Jonnyboy
26-12-2021, 05:32 PM
For his second game in charge, Shaun Maloney baffled a few of us with his team selection which gave starting places to Wright and Stevenson. The latter raised eyebrows only because Josh Doig was also in the line-up, but it gave us the opportunity to see Josh in a more attacking role as the left wingback, knowing that Lewis was in behind him. With Doyle-Hayes declared fit, Hibs set up with a back three of Porteous, Hanlon and Stevenson, youngsters Campbell and Doyle-Hayes in central midfield and Drey Wright pushed up to support the strikers.
Hibs came out sharply at the start and Nisbet had a first minute effort that was blocked on its way to goal and moments later, Wright saw his strike drift wide of a post. The first fifteen minutes were pretty uneventful although Hibs enjoyed the bulk of possession but United struggled to get out of their own half at times. The hosts packed their defence, with Mulgrew a colossus and Hibs were finding it difficult to break through despite having the lions share of possession. A Campbell header didn’t trouble Siegrist and then the busy Hibs youngster took a dull one when Meekison crunched into the challenge, earning himself a yellow card in the process. Seconds later, Campbell fouled Meekison, but Willie Collum kept his card in his pocket.
It was all Hibs and surely only a matter of time before a goal would arrive with Hanlon and Campbell the latest to see efforts blocked. United were getting desperate now and Mochrie was the next to be booked for hacking down Cadden before Hibs finally scored the goal their play deserved. A cross from Drey Wright reached Cadden on the far edge of the eighteen yard box. Chris fired in a shot that was partially blocked with the ball falling to Boyle who struck it low towards Nisbet whereupon Kevin poked it home from close range. There was a moment of confusion as to whether Nisbet was offside but after consulting his assistant, Collum signalled the goal was good.
Hibs were playing some good stuff with short and sharp passing causing United players to be chasing shadows at times. Cadden came close after Doig created the opening for him and then a sumptuous cross from Boyle landed just behind the onrushing Wright who couldn’t get his effort on goal. Half time was approaching, and Hibs were totally dominant with both a Porteous header that was blocked and a Doyle-Hayes strike that drifted wide, coming close to doubling the lead. United trooped off at half time no doubt expecting an earful from their manager. Only Mulgrew could really hold his head high because at times it seemed like he was the only player doing his job correctly.
Thomas Courts made once change at half time, bringing on Niskanen for Freeman. I’ve no doubt he’d told his players to be braver because for the entire first half any United man in possession was hunted down until he either made a mistake or was dispossessed. The telling off almost brought an early reward when a wayward header by Stevenson allowed Clarke to surge forward only to be fouled by Hanlon who got a yellow card for the challenge. Clarke himself took the resultant free kick and tried to fool Macey by striking a low shot under the jumping Hibs wall but the big keeper got down to push the ball past his left hand post.
United did get a foothold in the game for around ten minutes but Hibs never looked like they would concede whilst at the other end, Boyle sent in a corner that Hanlon disappointingly headed wide when under no obvious pressure from his marker. Having had a decent sixty minutes, Drey Wright was replaced by Murphy whilst United replaced Mochrie with Declan Glass. Five minutes later, Nisbet got the ball at the edge of the United box and fired in a shot that was always rising and didn’t trouble Siegrist. Next to have a go was Porteous who headed wide following a Boyle corner and then Boyle himself, fed by Cadden, saw his attempt go straight to Siegrist in the centre of the goal.
Substitutions saw United replace Watson with Chalmers and then Hibs replaced a hobbling Doig with McGregor. The United change was their third and that would have repercussions in the minutes ahead. Big Darren’s first action in the game was to concede a corner which, when taken, wasn’t cleared properly and that allowed Chalmers to strike a shot that went just wide of Macey’s right hand post. I’ll be honest here, I thought I was going to witness another case of Hibs dominating the game but failing to win it but when Mulgrew limped off and couldn’t be replaced I started to breathe a little easier. Indeed, Mulgrew was only off the park for a minute or so when Hibs doubled their lead. A stunning pass from Doyle-Hayes split the United defence and when Boyle took a touch the ball sat nicely for Cadden who stroked it home from about eight yards.
