Jonnyboy
02-10-2020, 11:24 PM
A worthy three points tonight, even if we did make it a little tough for ourselves towards the end. I felt there were very many positives but I want to address the negatives first. We conceded two goals due to poor play with the ‘sinner’ in both cases being Ryan Porteous who, until conceding a penalty had been enjoying a fine performance. The tackle for the penalty was just pure stupidity as the guy was going nowhere with Gogic about to pounce. Sticking a leg out like he did made Bobby Madden’s job an easy one. For the second goal I felt he mistimed his jump but to be fair he had to go for the header as he’d no idea who might be behind him.
It would be wrong of me to think and I’m certainly not trying to imply that Ryan was the only offender as Paul McGinn had a hand in their first goal by getting caught on the wrong side of his opponent who then made for our penalty area. McGinn was also ‘guilty’ at the first Hamilton penalty which I’ve watched from different angles as my brother thought the challenge had started outside the box. I feel the guy had one foot inside the area and one outside which unfortunately for Paul meant it was indeed a penalty.
Now to the positives and the first of those for me was setting up as a standard 4-4-2. That meant young Josh Doig being amongst the subs with Lewis Stevenson taking up the left back berth whilst Jamie Murphy returned at the expense of Drey Wright. The main positive I drew from this was that we looked very balanced and had more opportunity to build from the back. I felt a wee bit sorry for Josh but it was the right decision in my opinion. I know not everyone will agree with that as some have suggested he should be persevered with as he’ll learn the position better but in all honesty the laddie clearly struggled against Celtic and leaving him in would, in my view, have done more harm than good.
Other positives should be self evident. We passed the ball well; we created numerous chances; Rocky saved a penalty and our movement off the ball was fantastic. There’s more but I won’t bore you with them as they were there for us all to see.
As to the game itself, Hibs started on the front foot and pretty much stayed there for the whole of the first half. After debutant goalkeeper Kyle Gourlay made a couple of fine saves, including a close range Paul Hanlon effort it did seem like it was only a matter of time before Accies conceded. The opener, when it came, was born out of a fine run by Martin Boyle who was brought down about twenty yards from goal. With Gourlay seemingly happy with his wall he was beaten low to his right by a fine strike from Kevin Nisbet.
Accies were lying so deep they were inviting Hibs on to them and the hosts duly obliged by nabbing a second after a brilliant cross into the box from Newall was met by the head of Nisbet with the ball going into the net via the hands of Gourlay and the underside of the bar. Doidge was then put through on goal but in a one on one it was Gourlay that won the battle by blocking the shot as he dived at Christian’s feet.
As the half drew to a close, Newall went over in the box and though it wasn’t a penalty it resulted in the Hibs man damaging a shoulder. Moments later, Joe took a knock to the head and it was no surprise that he didn’t appear for the second half; being replaced by Hallberg.
At the other end, Rocky hadn’t had a lot to do but when a clumsy McGinn challenge resulted in a penalty, our keeper dived low to his left to save the effort from Ogkmpoe. At the time I fretted whether Madden might flash a red at McGinn and was relieved to see only a yellow.
Just past the hour mark, Paul Hanlon made it 3-0 when a Hallberg free kick to the far post was headed back across goal and the skipper rose to score from close range. This should have taken a lot of pressure off but Brian Rice had his whole team playing further up the park and that was causing Hibs some problems. Doidge nearly got a fourth when meeting a perfect cross from Boyle but that man Gourlay was on hand again to make a fine instinctive save.
It was a more even game now and the visitors proved they have a never say die attitude by throwing everything at Hibs. Their efforts brought a reward fifteen minutes from time when McGinn was easily beaten and as substitute Callum Smith tried to step past Porteous the Hibs man left a leg hanging and brought the Accies man down. A silly challenge and punished accordingly when Ross Callachan blasted the ball home from the spot.
I was getting nervous now as Hibs were finding it difficult when Accies took possession and moved forward in numbers. Their persistence paid off with around five minutes to go when Callum Smith found time on their left to lift a ball into the danger area and in trying to head it clear Porteous didn’t get enough on the ball which looped over Marciano and landed in the net.
I mentioned positives earlier and for my money one of those positives was us seeing out the game. It’s not pretty to watch but we largely kept possession in running down the clock and took the ball to the corner flag a couple of times too.
As regards individual performances I found it hard to single out one player when a number of them played extremely well. Two of my contenders were replaced before the end and I know the sponsors gave the award to Kevin Nisbet but for me Jamie Murphy just tipped the balance.
The players
Marciano – I felt a bit sorry for Rocky tonight as he saved a penalty but lost two poor goals due to errors by his team mates.
McGinn – I’m a big admirer of Paul but I thought he wasn’t quite at it tonight and his tackle for the first penalty could have cost us dear but for Rocky saving it.
