Two games, two defeats for Hibs this week, however the mood in the wake of the midweek loss to Celtic is markedly different from that which clouded Saturday, and the following days.
Saturday’s showing was, I think, as bad as any performance I have seen from Hibs, full stop. It was offensively bad. It’s genuinely bewildering how any team at this level of professional football could produce a display that genuinely had no redeeming features. The only positive to take from the game was that we only lost by three goals.
After failing to manage a single effort on goal and giving up three to a St Mirren team trying to expand a lead in points over the hosts that they could not afford to increase, Hibs was forced to leave the pitch at halftime to a chorus of jeers from those who had not yet left Easter Road.
St. Mirren did not have to be good, even though they were. They only had to put in a lot of effort and wait for Hibs to blow themselves up, which is exactly what we accomplished. The team was rightfully jeered as they returned to the pitch for the second half, making for some very unpleasant viewing.
But in typical Hibs fashion, they rallied for a goal to tie the game in the second half and brought some pride back. But in stoppage time, VAR saved the day for Celtic, sending referee Nick Walsh to the monitor to signal a late penalty kick for a foul on Kyogo by Joe Newell.
Celtic’s first goal also came from the penalty spot when Walsh called a foul on Nectar Triantis and Alistair Johnston for a head-on collision. To put it mildly, it was a controversial call that was probably justified but nonetheless a rare foul.
In the second half, Hibs brought on Myziane Maolida, who was fouled as soon as he rushed through the defence of Celtic. Dylan Levitt levelled the score for Hibs with a volley from the edge of the box from the ensuing free kick. With Nathan Moriah-Welsh playing alongside him in midfield, both Levitt and Newell undoubtedly benefited, and the squad as a whole performed considerably better. Hopefully, the goal provides Levitt’s Hibs career the much-needed lift.
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