Jonnyboy
21-04-2021, 09:02 PM
I’ll be honest and admit that my pre match nerves were more evident today than they have been in a while. It was probably because there was so much at stake, given the desire to finish third in the league and deny Aberdeen that opportunity. As it turned out, my nerves disappeared during a scintillating first half display by the men in green and white but by the time the final whistle blew, they’d been shredded again.
Following on from that good cup win at Stranraer, Jack Ross made three changes to his starting eleven with Rocky back in goals whilst Gogic replaced Magennis and Stevenson, in his 506th game for the club filling the left wingback slot due to the injury absence of Josh Doig.
From the off, Hibs were on the front foot and it only took until the eighth minute for them to break the deadlock. Paul McGinn took in a pass around twenty yards out and cut infield before reversing his run and picking out Martin Boyle on the right side of the box. The Hibs No. 10 might have considered having a shot at goal but opted instead to pick out Kevin Nisbet who stroked the ball home from close range.
Hibs were bossing possession and the Livi players looked at times as though they were chasing shadows, resorting on occasion to fouling the Hibs man in possession. On one such occasion, Joe Newell was dragged down by Jason Holt as he looked to race free into the Livi half. Needless to say, Martin Boyle received his fair share of illegal challenges too but he is so high in confidence just now he just shrugs them off and sets about tormenting defenders again.
Shortly after Holt’s booking, Boyle took the ball in and spun away from two challenges before racing into the box where he was upended by Efe Ambrose. A clear penalty which Boyle himself sent crashing into the net, sending Stryjek the wrong way.
Hibs were winning the midfield battle and Livi resorted to sending high balls in the direction of Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, but the big striker was getting little or no change from Ryan Porteous who won the vast majority of headers against him. Corners from Boyle were causing some angst for the Livi defenders and when they failed to clear their lines both Hanlon and Boyle had shots charged down inside the box.
Around seven minutes from the break, Stevenson sent a fine ball down the line to Nisbet who cut inside his marker to send in a low shot that Stryjek saved low to his left. Next, McGinn picked out Nisbet who flicked a header towards Doidge but although the big fella reached the ball, he couldn’t get any pace in his shot. Christian had another chance soon after but again Stryjek was up to the task. At the other end, Rocky was having a quiet afternoon as Livi’s efforts were mainly from range and usually cleared the crossbar by some distance.
When half time arrived, I was more than happy with what I’d seen, even though I had a slight concern that we’d only scored twice in a half we had dominated from the start. I expect head coach David Martindale had a lot to say to his players at half time and that, together with a slight change in personnel and set up saw Hibs lose control of the game for large swathes of time in the second half. For me, withdrawing Emmanuel-Thomas from his central striker role and playing him wide on the right meant that the big guy became far more influential in the game. He’s huge but was very mobile and obviously hard to knock off the ball.
Livi started to boss the game and we just couldn’t keep possession of the ball for any length of time. Sibbald saw a decent chance blocked at the last minute by Hanlon before Hibs did create something of a chance but Nisbet’s effort didn’t trouble Stryjek. We were beyond the hour mark before Rocky had a save of any note to make, denying Sibbald with an easy take. The visitors were throwing everything at Hibs and piled as many men forward as possible when in possession. Nisbet, Doidge and Boyle were no longer getting the service and Hibs looked a bit bedraggled at times. A fantastic low cross by Devlin saw substitute Poplatnik arrive at the back post but his effort flew wide of the post.
After Guthrie and Forrest had efforts blocked, Jack Ross replaced Doidge with Drey Wright in an effort to try and get back into the midfield battle. It seemed at times as though it was Gogic -v- Livi with the Hibs man getting in numerous blocks and winning key battles in the air but with five minutes left, newly introduced Kyle Magennis who had replaced Joe Newell, took a bad touch in the box and in stretching to recover he brought down Emmanuel-Thomas the big Livi man taking the spot kick himself and sending Rocky the wrong way.
A nervy end to the game was a certainty and Livi just kept coming at Hibs but to be fair, Rocky faced very few efforts on goal during that period. When we got the ball, we headed for the corner flag to try and run down the clock, Jackson Irvine doing a good job of that on a couple of occasions. Needless to say, Livi were taking chances leaving space at the back and twice Kevin Nisbet had the chance to punish them. The first saw him race away on a pass from Gogic but the keeper narrowed the angle and Kev’s weak shot rolled beyond the far post. The second was a better chance when he muscled a Livi defender off the ball and strode in on goal but Stryjek had read the move and denied Nisbet the chance.
