat as Tony Watt was giving Milligan all sorts of problems in winning the majority of battles against the Hibs defender. A corner to the visitors saw the ball reach young Nydam and his thunderous shot cracked off the bar with Bogdan well beaten. In response, Boyler had an effort that flew just wide but our midfield lacked creativity and Maclaren struggled to get any decent service. The movement and sheer presence of Kamberi was a big miss with anything played into the box at height being easily cleared by the St. Johnstone defence. A cheeky Craig free kick found Stevenson alert to the danger with a headed clearance and it wasn’t really until the late stages of the first half that Hibs started to enjoy any meaningful possession as both Horgan and Mallan tried their luck but to no avail.
Whatever was said in the Hibs dressing room at half time there was no obvious change to our play as St. Johnstone comfortably dominated possession with Watt missing a glorious chance to put his side in front when he headed the ball wide of the target from just four yards out.
Around ten minutes in, Hibs had two fantastic efforts which Zander Clark did well to keep out. The first came from Boyle from around twenty five yards and the second from Mallan who was even further out when he hit the shot. Clark’s two saves were outstanding as he clawed the ball wide from Boyle’s effort and seemed to chest the ball out from Mallan’s, my assumption being that it must have moved when in in motion. Next, Maclaren dragged a shot wide after being fed the opportunity by Stevenson.
At this point, St. Johnstone brought on former Hibee Danny Swanson who soon made his presence felt as Bartley tripped him in the box. Swanson took the kick himself but Bogdan dived full length to deflect the ball around the post. It looked a decent hit and it looked a super save.
Both sides looked as though they wanted to find a winner with His going close through Maclaren and McGregor but it would be the hosts that achieved that target. A high ball was allowed to bounce by McGregor and that allowed Chris Kane to get beyond him. Daz impeded him, the ref rightly gave a free kick and Shaughnessy met Wotherspoon’s free kick to head home from point blank range. It was a sickening blow but in truth it always looked likely as Hibs were shaky at the back, subdued in midfield and ineffective up front.
The players
Adam – I thought he was solid again, made a great save from the penalty and had no chance with the winning goal as his defensive team mates let him down.
Whitty – After a good display on Wednesday night, Steven failed to follow it up and his decision making was all over the place at times.
Efe – Was pretty muck ok in the back three but when he moved to right back in the reshuffle he looked very suspect and has developed a worrying habit of standing too far off his man and being beaten easily as a result.
Milli – Mark really struggled against the pace and power of Tony Watt and although I’m aware he’s played in central defence for his country I wonder whether it was ever part of a back three. I’d far rather see him further forward where his calming influence and experience can greatly help our creative midfield players.
Emerson – I like the laddie as I think he has a good football brain but he was pretty much over run today and struggled to make any real impact.
Marv – Once again the big man was handed the captain’s armband and once again he put in a performance worthy of both the sponsor’s and my man of the match award.
Stevie – Struggled for large parts of the game but was unlucky with a couple of strikes from distance as Zander Clark is massive as well as being an excellent keeper.
Daryl - Buzzed around a lot and in fairness did try to make things happen.
Lewis – One of the very few who played to his strengths today. Up and down the line, always available and for the most part kept the tricky Drey Wright in check.
Boyler – Not one of Martin’s better days as he looked lethargic and was too often caught on his heels. I love Boyler but I do wonder if he’s ever going to learn to look up before playing a pass. Too many went straight to Saints players today.
Jamie – When you’re about 5’8 or so and playing as the main striker you can’t do any great damage if the ball is launched into the air rather than along the ground. As a consequence he was rarely involved.
Daz – Replaced Whitty around the 70 minute mark as Hibs switched to a back four. Sadly, I am of the opinion that we lost the game due to a basic error by Daz. Letting the ball bounce puts you at a disadvantage and in trying to regain possession he gave away a needless free kick from which the visitors scored.
Slivka – Replaced the tiring and largely ineffective Hyndman and though he worked hard enough he didn’t really make any positive impact on proceedings.
Oli – Came on for Horgan, worked hard enough but made no positive impact.
The ref – A couple of very odd decisions but was largely ok.
Lenny – Neil must know the fans are right behind him.
The fans – A Hibs Kids day but flat as a pancake and it’s really saying something when St. Johnsatone fans are ‘ridiculing’ the home support.
With Kamberi suspended, Lenny brought Jamie Mac in as a straight replacement and there were starting places too for Horgan and Hyndman to the exclusion of McGregor and Slivka which meant starting with a back four as Whitty and Lewis flanked Efe and Milli.
