Jonnyboy
02-02-2019, 07:09 PM
All the talk prior to the game revolved around whether any of the new signings would make the starting eleven but as it turned out, they were all on the bench and what they must have been thinking as they watched on is anybody’s guess. Put simply, Hibs were bettered in all areas of the park and the biggest mystery is how they only lost 2-1 in a game where goalkeepers featured prominently.
There was a recall to the starting eleven for Lewis Stevenson, returning from injury whilst Mark Milligan played in the middle of a back three. I have to confess that I was perplexed at Eddie May and Grant Murray going for a three when the comeback at St Mirren last time out was largely thanks to switching to a flat four.
In fairness, Hibs started brightly and after just ten minutes took the lead when Oli Shaw received a throw in from Stevenson, turned and headed towards the Aberdeen goal and with defenders backing off the youngster drilled a fine low shot into the corner with Joe Lewis not getting anywhere near it. That should have acted as a platform but Aberdeen were exploiting the wide areas well and flooding men forward so that three minutes later they equalised. A high ball to the back post was poorly defended and when a header on goal came in, Rocky seemed to push the ball straight up into the air rather than over the bar. The dropping ball caused mayhem and allowed Considine to head home from close range. At the time I felt the mistake was Rocky’s although I concede his defence did little to help.
Big Sam Cosgrove was having an interesting battle with Darren McGregor and I felt honours were even until the Dons striker had to go off injured. The disruption did little to affect the visitors as soon after they took the lead and once again I had to question Rocky for his part in conceding. Stewart shot from the edge of the box and Rocky dived to save but could not hold the ball which bounced free and was met by Wilson who prodded it towards goal. There was no power in the effort but Rocky simply pushed it aside allowing Mackay-Steven to hit the ball into an empty net. Granted his defenders were nowhere to be seen and so the fault shouldn’t lie only at Rocky’s door but I expected him to do better in terms of keeping the ball in his grasp.
Those goals knocked the wind out of Hibs’ sails and having established their lead, Aberdeen did all in their power to preserve it. I lost count of the number of times they stopped Hibs from building up play by fouling and generally wasting time but it seems referee Don Robertson was oblivious to this going on. Kamberi alone was fouled repeatedly but no free kicks were given whilst the slightest touch on a Dons player was penalised by the referee.
As half time approached, Mallan was breaking free down the middle and as he did so, Considine was holding him back. Mallan kept going and was then hacked down by Shinnie but Robertson decided to book Considine and bring the play back to where the Aberdeen man had first fouled Mallan. Shinnie, once again, got off scot free and carried on fouling without punishment. From the free kick, Mallan whipped in a shot that went just the wrong side of the post with Lewis scrambling across his goal. The keeper stayed down and had to be replaced and I subsequently found out that his face had hit the post when he dived. Unable to continue, he was replaced by former Hibs keeper Tomas Cerny.
During that first half, David Gray had gone down injured a couple of times and so I was a bit surprised he reappeared after the break. In fact my surprise extended into the fact that no changes were made and the three at the back formation was preserved. To me, that was astonishing because it played right into the hands of Aberdeen who utilised the spaces normally filled by a full back and basically attacked at will.
In a rare break forward, Shaw tested Cerny but then Aberdeen raced to the other end where Ferguson danced past several tackles before being hauled down in the box by McGregor. The spot kick was taken by Mackay-Steven but well saved by Rocky who pushed the effort round the post. It was a sort of redemption for the keeper following his errors in the first half and his erratic distribution which had put Hibs in trouble a few times.
Although they had failed to extend their lead from the spot, Aberdeen continued to hold the upper hand and twice they could have scored but for fine saves by Rocky. On two other occasions only a timeous block by Lewis Stevenson saved the day whilst Wilson and Shinnie should have done a lot better with the chances that fell to them. In the Aberdeen goal, Cerny was having a relatively easy time of it although he had to look lively to save an effort from Shaw. The introduction of Bigirimana, Gauld and McNulty made little difference to the flow of the game but in two of those changes there was an amount of head scratching around me. Bigirimana for Bartley was fine as big Marv had struggled throughout but replacing Shaw with McNulty and Mallan with Gauld seemed odd as both Mallan and Shaw were amongst the better performers on the day.