With ten minutes left, Doidge replaced Nisbet as Hibs looked to kill ten man United off by retaining possession in the United half. That ploy started well but United were in a ‘might as well lose by three as two’ mood and started to create a couple of half chances of their own. Chalmers twice and Harkes both saw efforts blocked or miss the target before the hosts pulled a goal back and what a cracking goal it was. Glass pounced on a loose ball some thirty yards from goal and set off on a mazy run, beating three defenders in the process before hammering a shot past Macey to make it 2-1.
In added time, Doyle-Hayes picked up a silly booking for wasting time by kicking the ball away, but things ended on a positive note for Hibs when Murphy came in from the left, tried to play a one-two with a team mate but the return pass actually came from a United defender allowing Jamie to make space for a shot and he rifled the ball past Siegrist to make the scoreline better reflect the game as a whole.
I have to say I thought we played well throughout even allowing for a couple of short passages of play when we kept passing it across the back three. By and large we were aggressive in attack and solid in both midfield and defence. It irks me a tad when I read that we only beat Dundee because they were poor, we only beat Aberdeen because they were poor, and I’d hazard a guess that I’ll find a couple of posts tonight saying we only beat Dundee United because they were poor. The sole object of a football match is to score more goals than your opponents and we did that in all three matches so perhaps our play made those teams look poorer than some folk expected. Let’s go into the break with confidence that we are going in the right direction and playing some pretty good football in the process.
The players
Macey – Could have had a nap in the first half he was so under employed. Had a couple of things to do in the second with one flap at a cross giving me the jitters. Never stood a chance with the goal but to finish on a positive note I felt he was much more alive to beginning moves by throwing the ball out to a team mate a lot quicker than he has been doing.
Porteous – Given that United were being swamped in the first half, Ryan didn’t have a lot of defending to do but I was impressed by his surging forward when the chance arose. More defending in the second half but all done very well.
Hanlon – Like Porteous, not over worked in the first half but did provide a couple of very good diagonal passes to set our wide men free.
Stevenson – Solid first half, looked a tad shaky at the start of the second but finished the game strongly.
Cadden – Hugged the touchline and stuck to the task well, I thought he had a solid first forty five and a very good second including scoring his goal. I honestly believe we are starting to see the best of him, and he gets my man of the match award.
Doyle-Hayes – Still too many sideways and backwards passes for me BUT his defence splitting pass to Boyle in the build up to the second goal gives me hope that the coaching staff can work on making him more confident in trying such things.
Campbell – Josh was pretty solid throughout without doing anything particularly eye catching. I think for such a young lad he shows signs of real maturity at times in terms of his positional play and his willingness to get stuck in when tackles are flying.
Doig – As I alluded too earlier, I was keen to see how much more freedom to bomb forward in his play would pan out with Lewis guarding the back door. The truth is I didn’t really see much of that at all, and I was a bit perplexed when he seemed reluctant to take a man on. In his defence, I suppose the space to do that was limited by United’s rearguard action.
Wright – Had a decent sixty minutes and was involved in the build up to the opening goal. Hopefully that will give him confidence.
Boyle – Martin was his usual buzzbomb self but couldn’t really get a chance to run at them much because the space just wasn’t there to exploit. A clever run in behind at the second goal.
Nisbet – Just like his team mates, Kevin put in a good shift and was on hand to give us the lead. Moments before he was subbed, he unselfishly tried to tee up Murphy, with a cute back heel, for a shot at goal when perhaps he should have said “stuff it I’ll have a go myself”
Murphy – I confess I groaned a bit when I saw Jamie was coming on but fair play to him as he had a decent half hour and scored a fine goal.
McGregor – Daz coming on meant a bit of a change at the back but in terms of his own performance I can’t recall any slip ups or poor marking.
