This was not a good game of football. Hibs were slightly less bad than us and as a result managed to get the win. Better teams have lost to us this season. We barely managed to test the opposition keeper and showed little urgency, even when we went behind. As a result we are seven points off a place in the top six with as many games to go. It is as good as over. There was no sign of players fighting for cup final places and if we play like that against Hearts there won't be any open top bus tour in Paisley any time soon.
Injury ruled Gary Teale out so Graham Carey got a start, playing on the right side of midfield. David van Zanten returned for his 300th appearance, David Barron the man making way. Hibs' dangerman Leigh Griffiths was their sole striker, Pat Fenlon preferring to hope midfielders like Paul Cairney could get forward and offer support rather than field Eoin Doyle or Ross Caldwell.
It was not a bright start from either side and it took a quarter of an hour for something to happen, Griffiths heading wide from a Robertson cross. Lewis Stevenson got himself the first booking when he flattened Paul Dummett before Craig Samson must have had a bit of deja vu, a poor pass from Conor Newton leaving him in trouble against Griffiths. His nemesis decided to pass to Tom Taiwo and thankfully someone got in the way of the shot before it could cause any real harm.
Next time it was Griffiths himself, the striker embarrassing Dummett and Goodwin with a fine run before his fierce shot smacked the woodwork with Samson stranded. It had been a dire opening quarter and a goal like that would have been completely out of place. We couldn't get going up front and were getting a bit desperate at the back as Hibs began to look a threat, Jorge Claros going close with a low shot from the edge of the box.
Goncalves forcing his way past Ryan McGivern finally signalled we were up for the fight and we should perhaps have been in front when Newton found Newcastle team-mate Dummett at the back post but his header across goal fell the wrong side of the post. We could have been in front at the break when McAusland played the ball in defence and Goncalves picked it up at the half-way line before bursting forward and firing a shot straight at Ben Williams that the keeper was always going to block - Steven Thompson less than impressed with his team mate for not passing.
Taiwo inadvertently did us a favour a couple of minutes after the restart when he got his head on the end of Done's cross, taking it away from goal and just far enough way from the well placed Cairney to stop him connecting. With nothing happening in the first 15 minutes of the second half Carey and Kenny McLean got hooked, John McGinn and Lewis Guy coming on for them. McAusland got himself booked for a Pro Evo-esque challenge on Taiwo and Griffiths fancied his chances with the free-kick but Samson barely had to move to gather it.
Despite our chances we were still doing little in attack, while Hibs were at least looking a threat when they went forward, Cairney and Griffiths causing problems. We had a bigger problem though when Taiwo put in a cross and Done hit the deck, referee Willie Collum deciding it was a penalty. It looked soft in the extreme, contact minimal at best, and with Griffiths taking the penalty there was only one outcome. Having helped Hibs take the lead, Done was then hooked, David Wotherspoon replacing him. We offered nothing in attack, playing as we had been all afternoon despite being a goal down. Samson did well to palm away a Griffiths shout before Dougie Imrie came on for Newton and Claros got booked for a tiff with McGowan. Hibs responded by putting Eoin Doyle on for Cairney. At least Griffiths wouldn't get a second, Ross Caldwell taking his place for the last five minutes. It made little difference to either team, a dire game of football ending with little to get excited about.
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