Jonnyboy
24-12-2022, 05:54 PM
Let’s start by getting rid of the expected seasonal puns by saying this truly was a cracker of a game. Action galore, four goals, two saved penalties, a red card and a couple of 5 star displays. It was certainly exciting, that’s for sure. Ahead of kick off, Tornadoes Stanton, Brownlie and Edwards were introduced to the crowd, and I’d wager they will have enjoyed what they watched in the game, just as much as I did.
Lee Johnson made only one change to his starting eleven with the inclusion of Lewis Stevenson who displaced Marijan Cabraja whilst Ryan Porteous was given another run in central midfield.
I’ve long asked that Hibs start the game on the front foot and that’s exactly what we did with Youan firing a ball across the six yard box that Nisbet missed by inches and that was pretty much straight from the kick off. Moments later, Nisbet drew a great save from Konovalov before Josh Campbell had a fine effort blocked. Soon after, Konovalov and Nisbet had a coming together in the box with both players requiring lengthy treatment before they could resume playing.
After seeming to weather that early storm, Livi produced a couple of half chances of their own with high passes over the top of our central defenders allowed first Kelly and then Bahamboula to get shots away that narrowly missed the target. The game was wide open with both sides pressing forward at every opportunity and the next chance fell to Elie Youan who forced a save from Konovalov who pushed the effort away and Magennis couldn’t adjust his balance enough and fired the ball over the bar.
On the quarter hour, Jason Holt flew into a challenge on Nisbet with the Livi man’s raised boot considered by referee Craig Napier to be worthy of a straight red card for dangerous play. The decision angered the visiting players and their bench, but Napier had the comfort of knowing that the VAR official had checked the incident and agreed with the punishment. In the melee that followed the challenge both Porteous and Shinnie were booked for a needless shoving match. As all of this was going on, Konovalov was sitting on the edge of the six yard box and needed treatment before he was able to continue.
Elie Youan was having a fine game and giving their full back Devlin all sorts of problems with his pace and close control. In the space of two minutes, Youan forced a save from their keeper before setting up a chance for Porteous which whizzed just past the post. It was all Hibs at this point and Cadden put Nisbet through on goal, but the flag went up for offside and then Cadden himself shot wide before Youan set Porteous up again, but Ryan couldn’t control the shot and the ball cleared the bar. Youan was involved again, and it took a foul by Pittman to halt the Hibs man’s progress. Pittman was booked for the challenge and from the resultant free kick Nisbet was bang on target, but the keeper got up to flick the ball over the bar for a corner. Just past the half hour, Kelly got forward enough to try his luck, but his shot failed to hit the target.
Yet another Devlin foul on Youan resulted in a free kick to Hibs some twenty yards from goal. Porteous struck a fine effort that Konovalov did well to save but in the process of doing so he diverted the ball to Kevin Nisbet who blasted Hibs into the lead from around ten yards. As a support, we were still celebrating the opener when Hibs added a second when Nisbet turned provider in delivering the ball into the path of Chris Cadden who hammered a shot across the keeper and into the far corner.
Campbell and Newell both had efforts thwarted and then in the fortieth minute, Hibs struck again. Out on the left, Youan cut inside his marker and delivered a fabulous cross to the back post and Kyle Magennis ran in unchallenged to head the ball home. A couple of minutes later, Josh Campbell went down injured and appeared to be stamped on by Montano but after consulting his assistant, Craig Napier decided no action was required. It was no surprise, given the number of delays in the game, that the fourth official held up the board signifying there would be a minimum of seven minutes added to the half and I’d bet money that this was the last thing the Livingston contingent wanted to see. During that seven minutes, Youan shot wide and Nisbet headed a Newell cross straight at the keeper but there was a good feeling going into the break 3-0 ahead.
Less than a minute from the restart, Longridge was booked for a challenge on Nisbet as the Hibs man raced past him towards the Livi goal. Nothing came from the from the free kick but soon after, Livi conceded a corner which Newell played short to Youan who then delivered a fine cross onto the head of Magennis with Kyle steering his effort wide of the keeper and into the net. Youan and Stevenson had formed a fine partnership down the left and a nice pass from Lewis allowed Elie to get another shot away. Magennis was on a hat trick and tried to get the elusive third goal from a shot from eighteen yards, but Konovalov thwarted him with a good save.
On the hour mark, Lee Johnson decided to make some changes, possibly with the forthcoming Celtic match in mind. Off went Bushiri and Hanlon to be replaced by Fish and Henderson who moved into midfield with Porteous dropping back to centre half. The Stevenson/Youan combo got to work again with the former’s pass finding the latter, but the resultant shot was saved. With twenty minutes left, Melkersen replaced a tiring Nisbet whilst McKirdy took over from Magennis. It wasn’t long before McKirdy got a shot away from a cushioned Campbell pass, but the contact wasn’t great, and the ball missed the target.