A game of two halves if ever there was one and as I finish writing this up, I hear that Leigh Griffiths has equalised at Pittodrie with an injury time goal. Gotta love the laddie!!
The players
Marciano – Despite all the second half pressure, Rocky was hardly troubled by Livi and only really the penalty could beat him.
McGinn – Paul’s pass to Boyler in the lead up to the opening goal was a peach. Perfect pace and placement. It irritates me how many times passes (not from Paul in particular) arrive behind the recipient.
Porteous – Ryan was majestic in the first half when Emmanuel-Thomas hardly got a sniff but there were a couple of times in the second half when his thinking clouded over, and he slashed at the ball.
Hanlon – Solid as a rock in the first half but under the cosh in the second. Having said that about Paul and indeed Ryan, the fact that Rocky was so well protected you could argue they were doing their job.
Boyle – Totally unplayable in that first half. Livi just couldn’t live with his pace as he roasted whoever was marking him at any given time. Another goal and assist for Boyler who has hit form at just the right time.
Gogic – Bringing him back into the starting eleven was a good call and for ninety minutes he never stopped – tackling, harrying, carrying and passing were all top notch and though Boyler got the goal and assist I’m giving my man of the match award to Alex who was a colossus in that difficult second half.
Newell – Joe is great at taking and giving the ball in a controlled manner. He is also excellent at getting himself out of tight spots due to his ball control.
Irvine – I just wish Jackson would get a goal as he’s spurned a fair few chances in recent weeks. Really came into his own late in the game as we set about running the clock down.
Stevenson – Lewis made his 506th first team appearance today and was as solid as a rock throughout.
Nisbet – Another goal for Kev and he might have had more with a bit of luck. His ability to spin in behind is undervalued by many, I think.
Doidge - No goals for Christian today but he put in his usual shift, defending brilliantly at corners and free kicks.
Wright – Brought on to help stiffen the midfield he did a reasonable job, despite taking a painful kick to the calf shortly after he came on.
Magennis – What an introduction to the game. First touch a shocker; second touch a penalty.
Jack Ross – I expect he loved the first half and hated the second – I know I did.
Referee – Craig Napier did OK although I think he was a bit heavy with yellow cards in what was never a dirty game.
Following on from that good cup win at Stranraer, Jack Ross made three changes to his starting eleven with Rocky back in goals whilst Gogic replaced Magennis and Stevenson, in his 506th game for the club filling the left wingback slot due to the injury absence of Josh Doig.
From the off, Hibs were on the front foot and it only took until the eighth minute for them to break the deadlock. Paul McGinn took in a pass around twenty yards out and cut infield before reversing his run and picking out Martin Boyle on the right side of the box. The Hibs No. 10 might have considered having a shot at goal but opted instead to pick out Kevin Nisbet who stroked the ball home from close range.
Hibs were bossing possession and the Livi players looked at times as though they were chasing shadows, resorting on occasion to fouling the Hibs man in possession. On one such occasion, Joe Newell was dragged down by Jason Holt as he looked to race free into the Livi half. Needless to say, Martin Boyle received his fair share of illegal challenges too but he is so high in confidence just now he just shrugs them off and sets about tormenting defenders again.
Shortly after Holt’s booking, Boyle took the ball in and spun away from two challenges before racing into the box where he was upended by Efe Ambrose. A clear penalty which Boyle himself sent crashing into the net, sending Stryjek the wrong way.
Hibs were winning the midfield battle and Livi resorted to sending high balls in the direction of Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, but the big striker was getting little or no change from Ryan Porteous who won the vast majority of headers against him. Corners from Boyle were causing some angst for the Livi defenders and when they failed to clear their lines both Hanlon and Boyle had shots charged down inside the box.
Around seven minutes from the break, Stevenson sent a fine ball down the line to Nisbet who cut inside his marker to send in a low shot that Stryjek saved low to his left. Next, McGinn picked out Nisbet who flicked a header towards Doidge but although the big fella reached the ball, he couldn’t get any pace in his shot. Christian had another chance soon after but again Stryjek was up to the task. At the other end, Rocky was having a quiet afternoon as Livi’s efforts were mainly from range and usually cleared the crossbar by some distance.