Doidge – The only good thing about Christian’s introduction was that it gave him another ten minutes in the tank.
Shaun Maloney – For me there is a definite change in the way we set up and play and I recognised the beginnings of that in the last game. All good so far.
Referee – Willie Collum had a quiet afternoon of it really.
Hibs came out sharply at the start and Nisbet had a first minute effort that was blocked on its way to goal and moments later, Wright saw his strike drift wide of a post. The first fifteen minutes were pretty uneventful although Hibs enjoyed the bulk of possession but United struggled to get out of their own half at times. The hosts packed their defence, with Mulgrew a colossus and Hibs were finding it difficult to break through despite having the lions share of possession. A Campbell header didn’t trouble Siegrist and then the busy Hibs youngster took a dull one when Meekison crunched into the challenge, earning himself a yellow card in the process. Seconds later, Campbell fouled Meekison, but Willie Collum kept his card in his pocket.
It was all Hibs and surely only a matter of time before a goal would arrive with Hanlon and Campbell the latest to see efforts blocked. United were getting desperate now and Mochrie was the next to be booked for hacking down Cadden before Hibs finally scored the goal their play deserved. A cross from Drey Wright reached Cadden on the far edge of the eighteen yard box. Chris fired in a shot that was partially blocked with the ball falling to Boyle who struck it low towards Nisbet whereupon Kevin poked it home from close range. There was a moment of confusion as to whether Nisbet was offside but after consulting his assistant, Collum signalled the goal was good.
Hibs were playing some good stuff with short and sharp passing causing United players to be chasing shadows at times. Cadden came close after Doig created the opening for him and then a sumptuous cross from Boyle landed just behind the onrushing Wright who couldn’t get his effort on goal. Half time was approaching, and Hibs were totally dominant with both a Porteous header that was blocked and a Doyle-Hayes strike that drifted wide, coming close to doubling the lead. United trooped off at half time no doubt expecting an earful from their manager. Only Mulgrew could really hold his head high because at times it seemed like he was the only player doing his job correctly.
Thomas Courts made once change at half time, bringing on Niskanen for Freeman. I’ve no doubt he’d told his players to be braver because for the entire first half any United man in possession was hunted down until he either made a mistake or was dispossessed. The telling off almost brought an early reward when a wayward header by Stevenson allowed Clarke to surge forward only to be fouled by Hanlon who got a yellow card for the challenge. Clarke himself took the resultant free kick and tried to fool Macey by striking a low shot under the jumping Hibs wall but the big keeper got down to push the ball past his left hand post.
United did get a foothold in the game for around ten minutes but Hibs never looked like they would concede whilst at the other end, Boyle sent in a corner that Hanlon disappointingly headed wide when under no obvious pressure from his marker. Having had a decent sixty minutes, Drey Wright was replaced by Murphy whilst United replaced Mochrie with Declan Glass. Five minutes later, Nisbet got the ball at the edge of the United box and fired in a shot that was always rising and didn’t trouble Siegrist. Next to have a go was Porteous who headed wide following a Boyle corner and then Boyle himself, fed by Cadden, saw his attempt go straight to Siegrist in the centre of the goal.
Substitutions saw United replace Watson with Chalmers and then Hibs replaced a hobbling Doig with McGregor. The United change was their third and that would have repercussions in the minutes ahead. Big Darren’s first action in the game was to concede a corner which, when taken, wasn’t cleared properly and that allowed Chalmers to strike a shot that went just wide of Macey’s right hand post. I’ll be honest here, I thought I was going to witness another case of Hibs dominating the game but failing to win it but when Mulgrew limped off and couldn’t be replaced I started to breathe a little easier. Indeed, Mulgrew was only off the park for a minute or so when Hibs doubled their lead. A stunning pass from Doyle-Hayes split the United defence and when Boyle took a touch the ball sat nicely for Cadden who stroked it home from about eight yards.
