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View Full Version : This is how it feels (Elgin City 26 07 19)



Jonnyboy
27-07-2019, 11:05 AM
A win against Elgin would guarantee qualification from the group and that’s exactly what Hibs achieved by a 2-0 scoreline in a very wet but otherwise friendly Elgin. I thought the locals were a friendly bunch and could sense none of the tension that’s pretty much always present when Hibs are on the road. The only real negative things for me were the horrendous distance I had to travel and of course the monsoon like downpour in the second half. Sure, we were far from brilliant on the park but we won and that’s all that really counts at the end of the day. I say we were far from brilliant but I felt there were a good few positives from the performance and the only real negative was the injury to Boyler, but more of that later.

Hecky once again made full use of rotation in the squad with a number of changes to the starting eleven. Rocky returned in goal with Doidge partnering Kamberi up front, Daz and Whitty in defence and Daryl out wide on the right. That meant no place for the likes of Scotty, Boyler and Fraser but to be fair the team had a good look to it in terms of balance.

Having secured an early lead last time out, Hibs started the game looking for a similar reward and Flo soon went close when his effort narrowly missed the target before Horgan skipped free on the right and delivered a deep cross which goalkeeper McHale clutched with Doidge lurking nearby. The big Hibs striker then went down in the box but referee Willie Collum wasn’t interested in any penalty claims.

Pressure told after about ten minutes as Mallan was taken out some twenty yards from goal but just before he was clattered he managed to find Horgan wide right and the wee man subsequently delivered a low cross into the box where Joe Newell was on hand to fire the ball past McHale. It was a good time to score and settled the nerves of an impressively large travelling support. Hibs were pretty much dominating possession and a couple of corners saw Daz go close with a header and Mackie fire wide from the edge of the box.

With half time approaching, Hibs looked to have doubled their lead when Kamberi shot home from a Doidge knock down but the assistant referee flagged for offside. I was at the other end of the ground and so didn’t think much of the incident but I later heard that Kamberi was definitely onside. After the game I saw screen shots of the incident and quite frankly the offside decision was an absolute shocker. The guilty assistant was one Douglas Ross, local Tory MP and if ever there was a case for arguing football and politics shouldn’t mix, this was it! Ross should concentrate on cosying up to Boris and leave the important decisions to others. It’s unclear whether that incident unsettled Hibs as before the interval arrived they had to repel a number of promising Elgin attacks on their goal but the hosts found their finishing skills to be somewhat lacking.

Not long after the break, it took a stunning save from Rocky, to deny the lively Omar, as he leapt acrobatically to divert a vicious strike over his bar. Hibs reacted well and a mazy run by Newell saw him deep inside the Elgin penalty area but just as he was about to shoot, Kamberi took the ball off his toes and fired a shot in that McHale did well to divert past his post. The big Swiss striker then tested the impressive McHale again before Mallan went close with a shot that whizzed past the upright.

The rain was now coming down in buckets and both sets of players were slipping and sliding as a quick breakaway by the hosts saw Hester through on goal but Rocky dashed from his line and saved well at the striker’s feet. I confess that at that time I worried that if Elgin grabbed an equaliser we might struggle to regain the lead as although we were dominating possession we either encountered excellent goalkeeping from McHale or bad luck in seeing efforts slip wide of goal.

With Hibs plugging away at seeking out an opening they were handed one on a plate when a woefully bad pass by Omar meant Flo was able to take possession, race in on goal and coolly slot the ball past McHale to make it 2-0. It was effectively his second one-on-one goal in two games and was despatched with some style.

The goal seemed to knock the wind out of the Elgin players and Hibs really should have increased their lead because they had umpteen chances to do so. With Boyler on for Horgan our flying winger found himself free on the edge of the box but as he shaped to shoot an Elgin defender grabbed his arm and spun him round. Boyler crumpled and although Collum gave a free kick there were no warning words to the Elgin man and after lengthy treatment, Boyler left the park and having used all three subs, Hibs saw out the closing stages with ten men. It was a ‘nothing’ challenge but mat have serious consequences for the Hibs man as it appeared to be an injury to the knee that kept him out of the game for several months.

It was encouraging that Hibs finished the game on the front foot even with just nine outfield players as Newell, Shaw and Mallan all saw efforts either saved or deflected wide. On a night when winning was the only real priority I thought that for the most part Hibs played well enough and when it came to time for me to pick my man of the match I had several candidates to choose from. Rocky’s brilliant saves, both full back’s looking solid as did both centre backs, Vela looking supreme and Kamberi taking his goal well but my decision is to give the ‘award’ to Joe Newell. I thought he was very good, comfortable on the ball, hardworking and he simply glides across the grass. I’m aware that he’s been getting a tough time of it on .net and so my selection may not be universally agreed with but keep in mind, it’s only an opinion so don’t slaughter me too much!