As Aberdeen continued to disrupt our attempts to get forward with a number of niggly fouls that went largely unpunished I was astonished to learn that only three minutes of added time would take place. There were five substitutions which at thirty seconds each added up to two and a half minutes meaning only thirty seconds had been added for the obvious time wasting by the visitors. On numerous occasions Don Robertson pointed to his watch when a Hibs man complained and so it is a mystery how he arrived at just thirty seconds. That was annoying but it wasn’t Robertson’s fault we lost; that ‘honour’ goes to our players and to the stand in coaches who, for my money, got the formation and the personnel wrong.
The players
Rocky – I’ve only seen the two Aberdeen goals in real time and am convinced Rocky was culpable at both but the big fella redeemed himself in the second half with the penalty save and one or two others of note.
Daz – Had a good battle with Cosgrove until the Dons man went off but wasn’t at his best today at all. His tackle for the penalty was crazy as Ferguson was going away from goal. I feel we only really see the best from Daz in a flat four.
Milligan – For me he is not a centre half and I think he was poor both defensively and in his distribution today. I was hoping he’d be hooked at half time so that we’d go back to a four and I know I’m sounding like I’m obsessed by that formation but to me it makes sense with the players at our disposal.
Paul – Once again we witnessed a Paul Hanlon some way short of where we know he can be. I had hoped he’d be the new Efe by bringing the ball out from the back to start attacks but sadly that was not the case. As an aside I feel we miss Efe and I wish we could get him back.
SDG – I’m always happier when David Gray plays but am of the view it should always be in a back four. When playing as a wing back and clearly not 100% match fit he struggles and he did today.
Slivka – Once again he was the subject of a tirade of quite vile abuse from some gadge a few rows behind me. Although Vik wasn’t at his best he kept making himself available for the ball and invariably tried to get the team moving forward.
Marv – A bit of a horror show from Marv today as he continually lost his man as well as hitting a large number of poor passes. The big guy doesn’t turn it on every week and today was an off day.
Stevie – I actually felt he was our best midfielder today but the bench obviously disagreed as they replaced him midway through the second half. The free kick that resulted in Joe Lewis hurting himself must have missed the post by half an inch. I also felt he mixed it when needed.
Lewis – His return to fitness kinda slipped under the radar with all that’s been going on down ER way. I thought he was excellent today, despite being hung out to dry on numerous occasions by Paul Hanlon passing the ball to him in tight situations. I agree with the match sponsors and am giving Lewis my man of the match.
Oli – Today I felt Oli showed that he does have it in him to make it at Hibs, not that I’ve ever really doubted it personally but I know some do. He took his goal very well and tested their keeper on another couple of occasions before he too was the subject of another baffling substitution.
Flo – I really feel for the laddie as he worked his socks off today but got absolutely no protection from the referee as he was fouled repeatedly during the ninety minutes. There was one occasion in the first half when he’d made a perfectly timed run only to be flagged offside by the West Stand linesman proving that when things are not going your way you’re fighting a losing battle.
Bigi – Brought on to play the Marv role I thought he did ok but looked a bit powder puff in the tackle a couple of times. Had the chance to ‘take Shinnie out’ but didn’t take it so that gets him a black mark from me!
Mark – Looked very lively and almost got off to the perfect start when he did well to control a dropping ball with his right foot before getting a left foot shot towards the target but it was deflected over for a corner. On the way out after the game my brother heard one punter saying “McNulty’s just another Simon Murray.” Jeezo
Ryan – Replaced Mallan and whilst he always looks comfortable with the ball at his feet the lack of movement around him certainly reduces his options.