Youan again tried his luck with a fierce shot from a tight angle, but Konovalov saved at the expense of a corner before another change was made when Cabraja replaced Stevenson. Cabraja soon made his mark on the game but sadly it was a negative one as he hauled down Goncalves in the box to concede a penalty. Goncalves himself stepped forward to take the kick with a background accompaniment of ‘noise’ from the home stands and that noise grew louder as David Marshall dived to his left to stop the shot but the ball rolled free, and a bit of a stramash ensued with referee Napier awarding a second spot kick having adjudged Newell to have used an arm during the attempt to clear the lines. This time, Fitzwater tried his luck but once again, Marshall dived full length to save the kick which brought a standing ovation from the fans in the home stands. A mere three minutes were added at the end, during which McKirdy and Cabraja were thwarted.
A good display and a welcome three points which I thought we thoroughly deserved.
The players
Marshall – Saving two penalties in as many minutes was quite an achievement and won him the sponsors man of the match award.
Cadden – A good ninety minutes, capped by that fine goal.
Rocky – Looked a bit shaky at the start but came on to a good game after that.
Hanlon – Much like Rocky although I’m sure he was delighted when Bahamboula was subbed off.
Stevenson – Solid as ever, still the best left back at the club in my opinion.
Porteous – Played a few cracking passes and offered solidity in the midfield ahead of the back four.
Newell – Always involved, this was one of Joe’s better days.
Magennis – After a quietish start, Kyle showed us what he is capable of when injury free.
Campbell – As ever, he was tireless and did all the simple things well.
Nisbet – So glad to see him back and on the goal trail.
Youan – Has had a tough time of it lately but I thought he was outstanding from start to finish today and he wins my man of the match award.
Henderson – Missed an absolute sitter and generally contributed very little.
Fish – I know we were 4-0 up and cruising so Will wasn’t really under a great deal of pressure but still he contributed well and looks a confident lad.
Melkersen – Had the ball in the net but was ruled offside.
McKirdy – Has a livewire style and made a few decent runs but wasn’t picked out.
Cabraja – A very naïve challenge to concede the penalty I just don’t think he’s that good a defender after his promising start at the club.
Lee Johnson – Will be a relieved man. Got things right today and it all came off for him.
Referee – Craig Napier was a busy guy with six yellows and a red distributed. Did ok though.
Lee Johnson made only one change to his starting eleven with the inclusion of Lewis Stevenson who displaced Marijan Cabraja whilst Ryan Porteous was given another run in central midfield.
I’ve long asked that Hibs start the game on the front foot and that’s exactly what we did with Youan firing a ball across the six yard box that Nisbet missed by inches and that was pretty much straight from the kick off. Moments later, Nisbet drew a great save from Konovalov before Josh Campbell had a fine effort blocked. Soon after, Konovalov and Nisbet had a coming together in the box with both players requiring lengthy treatment before they could resume playing.
After seeming to weather that early storm, Livi produced a couple of half chances of their own with high passes over the top of our central defenders allowed first Kelly and then Bahamboula to get shots away that narrowly missed the target. The game was wide open with both sides pressing forward at every opportunity and the next chance fell to Elie Youan who forced a save from Konovalov who pushed the effort away and Magennis couldn’t adjust his balance enough and fired the ball over the bar.
On the quarter hour, Jason Holt flew into a challenge on Nisbet with the Livi man’s raised boot considered by referee Craig Napier to be worthy of a straight red card for dangerous play. The decision angered the visiting players and their bench, but Napier had the comfort of knowing that the VAR official had checked the incident and agreed with the punishment. In the melee that followed the challenge both Porteous and Shinnie were booked for a needless shoving match. As all of this was going on, Konovalov was sitting on the edge of the six yard box and needed treatment before he was able to continue.
Elie Youan was having a fine game and giving their full back Devlin all sorts of problems with his pace and close control. In the space of two minutes, Youan forced a save from their keeper before setting up a chance for Porteous which whizzed just past the post. It was all Hibs at this point and Cadden put Nisbet through on goal, but the flag went up for offside and then Cadden himself shot wide before Youan set Porteous up again, but Ryan couldn’t control the shot and the ball cleared the bar. Youan was involved again, and it took a foul by Pittman to halt the Hibs man’s progress. Pittman was booked for the challenge and from the resultant free kick Nisbet was bang on target, but the keeper got up to flick the ball over the bar for a corner. Just past the half hour, Kelly got forward enough to try his luck, but his shot failed to hit the target.