Porteous – For the first seventy odd minutes Ryan was immense although he did struggle a bit with the physical presence of Ogkmpoe. His silly tackle for the penalty cost us a goal and his weak attempt at a header resulted in their second but as Yogi Hughes said after the match, Ryan is a fine young player and will learn from those incidents.
Hanlon – I thought Paul had a really good game tonight. He was good in the air, strong in the tackle and creative with his use of the ball when we were pushing forward.
Stevenson – Lewis is a very good defender and he proved that tonight. I must admit I had a wee smile to myself when I noticed his reaction to the own goal. Ryan might be a big lad but Lewis gave him both barrels.
Boyle – Martin gave Accies all sorts of problems and especially so in the first half. He must be a nightmare to play against and if I had a gripe about tonight it would be that he needs to run at his full back marker more often.
Gogic – Alex had a fantastic first half and I enjoyed his battles with Ross Callachan – two guys who gave and received no quarter. I thought he was quieter for a spell in the second but also that he finished strongly when we had to defend our 3-2 lead.
Newell – Joe took a couple of sore dunts tonight and he’ll be feeling the pain in the morning so it’s as well he’ll get a couple of weeks off now as I don’t think he’ll be in the picture for the Brora game. In his 45 minutes tonight I thought he played very well and his delivery for the second goal was top drawer.
Murphy – I know some voiced reservations at his signing but now we’ve seen what he brings, perhaps those reservations will lessen or maybe even disappear. Jamie is strong on the ball, has a decent turn of pace and perhaps most importantly he can pick a pass. On several occasions tonight he provided passes that were absolutely superb and dare I say it, those passes reminded me of Scott Allan at his best. He linked very well with Lewis down the left and showed that unlike many footballers he doesn’t just have the one foot.
Nisbet – I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we have won a watch with this laddie. Took both his goals well and whilst that’s his main job for the team he offered so much more. Great movement and some lovely layoffs, together with an admirable work rate plus I’m convinced he’ll score a hatful of goals for Hibs.
Doidge – Christian’s luck was out tonight as he was denied two goals by Kyle Gilmour. The thing about Doidge is that he never stops and can often be our best defender with headed clearances.
Hallberg – With Joe unable to continue, Melker was given the nod which I confess surprised me a little as I thought Mallan or Wright would have been ahead of him in the queue. Fair play to the lad though as he put in a good shift and was involved in the build up to Paul Hanlon’s goal.
Wright – Replaced the tiring Jamie Murphy on the left of midfield and looked comfortable enough there.
Mallan – Stevie only got the last five minutes so there’s little to comment on really.
Bobby Madden – Had a good game in my opinion.
Jack Ross – Clearly happy with the outcome and taking time to think about who might play against Brora on Wednesday.
It would be wrong of me to think and I’m certainly not trying to imply that Ryan was the only offender as Paul McGinn had a hand in their first goal by getting caught on the wrong side of his opponent who then made for our penalty area. McGinn was also ‘guilty’ at the first Hamilton penalty which I’ve watched from different angles as my brother thought the challenge had started outside the box. I feel the guy had one foot inside the area and one outside which unfortunately for Paul meant it was indeed a penalty.
Now to the positives and the first of those for me was setting up as a standard 4-4-2. That meant young Josh Doig being amongst the subs with Lewis Stevenson taking up the left back berth whilst Jamie Murphy returned at the expense of Drey Wright. The main positive I drew from this was that we looked very balanced and had more opportunity to build from the back. I felt a wee bit sorry for Josh but it was the right decision in my opinion. I know not everyone will agree with that as some have suggested he should be persevered with as he’ll learn the position better but in all honesty the laddie clearly struggled against Celtic and leaving him in would, in my view, have done more harm than good.
Other positives should be self evident. We passed the ball well; we created numerous chances; Rocky saved a penalty and our movement off the ball was fantastic. There’s more but I won’t bore you with them as they were there for us all to see.
As to the game itself, Hibs started on the front foot and pretty much stayed there for the whole of the first half. After debutant goalkeeper Kyle Gourlay made a couple of fine saves, including a close range Paul Hanlon effort it did seem like it was only a matter of time before Accies conceded. The opener, when it came, was born out of a fine run by Martin Boyle who was brought down about twenty yards from goal. With Gourlay seemingly happy with his wall he was beaten low to his right by a fine strike from Kevin Nisbet.
Accies were lying so deep they were inviting Hibs on to them and the hosts duly obliged by nabbing a second after a brilliant cross into the box from Newall was met by the head of Nisbet with the ball going into the net via the hands of Gourlay and the underside of the bar. Doidge was then put through on goal but in a one on one it was Gourlay that won the battle by blocking the shot as he dived at Christian’s feet.
As the half drew to a close, Newall went over in the box and though it wasn’t a penalty it resulted in the Hibs man damaging a shoulder. Moments later, Joe took a knock to the head and it was no surprise that he didn’t appear for the second half; being replaced by Hallberg.