EM/GM – As I said earlier, I felt they got both personnel and formation wrong whilst making what I consider to be a couple of bizarre substitutions.
The fans – ER was very subdued today and I’m not entirely sure why.
The ref – Poor
There was a recall to the starting eleven for Lewis Stevenson, returning from injury whilst Mark Milligan played in the middle of a back three. I have to confess that I was perplexed at Eddie May and Grant Murray going for a three when the comeback at St Mirren last time out was largely thanks to switching to a flat four.
In fairness, Hibs started brightly and after just ten minutes took the lead when Oli Shaw received a throw in from Stevenson, turned and headed towards the Aberdeen goal and with defenders backing off the youngster drilled a fine low shot into the corner with Joe Lewis not getting anywhere near it. That should have acted as a platform but Aberdeen were exploiting the wide areas well and flooding men forward so that three minutes later they equalised. A high ball to the back post was poorly defended and when a header on goal came in, Rocky seemed to push the ball straight up into the air rather than over the bar. The dropping ball caused mayhem and allowed Considine to head home from close range. At the time I felt the mistake was Rocky’s although I concede his defence did little to help.
Big Sam Cosgrove was having an interesting battle with Darren McGregor and I felt honours were even until the Dons striker had to go off injured. The disruption did little to affect the visitors as soon after they took the lead and once again I had to question Rocky for his part in conceding. Stewart shot from the edge of the box and Rocky dived to save but could not hold the ball which bounced free and was met by Wilson who prodded it towards goal. There was no power in the effort but Rocky simply pushed it aside allowing Mackay-Steven to hit the ball into an empty net. Granted his defenders were nowhere to be seen and so the fault shouldn’t lie only at Rocky’s door but I expected him to do better in terms of keeping the ball in his grasp.
Those goals knocked the wind out of Hibs’ sails and having established their lead, Aberdeen did all in their power to preserve it. I lost count of the number of times they stopped Hibs from building up play by fouling and generally wasting time but it seems referee Don Robertson was oblivious to this going on. Kamberi alone was fouled repeatedly but no free kicks were given whilst the slightest touch on a Dons player was penalised by the referee.
As half time approached, Mallan was breaking free down the middle and as he did so, Considine was holding him back. Mallan kept going and was then hacked down by Shinnie but Robertson decided to book Considine and bring the play back to where the Aberdeen man had first fouled Mallan. Shinnie, once again, got off scot free and carried on fouling without punishment. From the free kick, Mallan whipped in a shot that went just the wrong side of the post with Lewis scrambling across his goal. The keeper stayed down and had to be replaced and I subsequently found out that his face had hit the post when he dived. Unable to continue, he was replaced by former Hibs keeper Tomas Cerny.
During that first half, David Gray had gone down injured a couple of times and so I was a bit surprised he reappeared after the break. In fact my surprise extended into the fact that no changes were made and the three at the back formation was preserved. To me, that was astonishing because it played right into the hands of Aberdeen who utilised the spaces normally filled by a full back and basically attacked at will.
In a rare break forward, Shaw tested Cerny but then Aberdeen raced to the other end where Ferguson danced past several tackles before being hauled down in the box by McGregor. The spot kick was taken by Mackay-Steven but well saved by Rocky who pushed the effort round the post. It was a sort of redemption for the keeper following his errors in the first half and his erratic distribution which had put Hibs in trouble a few times.
Although they had failed to extend their lead from the spot, Aberdeen continued to hold the upper hand and twice they could have scored but for fine saves by Rocky. On two other occasions only a timeous block by Lewis Stevenson saved the day whilst Wilson and Shinnie should have done a lot better with the chances that fell to them. In the Aberdeen goal, Cerny was having a relatively easy time of it although he had to look lively to save an effort from Shaw. The introduction of Bigirimana, Gauld and McNulty made little difference to the flow of the game but in two of those changes there was an amount of head scratching around me. Bigirimana for Bartley was fine as big Marv had struggled throughout but replacing Shaw with McNulty and Mallan with Gauld seemed odd as both Mallan and Shaw were amongst the better performers on the day.