The game started slowly and it seemed apparent from early on that Hibs, like the atmosphere, were flat and our proud 2018 home record was soon under threat as Tony Watt was giving Milligan all sorts of problems in winning the majority of battles against the Hibs defender. A corner to the visitors saw the ball reach young Nydam and his thunderous shot cracked off the bar with Bogdan well beaten. In response, Boyler had an effort that flew just wide but our midfield lacked creativity and Maclaren struggled to get any decent service. The movement and sheer presence of Kamberi was a big miss with anything played into the box at height being easily cleared by the St. Johnstone defence. A cheeky Craig free kick found Stevenson alert to the danger with a headed clearance and it wasn’t really until the late stages of the first half that Hibs started to enjoy any meaningful possession as both Horgan and Mallan tried their luck but to no avail.
Whatever was said in the Hibs dressing room at half time there was no obvious change to our play as St. Johnstone comfortably dominated possession with Watt missing a glorious chance to put his side in front when he headed the ball wide of the target from just four yards out.
Around ten minutes in, Hibs had two fantastic efforts which Zander Clark did well to keep out. The first came from Boyle from around twenty five yards and the second from Mallan who was even further out when he hit the shot. Clark’s two saves were outstanding as he clawed the ball wide from Boyle’s effort and seemed to chest the ball out from Mallan’s, my assumption being that it must have moved when in in motion. Next, Maclaren dragged a shot wide after being fed the opportunity by Stevenson.
At this point, St. Johnstone brought on former Hibee Danny Swanson who soon made his presence felt as Bartley tripped him in the box. Swanson took the kick himself but Bogdan dived full length to deflect the ball around the post. It looked a decent hit and it looked a super save.
Both sides looked as though they wanted to find a winner with His going close through Maclaren and McGregor but it would be the hosts that achieved that target. A high ball was allowed to bounce by McGregor and that allowed Chris Kane to get beyond him. Daz impeded him, the ref rightly gave a free kick and Shaughnessy met Wotherspoon’s free kick to head home from point blank range. It was a sickening blow but in truth it always looked likely as Hibs were shaky at the back, subdued in midfield and ineffective up front.
The players
Adam – I thought he was solid again, made a great save from the penalty and had no chance with the winning goal as his defensive team mates let him down.
Whitty – After a good display on Wednesday night, Steven failed to follow it up and his decision making was all over the place at times.
Efe – Was pretty muck ok in the back three but when he moved to right back in the reshuffle he looked very suspect and has developed a worrying habit of standing too far off his man and being beaten easily as a result.
Milli – Mark really struggled against the pace and power of Tony Watt and although I’m aware he’s played in central defence for his country I wonder whether it was ever part of a back three. I’d far rather see him further forward where his calming influence and experience can greatly help our creative midfield players.
Emerson – I like the laddie as I think he has a good football brain but he was pretty much over run today and struggled to make any real impact.
Marv – Once again the big man was handed the captain’s armband and once again he put in a performance worthy of both the sponsor’s and my man of the match award.
Stevie – Struggled for large parts of the game but was unlucky with a couple of strikes from distance as Zander Clark is massive as well as being an excellent keeper.
Daryl - Buzzed around a lot and in fairness did try to make things happen.
Lewis – One of the very few who played to his strengths today. Up and down the line, always available and for the most part kept the tricky Drey Wright in check.
Boyler – Not one of Martin’s better days as he looked lethargic and was too often caught on his heels. I love Boyler but I do wonder if he’s ever going to learn to look up before playing a pass. Too many went straight to Saints players today.
Jamie – When you’re about 5’8 or so and playing as the main striker you can’t do any great damage if the ball is launched into the air rather than along the ground. As a consequence he was rarely involved.
Daz – Replaced Whitty around the 70 minute mark as Hibs switched to a back four. Sadly, I am of the opinion that we lost the game due to a basic error by Daz. Letting the ball bounce puts you at a disadvantage and in trying to regain possession he gave away a needless free kick from which the visitors scored.
Slivka – Replaced the tiring and largely ineffective Hyndman and though he worked hard enough he didn’t really make any positive impact on proceedings.
Oli – Came on for Horgan, worked hard enough but made no positive impact.
The ref – A couple of very odd decisions but was largely ok.
Lenny – Neil must know the fans are right behind him.
The fans – A Hibs Kids day but flat as a pancake and it’s really saying something when St. Johnsatone fans are ‘ridiculing’ the home support.