At the other end, Rocky hadn’t had a lot to do but when a clumsy McGinn challenge resulted in a penalty, our keeper dived low to his left to save the effort from Ogkmpoe. At the time I fretted whether Madden might flash a red at McGinn and was relieved to see only a yellow.
Just past the hour mark, Paul Hanlon made it 3-0 when a Hallberg free kick to the far post was headed back across goal and the skipper rose to score from close range. This should have taken a lot of pressure off but Brian Rice had his whole team playing further up the park and that was causing Hibs some problems. Doidge nearly got a fourth when meeting a perfect cross from Boyle but that man Gourlay was on hand again to make a fine instinctive save.
It was a more even game now and the visitors proved they have a never say die attitude by throwing everything at Hibs. Their efforts brought a reward fifteen minutes from time when McGinn was easily beaten and as substitute Callum Smith tried to step past Porteous the Hibs man left a leg hanging and brought the Accies man down. A silly challenge and punished accordingly when Ross Callachan blasted the ball home from the spot.
I was getting nervous now as Hibs were finding it difficult when Accies took possession and moved forward in numbers. Their persistence paid off with around five minutes to go when Callum Smith found time on their left to lift a ball into the danger area and in trying to head it clear Porteous didn’t get enough on the ball which looped over Marciano and landed in the net.
I mentioned positives earlier and for my money one of those positives was us seeing out the game. It’s not pretty to watch but we largely kept possession in running down the clock and took the ball to the corner flag a couple of times too.
As regards individual performances I found it hard to single out one player when a number of them played extremely well. Two of my contenders were replaced before the end and I know the sponsors gave the award to Kevin Nisbet but for me Jamie Murphy just tipped the balance.
The players
Marciano – I felt a bit sorry for Rocky tonight as he saved a penalty but lost two poor goals due to errors by his team mates.
McGinn – I’m a big admirer of Paul but I thought he wasn’t quite at it tonight and his tackle for the first penalty could have cost us dear but for Rocky saving it.
Porteous – For the first seventy odd minutes Ryan was immense although he did struggle a bit with the physical presence of Ogkmpoe. His silly tackle for the penalty cost us a goal and his weak attempt at a header resulted in their second but as Yogi Hughes said after the match, Ryan is a fine young player and will learn from those incidents.
Hanlon – I thought Paul had a really good game tonight. He was good in the air, strong in the tackle and creative with his use of the ball when we were pushing forward.
Stevenson – Lewis is a very good defender and he proved that tonight. I must admit I had a wee smile to myself when I noticed his reaction to the own goal. Ryan might be a big lad but Lewis gave him both barrels.
Boyle – Martin gave Accies all sorts of problems and especially so in the first half. He must be a nightmare to play against and if I had a gripe about tonight it would be that he needs to run at his full back marker more often.
Gogic – Alex had a fantastic first half and I enjoyed his battles with Ross Callachan – two guys who gave and received no quarter. I thought he was quieter for a spell in the second but also that he finished strongly when we had to defend our 3-2 lead.
Newell – Joe took a couple of sore dunts tonight and he’ll be feeling the pain in the morning so it’s as well he’ll get a couple of weeks off now as I don’t think he’ll be in the picture for the Brora game. In his 45 minutes tonight I thought he played very well and his delivery for the second goal was top drawer.
Murphy – I know some voiced reservations at his signing but now we’ve seen what he brings, perhaps those reservations will lessen or maybe even disappear. Jamie is strong on the ball, has a decent turn of pace and perhaps most importantly he can pick a pass. On several occasions tonight he provided passes that were absolutely superb and dare I say it, those passes reminded me of Scott Allan at his best. He linked very well with Lewis down the left and showed that unlike many footballers he doesn’t just have the one foot.
Nisbet – I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we have won a watch with this laddie. Took both his goals well and whilst that’s his main job for the team he offered so much more. Great movement and some lovely layoffs, together with an admirable work rate plus I’m convinced he’ll score a hatful of goals for Hibs.
Doidge – Christian’s luck was out tonight as he was denied two goals by Kyle Gilmour. The thing about Doidge is that he never stops and can often be our best defender with headed clearances.
Hallberg – With Joe unable to continue, Melker was given the nod which I confess surprised me a little as I thought Mallan or Wright would have been ahead of him in the queue. Fair play to the lad though as he put in a good shift and was involved in the build up to Paul Hanlon’s goal.
Wright – Replaced the tiring Jamie Murphy on the left of midfield and looked comfortable enough there.
Mallan – Stevie only got the last five minutes so there’s little to comment on really.
Bobby Madden – Had a good game in my opinion.
Jack Ross – Clearly happy with the outcome and taking time to think about who might play against Brora on Wednesday.