The players

Rocky - Two excellent saves and very confident in coming to claim any high ball into the box it was only really that old chestnut of poor distribution that let him down on a couple of occasions.

Whitty – I thought he was solid and his use of the ball was largely positive. Elgin’s ‘star man’ is the lad Omar and I reckon Whitty dealt with him really well.

Daz – The big fella was once again as solid as a rock. His defensive heading ability is legendary but when he’s in the opposition box his heading is not the best.

Adam – The more I see him the more I like him. He’s a very good central defender and is proving to be an astute signing.

Sean – Had a really good game, defending well and getting forward as much as he can. I thought he looked to be forming a good partnership down the left with Newell.

Daryl – It may have been the conditions, I’m not sure but for me Daryl was just not at it tonight. Yes he provided the cross for the opener but h struggled all night with the physicality of opposing defenders.

Stevie – Buzzed around and created a few good chances. Booked again for being too physical in the challenge and in truth I thought he might get subbed because Elgin and No. 4 in particular seemed to spend the whole game noising him up to try and Stevie a second yellow.

Josh – Vela was in the centre of the park and literately in the middle of everything. He just cruised through this game although in fairness he’s not yet had the delights of competing face to face with the likes of Scott Brown and Ryan Jack. As and when he does, I’m confident he’ll be up to the task.

Joe – I genuinely thought he was first class tonight. He’s had a lot of flak since arriving and although I’ve felt a lot of it was brutally over the top, I’ve had a few concerns myself. Tonight though he showed that he is shaping to be another very good signing.

Doidge – Although not on the scoresheet he put in a great shift, was both mobile and agile and got through a power of work.

Flo – Another encouraging performance from Flo and the goals he’s getting will simply help to boost his confidence. The legendary ‘first touch’ scenario was in evidence again but although it deserted him a few times it was very much in the ‘good’ camp for the most part.

Boyler – To adopt a much used .net messageboard phrase I was ‘raging’ at the incident that seen him leave the park injured. I’m told there is a huge concern that it’s the same knee then I am gutted for the laddie. What enraged me was the cynical challenge that happened right under the nose of Willie Collum was not punished with a yellow card.

Scotty – Must have been delighted to be brought on with around fifteen minutes left, given the fact that it was hosing down at that point! I glimpsed a couple of typical Scott Allan offerings but in truth he never really got too involved in proceedings.

Oli – Got the last ten minutes or so and worked hard on his closing down duties. I was desperate for him to get a goal because unlike an apparently sizable number on .net I do think he’s good enough to ‘make it’ and don’t think either he or the club would benefit from the laddie being sent out on loan.

Hecky – I’ve no doubt he’ll have been happy with the outcome and rightly so but I wonder what he made of the offside goal and Boyler’s injury.

The fans – An incredible turnout considering the circumstances.

The referee and one assistant – Willie Collum was largely OK but Douglas Ross should hang his head in shame for that offside call.

Mikey
27-07-2019, 11:06 AM
What sort of time do you call this? :greengrin

Jonnyboy
27-07-2019, 11:08 AM
What sort of time do you call this? :greengrin

:faf: Got home at 2am, still not fully dried out after the monsoon and thought 'fluff it' they can wait :greengrin

Baldy Foghorn
27-07-2019, 11:20 AM
Locals were friendly, special mention to their chairman, who took time to come over, shake a few fans hands, and wish us all the best for new season. Nice touch I thought.

Sir David Gray
27-07-2019, 11:25 AM
Collum's failure to send their player off for the assault in the first half was an utter disgrace.

BILLYHIBS
27-07-2019, 11:51 AM
Brilliant as usual Jonnyboy difficult to disagree with any of that

My MOM would go to every man jack of the travelling support that made the long journey up on a Friday and had to endure monsoon conditions

:thumbsup:

jacomo
27-07-2019, 12:05 PM
Thank you for another excellent match report.

Hopefully the bampots are calming down about our summer business.

‘Ah’ve never heard of him’ but they all seem to be coming onto a game, delighted Joe played well and scored a goal.

Hope Boyler’s injury not as bad as feared, and we still look short in some areas.

RyeSloan
27-07-2019, 12:15 PM
Collum's failure to send their player off for the assault in the first half was an utter disgrace.