Yet another Devlin foul on Youan resulted in a free kick to Hibs some twenty yards from goal. Porteous struck a fine effort that Konovalov did well to save but in the process of doing so he diverted the ball to Kevin Nisbet who blasted Hibs into the lead from around ten yards. As a support, we were still celebrating the opener when Hibs added a second when Nisbet turned provider in delivering the ball into the path of Chris Cadden who hammered a shot across the keeper and into the far corner.
Campbell and Newell both had efforts thwarted and then in the fortieth minute, Hibs struck again. Out on the left, Youan cut inside his marker and delivered a fabulous cross to the back post and Kyle Magennis ran in unchallenged to head the ball home. A couple of minutes later, Josh Campbell went down injured and appeared to be stamped on by Montano but after consulting his assistant, Craig Napier decided no action was required. It was no surprise, given the number of delays in the game, that the fourth official held up the board signifying there would be a minimum of seven minutes added to the half and I’d bet money that this was the last thing the Livingston contingent wanted to see. During that seven minutes, Youan shot wide and Nisbet headed a Newell cross straight at the keeper but there was a good feeling going into the break 3-0 ahead.
Less than a minute from the restart, Longridge was booked for a challenge on Nisbet as the Hibs man raced past him towards the Livi goal. Nothing came from the from the free kick but soon after, Livi conceded a corner which Newell played short to Youan who then delivered a fine cross onto the head of Magennis with Kyle steering his effort wide of the keeper and into the net. Youan and Stevenson had formed a fine partnership down the left and a nice pass from Lewis allowed Elie to get another shot away. Magennis was on a hat trick and tried to get the elusive third goal from a shot from eighteen yards, but Konovalov thwarted him with a good save.
On the hour mark, Lee Johnson decided to make some changes, possibly with the forthcoming Celtic match in mind. Off went Bushiri and Hanlon to be replaced by Fish and Henderson who moved into midfield with Porteous dropping back to centre half. The Stevenson/Youan combo got to work again with the former’s pass finding the latter, but the resultant shot was saved. With twenty minutes left, Melkersen replaced a tiring Nisbet whilst McKirdy took over from Magennis. It wasn’t long before McKirdy got a shot away from a cushioned Campbell pass, but the contact wasn’t great, and the ball missed the target.
Youan again tried his luck with a fierce shot from a tight angle, but Konovalov saved at the expense of a corner before another change was made when Cabraja replaced Stevenson. Cabraja soon made his mark on the game but sadly it was a negative one as he hauled down Goncalves in the box to concede a penalty. Goncalves himself stepped forward to take the kick with a background accompaniment of ‘noise’ from the home stands and that noise grew louder as David Marshall dived to his left to stop the shot but the ball rolled free, and a bit of a stramash ensued with referee Napier awarding a second spot kick having adjudged Newell to have used an arm during the attempt to clear the lines. This time, Fitzwater tried his luck but once again, Marshall dived full length to save the kick which brought a standing ovation from the fans in the home stands. A mere three minutes were added at the end, during which McKirdy and Cabraja were thwarted.
A good display and a welcome three points which I thought we thoroughly deserved.
The players
Marshall – Saving two penalties in as many minutes was quite an achievement and won him the sponsors man of the match award.
Cadden – A good ninety minutes, capped by that fine goal.
Rocky – Looked a bit shaky at the start but came on to a good game after that.
Hanlon – Much like Rocky although I’m sure he was delighted when Bahamboula was subbed off.
Stevenson – Solid as ever, still the best left back at the club in my opinion.
Porteous – Played a few cracking passes and offered solidity in the midfield ahead of the back four.
Newell – Always involved, this was one of Joe’s better days.
Magennis – After a quietish start, Kyle showed us what he is capable of when injury free.
Campbell – As ever, he was tireless and did all the simple things well.
Nisbet – So glad to see him back and on the goal trail.
Youan – Has had a tough time of it lately but I thought he was outstanding from start to finish today and he wins my man of the match award.
Henderson – Missed an absolute sitter and generally contributed very little.
Fish – I know we were 4-0 up and cruising so Will wasn’t really under a great deal of pressure but still he contributed well and looks a confident lad.
Melkersen – Had the ball in the net but was ruled offside.
McKirdy – Has a livewire style and made a few decent runs but wasn’t picked out.
Cabraja – A very naïve challenge to concede the penalty I just don’t think he’s that good a defender after his promising start at the club.
Lee Johnson – Will be a relieved man. Got things right today and it all came off for him.
Referee – Craig Napier was a busy guy with six yellows and a red distributed. Did ok though.