Same old story as slack Hibs let lead slip away

WHEN you consider the off-field upheaval the Easter Road club went through last week, a share of the spoils might not have been too bitter a pill for Hibs supporters to swallow if you'd offered it to them before kick-off.

However, the manner in which their side dominated this match for long spells only to contrive to throw two points away meant this draw felt more like a defeat by the time Charlie Richmond blew his full-time whistle.

Two goals in the opening 15 minutes, one from Merouane Zemmama and the other from Chris Killen, were no more than a composed and creative Hibs side deserved as their midfield overran their opponents in the first half.

Crucially, though, they failed to make their periods of dominance count and, not for the first time this season, individual errors cost them dear. Goalkeeper Zibi Malkowski certainly won't relish seeing television highlights of the two goals he lost, the first catching him in no-man's land and too far off his line to prevent Andrius Velicka's header hitting the back of the net.

The second came after Hearts had been reduced to ten men with the sending-off of Saulius Mikoliunas, the ball somehow squeezing past Malkowski's outstretched hand and into the net at the near post to hand Velicka his double.

Mark Venus, who is expected to join Mowbray as his assistant at West Brom later this week, took charge of the team alongside John Park, and after watching two points slip away admitted that individual errors had been one of the main reasons that the Teesside duo's reign had come to an end with no silverware to show for it.

He said: "It was a perfect start for us, but again we conceded two stoppable goals.

"It's a trait that has been with us throughout the two-and-a-half years that Tony and I have been at the club.

"The bottom line is that maybe that's the reason why we didn't manage to end up with a bit of silverware.

"If you look at the bigger games that we've had then you will probably see that we have conceded too many slack goals.

"I don't know what you put that down to, maybe lack of experience, but the end result is still the same."

After a week of turmoil in the wake of manager Mowbray's departure for West Brom, Hibs received a timely boost when Rob Jones declared himself fit. The big defender had been out since injuring his knee during last month's 1-0 defeat against Falkirk and came straight back into the side to resume his partnership with Shelton Martis in the centre of defence.

There had been concerns about how the Hibs players would handle the loss of their boss, but any lingering doubts seemed to have been dispelled with just four minutes on the clock when Ivan Sproule burst down the right and beat Lee Wallace for pace.

He cut away from Christophe Berra before finding Michael Stewart, and the former Manchester United midfielder sent the ball across the face of goal for Killen who, with his back to goal, took one touch to hold it up for Zemmama.

The diminutive Moroccan dragged the ball to his left to create space and drilled the ball low on the angle beyond Gordon.

This match had been overshadowed somewhat by Mowbray's exit, but the players showed exactly what it meant to them when Mikoliunas clattered in late on Hibs captain Kevin Thomson.

The challenge sparked a furious reaction from Venus who was angry that the Lithuanian had not been red-carded for the tackle, and Hearts midfielder Paul Hartley exchanged verbals with him at the dug-out before being calmed down by Zemmama.

The little Moroccan did nothing to help Hartley's stress levels a couple of minutes later, though, when he played the ball off Marius Zaliukas to win Hibs the corner which led to their second goal.

He sent an in-swinger to the near post and Killen had made enough space for himself to get a backwards flick on it with his head to send it into the net with Scott Brown just missing out on a final touch on the way.

Easter Road was rocking, the majority of Hibs supporters probably unable to believe what they were seeing unfold in front of them and they should have further added to their commanding lead when Zemmama danced away from Mikoliunas and Ibrahim Tall to send the ball in to the box for Michael Stewart.

He, too, had covered every blade of grass in the opening half hour, but this time the ball got caught under his feet and that was enough to ensure he couldn't get a shot in on Gordon's goal.

The first signs of a comeback from ten-man Hearts - Mikoliunas earning his second yellow for a challenge on Sproule - materialised in 27 minutes, but the visitors had Malkowski to thank for his part in the opening goal, the keeper charging out of his area to collect a Lee Wallace high ball to the edge of the box that he never had any hope of reaching. Velicka got there first and his looping header sailed high over the Pole and into the net.

The same man hauled Hearts level when he latched onto a pass from Hartley and let one fly from 20 yards. It looked like Malkowski had done enough to get across his line to block, but instead the shot somehow squeezed its way past him at the near post and into the back of the net.

At the other end, though, Hearts stopper Gordon defied belief when he denied Hibs a certain winner in stoppage time, stretching out an arm at the last minute to stop Rob Jones' header from hitting the back of the net.

Mowbray's time in charge has seen Hibs transformed into an entertaining, attacking side and Venus believes that, with the right man in charge in future, they can continue to improve.

He added: "I don't think it is as far as the club can go - I hope that Hibernian can make the next step up. They're two-and-a-half years into building that wall. The club finished third and fourth, they hadn't managed to finish in the top six in the previous two years in the SPL so I think that's a sign of how far they have come.

"I think there are some decent players and they're near to being a decent team.

"At the moment there's maybe a few holes in it, a few chinks in it, but maybe with a bit more investment and a bit more time, patience and better players the team will get a bit stronger. That's what we have to try to do."

Taken from the Scotsman