He was also busy waving away claims for a foul when Mallon got halved in the lead up to our opening goal.

And Stevie already seems to be a favourite to get a yellow card despite a couple of other similar challenges from the opposition seemingly not warranting even a talking to.

Anyway a fair report as ever although my only point of order would be the comments on the Boyle incident. Don’t think it was really even a foul and in 99.9% of circumstances the player would have simply got up and got on with it.

wookie70
27-07-2019, 12:33 PM
I'm more concerned that Collums refereeing allowed Elgin players the confidence to leave a foot in and pull jersey safe in the knowledge that they were unlikely to be booked. I had Daz as my MOTM as he won everything last night and had to cover for Jackson who I thought was fairly poor and struggled with the physicality of the Elgin No 10. Jackson looks a decent signing but I still think Daz will be first choice for RCB. I agree with Newall who after a slow start has got better every game. Should have had a brace after a good run but his failure to shoot earlier meant his chance was lost and Flo fired at the Keeper. As you say Flo's first touch was good last night. He looks on decent form and was denied a goal by a linesman whose judgement has to be called into question and whose appointment for a game where he has a vested interest needs investigated. Not spectacular but Elgin were still in with a chance of qualifying and gave it everything. This wasn't a pre-season game for them and we held up well and were very comfortable with 10 men which suggests to me fitness levels are very good.

JimBHibees
27-07-2019, 12:37 PM
He was also busy waving away claims for a foul when Mallon got halved in the lead up to our opening goal.

And Stevie already seems to be a favourite to get a yellow card despite a couple of other similar challenges from the opposition seemingly not warranting even a talking to.

Anyway a fair report as ever although my only point of order would be the comments on the Boyle incident. Don’t think it was really even a foul and in 99.9% of circumstances the player would have simply got up and got on with it.

don't know why as he isn't a particularly physical player. Yellow on Tuesday was a shocker

Eyrie
27-07-2019, 04:57 PM
Collum's failure to send their player off for the assault in the first half was an utter disgrace.

Agreed. It was a blatant stamp on the back of Doidge's ankle.

brog
27-07-2019, 05:05 PM
Great as ever John. I just watched highlights on Hibs TV & hadn't realised how good our 1st goal was. It came at the end of a multi pass move which started with a throw in on our left touchline. It featured a 40 yard pass from Stevie Mallan & some great control by Newell before they both came back into the move for the goal. I 100% agree your comments about Oli, he was also wrongly denied a goal on Tuesday & hopefully his luck turns soon. As for Douglas Ross, words fail me!

BT58
27-07-2019, 05:30 PM
2 bad errors from officials prevented a rout, never in any danger. Not many changes for the St Mirren game
B

Jonnyboy
27-07-2019, 08:38 PM
He was also busy waving away claims for a foul when Mallon got halved in the lead up to our opening goal.

And Stevie already seems to be a favourite to get a yellow card despite a couple of other similar challenges from the opposition seemingly not warranting even a talking to.

Anyway a fair report as ever although my only point of order would be the comments on the Boyle incident. Don’t think it was really even a foul and in 99.9% of circumstances the player would have simply got up and got on with it.

Sorry but I disagree. The guy grabbed Boyler's arm and spun him around causing the fall and subsequent injury. Grabbing the arm alone is foul play unless your name is Willie Collum :greengrin

RyeSloan
27-07-2019, 09:38 PM
Sorry but I disagree. The guy grabbed Boyler's arm and spun him around causing the fall and subsequent injury. Grabbing the arm alone is foul play unless your name is Willie Collum :greengrin

Ahh yes well who am I to disagree with some serous .net illuminati [emoji6] [emoji736][emoji1787]

That’ll teach me [emoji12]

Jonnyboy
27-07-2019, 10:02 PM
Ahh yes well who am I to disagree with some serous .net illuminati [emoji6] [emoji736][emoji1787]

That’ll teach me [emoji12]

:faf: :aok: :greengrin

leftfield
27-07-2019, 10:38 PM
For health reasons I cant get to games now and the reports you give keep me in touch with the team I have supported since childhood Not sayiing how long ago that was but I was at Tynecastle for 7- 0 game the 4-0 game after 10 minutes and the Pat Quin hat trick. It is great to get a balanced and detailed report of the games rather than the poor stuff you get from the press these days. Keep up the good work and would love to see you reporting on scorelines like this the near future

Carheenlea
27-07-2019, 10:49 PM
Managed to secure a stream to view on the Cairnryan to Belfast ferry and spotted more than a few well known away day Hibs faces. Big Frank sat in front row of stand giving the linesman some verbals!