With ten minutes left, Doidge replaced Nisbet as Hibs looked to kill ten man United off by retaining possession in the United half. That ploy started well but United were in a ‘might as well lose by three as two’ mood and started to create a couple of half chances of their own. Chalmers twice and Harkes both saw efforts blocked or miss the target before the hosts pulled a goal back and what a cracking goal it was. Glass pounced on a loose ball some thirty yards from goal and set off on a mazy run, beating three defenders in the process before hammering a shot past Macey to make it 2-1.
In added time, Doyle-Hayes picked up a silly booking for wasting time by kicking the ball away, but things ended on a positive note for Hibs when Murphy came in from the left, tried to play a one-two with a team mate but the return pass actually came from a United defender allowing Jamie to make space for a shot and he rifled the ball past Siegrist to make the scoreline better reflect the game as a whole.
I have to say I thought we played well throughout even allowing for a couple of short passages of play when we kept passing it across the back three. By and large we were aggressive in attack and solid in both midfield and defence. It irks me a tad when I read that we only beat Dundee because they were poor, we only beat Aberdeen because they were poor, and I’d hazard a guess that I’ll find a couple of posts tonight saying we only beat Dundee United because they were poor. The sole object of a football match is to score more goals than your opponents and we did that in all three matches so perhaps our play made those teams look poorer than some folk expected. Let’s go into the break with confidence that we are going in the right direction and playing some pretty good football in the process.
The players
Macey – Could have had a nap in the first half he was so under employed. Had a couple of things to do in the second with one flap at a cross giving me the jitters. Never stood a chance with the goal but to finish on a positive note I felt he was much more alive to beginning moves by throwing the ball out to a team mate a lot quicker than he has been doing.
Porteous – Given that United were being swamped in the first half, Ryan didn’t have a lot of defending to do but I was impressed by his surging forward when the chance arose. More defending in the second half but all done very well.
Hanlon – Like Porteous, not over worked in the first half but did provide a couple of very good diagonal passes to set our wide men free.
Stevenson – Solid first half, looked a tad shaky at the start of the second but finished the game strongly.
Cadden – Hugged the touchline and stuck to the task well, I thought he had a solid first forty five and a very good second including scoring his goal. I honestly believe we are starting to see the best of him, and he gets my man of the match award.
Doyle-Hayes – Still too many sideways and backwards passes for me BUT his defence splitting pass to Boyle in the build up to the second goal gives me hope that the coaching staff can work on making him more confident in trying such things.
Campbell – Josh was pretty solid throughout without doing anything particularly eye catching. I think for such a young lad he shows signs of real maturity at times in terms of his positional play and his willingness to get stuck in when tackles are flying.
Doig – As I alluded too earlier, I was keen to see how much more freedom to bomb forward in his play would pan out with Lewis guarding the back door. The truth is I didn’t really see much of that at all, and I was a bit perplexed when he seemed reluctant to take a man on. In his defence, I suppose the space to do that was limited by United’s rearguard action.
Wright – Had a decent sixty minutes and was involved in the build up to the opening goal. Hopefully that will give him confidence.
Boyle – Martin was his usual buzzbomb self but couldn’t really get a chance to run at them much because the space just wasn’t there to exploit. A clever run in behind at the second goal.
Nisbet – Just like his team mates, Kevin put in a good shift and was on hand to give us the lead. Moments before he was subbed, he unselfishly tried to tee up Murphy, with a cute back heel, for a shot at goal when perhaps he should have said “stuff it I’ll have a go myself”
Murphy – I confess I groaned a bit when I saw Jamie was coming on but fair play to him as he had a decent half hour and scored a fine goal.
McGregor – Daz coming on meant a bit of a change at the back but in terms of his own performance I can’t recall any slip ups or poor marking.
Doidge – The only good thing about Christian’s introduction was that it gave him another ten minutes in the tank.
Shaun Maloney – For me there is a definite change in the way we set up and play and I recognised the beginnings of that in the last game. All good so far.
Referee – Willie Collum had a quiet afternoon of it really.