As Aberdeen continued to disrupt our attempts to get forward with a number of niggly fouls that went largely unpunished I was astonished to learn that only three minutes of added time would take place. There were five substitutions which at thirty seconds each added up to two and a half minutes meaning only thirty seconds had been added for the obvious time wasting by the visitors. On numerous occasions Don Robertson pointed to his watch when a Hibs man complained and so it is a mystery how he arrived at just thirty seconds. That was annoying but it wasn’t Robertson’s fault we lost; that ‘honour’ goes to our players and to the stand in coaches who, for my money, got the formation and the personnel wrong.
The players
Rocky – I’ve only seen the two Aberdeen goals in real time and am convinced Rocky was culpable at both but the big fella redeemed himself in the second half with the penalty save and one or two others of note.
Daz – Had a good battle with Cosgrove until the Dons man went off but wasn’t at his best today at all. His tackle for the penalty was crazy as Ferguson was going away from goal. I feel we only really see the best from Daz in a flat four.
Milligan – For me he is not a centre half and I think he was poor both defensively and in his distribution today. I was hoping he’d be hooked at half time so that we’d go back to a four and I know I’m sounding like I’m obsessed by that formation but to me it makes sense with the players at our disposal.
Paul – Once again we witnessed a Paul Hanlon some way short of where we know he can be. I had hoped he’d be the new Efe by bringing the ball out from the back to start attacks but sadly that was not the case. As an aside I feel we miss Efe and I wish we could get him back.
SDG – I’m always happier when David Gray plays but am of the view it should always be in a back four. When playing as a wing back and clearly not 100% match fit he struggles and he did today.
Slivka – Once again he was the subject of a tirade of quite vile abuse from some gadge a few rows behind me. Although Vik wasn’t at his best he kept making himself available for the ball and invariably tried to get the team moving forward.
Marv – A bit of a horror show from Marv today as he continually lost his man as well as hitting a large number of poor passes. The big guy doesn’t turn it on every week and today was an off day.
Stevie – I actually felt he was our best midfielder today but the bench obviously disagreed as they replaced him midway through the second half. The free kick that resulted in Joe Lewis hurting himself must have missed the post by half an inch. I also felt he mixed it when needed.
Lewis – His return to fitness kinda slipped under the radar with all that’s been going on down ER way. I thought he was excellent today, despite being hung out to dry on numerous occasions by Paul Hanlon passing the ball to him in tight situations. I agree with the match sponsors and am giving Lewis my man of the match.
Oli – Today I felt Oli showed that he does have it in him to make it at Hibs, not that I’ve ever really doubted it personally but I know some do. He took his goal very well and tested their keeper on another couple of occasions before he too was the subject of another baffling substitution.
Flo – I really feel for the laddie as he worked his socks off today but got absolutely no protection from the referee as he was fouled repeatedly during the ninety minutes. There was one occasion in the first half when he’d made a perfectly timed run only to be flagged offside by the West Stand linesman proving that when things are not going your way you’re fighting a losing battle.
Bigi – Brought on to play the Marv role I thought he did ok but looked a bit powder puff in the tackle a couple of times. Had the chance to ‘take Shinnie out’ but didn’t take it so that gets him a black mark from me!
Mark – Looked very lively and almost got off to the perfect start when he did well to control a dropping ball with his right foot before getting a left foot shot towards the target but it was deflected over for a corner. On the way out after the game my brother heard one punter saying “McNulty’s just another Simon Murray.” Jeezo
Ryan – Replaced Mallan and whilst he always looks comfortable with the ball at his feet the lack of movement around him certainly reduces his options.
EM/GM – As I said earlier, I felt they got both personnel and formation wrong whilst making what I consider to be a couple of bizarre substitutions.
The fans – ER was very subdued today and I’m not entirely sure why.
The ref – Poor