When half time arrived, I was more than happy with what I’d seen, even though I had a slight concern that we’d only scored twice in a half we had dominated from the start. I expect head coach David Martindale had a lot to say to his players at half time and that, together with a slight change in personnel and set up saw Hibs lose control of the game for large swathes of time in the second half. For me, withdrawing Emmanuel-Thomas from his central striker role and playing him wide on the right meant that the big guy became far more influential in the game. He’s huge but was very mobile and obviously hard to knock off the ball.
Livi started to boss the game and we just couldn’t keep possession of the ball for any length of time. Sibbald saw a decent chance blocked at the last minute by Hanlon before Hibs did create something of a chance but Nisbet’s effort didn’t trouble Stryjek. We were beyond the hour mark before Rocky had a save of any note to make, denying Sibbald with an easy take. The visitors were throwing everything at Hibs and piled as many men forward as possible when in possession. Nisbet, Doidge and Boyle were no longer getting the service and Hibs looked a bit bedraggled at times. A fantastic low cross by Devlin saw substitute Poplatnik arrive at the back post but his effort flew wide of the post.
After Guthrie and Forrest had efforts blocked, Jack Ross replaced Doidge with Drey Wright in an effort to try and get back into the midfield battle. It seemed at times as though it was Gogic -v- Livi with the Hibs man getting in numerous blocks and winning key battles in the air but with five minutes left, newly introduced Kyle Magennis who had replaced Joe Newell, took a bad touch in the box and in stretching to recover he brought down Emmanuel-Thomas the big Livi man taking the spot kick himself and sending Rocky the wrong way.
A nervy end to the game was a certainty and Livi just kept coming at Hibs but to be fair, Rocky faced very few efforts on goal during that period. When we got the ball, we headed for the corner flag to try and run down the clock, Jackson Irvine doing a good job of that on a couple of occasions. Needless to say, Livi were taking chances leaving space at the back and twice Kevin Nisbet had the chance to punish them. The first saw him race away on a pass from Gogic but the keeper narrowed the angle and Kev’s weak shot rolled beyond the far post. The second was a better chance when he muscled a Livi defender off the ball and strode in on goal but Stryjek had read the move and denied Nisbet the chance.
A game of two halves if ever there was one and as I finish writing this up, I hear that Leigh Griffiths has equalised at Pittodrie with an injury time goal. Gotta love the laddie!!
The players
Marciano – Despite all the second half pressure, Rocky was hardly troubled by Livi and only really the penalty could beat him.
McGinn – Paul’s pass to Boyler in the lead up to the opening goal was a peach. Perfect pace and placement. It irritates me how many times passes (not from Paul in particular) arrive behind the recipient.
Porteous – Ryan was majestic in the first half when Emmanuel-Thomas hardly got a sniff but there were a couple of times in the second half when his thinking clouded over, and he slashed at the ball.
Hanlon – Solid as a rock in the first half but under the cosh in the second. Having said that about Paul and indeed Ryan, the fact that Rocky was so well protected you could argue they were doing their job.
Boyle – Totally unplayable in that first half. Livi just couldn’t live with his pace as he roasted whoever was marking him at any given time. Another goal and assist for Boyler who has hit form at just the right time.
Gogic – Bringing him back into the starting eleven was a good call and for ninety minutes he never stopped – tackling, harrying, carrying and passing were all top notch and though Boyler got the goal and assist I’m giving my man of the match award to Alex who was a colossus in that difficult second half.
Newell – Joe is great at taking and giving the ball in a controlled manner. He is also excellent at getting himself out of tight spots due to his ball control.
Irvine – I just wish Jackson would get a goal as he’s spurned a fair few chances in recent weeks. Really came into his own late in the game as we set about running the clock down.
Stevenson – Lewis made his 506th first team appearance today and was as solid as a rock throughout.
Nisbet – Another goal for Kev and he might have had more with a bit of luck. His ability to spin in behind is undervalued by many, I think.
Doidge - No goals for Christian today but he put in his usual shift, defending brilliantly at corners and free kicks.
Wright – Brought on to help stiffen the midfield he did a reasonable job, despite taking a painful kick to the calf shortly after he came on.
Magennis – What an introduction to the game. First touch a shocker; second touch a penalty.
Jack Ross – I expect he loved the first half and hated the second – I know I did.
Referee – Craig Napier did OK although I think he was a bit heavy with yellow cards in what was never a dirty game.