Kilmarnock 1-0 Hibernian: Wake-up call for 'lazy' Hibs

Published on Saturday 9 August 2008 20:14

Kilmarnock 1 Hamill 80 Hibernian 0

IF MIXU Paatelainen felt the heat after Hibernian's 6-0 humping by Barcelona, the Finn's ears must have been burning white-hot yesterday afternoon. Once a cult hero at Easter Road, his managerial tenure at his old club has got off to the sort of start that would have given even Franck Sauzee sleepless nights.

If the new manager's offence at Murrayfield was to see his side eviscerated and humiliated by a patently superior force, then Hibs' undoing at Rugby Park was all of Paatelainen's own making. He probably didn't think he'd miscalculated badly when he brought on Fabian Yantorno for Joe Keenan with 20 minutes left, but he was wrong. Moments later David Van Zanten and Killie's Simon Ford were involved in an ugly clash of heads that left the new Hibs midfielder with blood gushing from a head wound.

With no subs left and almost 20 minutes remaining, Hibs, who had been profoundly uninspired and seemed happy to settle for the point, were suddenly vulnerable to Killie's counterattacks. Where Mehdi Taouli and David Fernandez had been swamped for the entire match by the Hibs midfield, suddenly they sprang to life as their 10-man opposition tried to counteract tiring legs and loss of a man.

With 10 minutes to go, a Hibs attack broke down and the ball was moved quickly to Taouli in acres of space. When he was eventually closed down he slipped the ball to Fernandez on the right, who cut across goal, feinted to shoot but instead laid the ball back to Jamie Hamill, Ford's replacement. His first kick of the game was a sublime low shot that scudded into the bottom left corner.

It was enough to have the radio phone-ins buzzing with rumours that Paatelainen will resign today. Instead, he came out fighting. "I'm deeply disappointed with what happened today," he said afterwards. "Going a man down shouldn't have the effect it did, but when we went to ten men we were outnumbered and our midfielders just didn't want to defend and so we were punished. Before the goal we were disciplined and defended well but for that attack, certain individuals know (who was at fault]. If you have lazy players like that out on the pitch then you are always open and liable to lose goals. Players who have a lazy streak won't play for my team."

As if that wasn't enough, Paatelainen followed up his mea non-culpa with a broadside at Colin Nish, the striker he brought to Leith from Killie this summer. That was harsh considering that until the goal a largely dull affair had been enlivened only by the presence of this classic pantomime villain. Nish was booed every time he touched the ball, talked to a former teammate or even breathed. And when he crocked former teammate Ryan O'Leary the place threatened to erupt.

He did get an ironic cheer after 20 minutes, however, when Steven Fletcher broke down the right and stroked a perfect ball into his path. It would have been easier to score, but with Killie keeper Alan Combe in no man's land Nish passed lamely into the keeper's arms, a loss that left Paatelainen raging. After the break Nish compounded the felony by getting in the way of Rob Jones' goalbound header.

Nish's opening miss was, incredibly, the game's first shot on goal, which tells you all you need to know about this committed but horribly scrappy affair. The first half was occasionally enlivened by glimpses of skill, such as when Fletcher manoeuvred in heavy traffic, putting the ball over his own head before shooting lamely wide, or when Taouil sent a stinging long-ranger just under the Hibs' bar only to see Andy McNeil match his virtuosity with a superb save. But mostly it was stultifying fare.

The main occupation for the paying punters was running the rule over the new signings and in particularly former Parma holding midfielder Manuel Pascali, who acquired a yellow card for a Maldini-esque scything of the hapless Van Zanten before kicking a ball. His second-half contribution was sufficiently meaningful and no-nonsense contribution to suggest he may live up to Jim Jefferies' expectations.

While the first half was a tepid, shot-shy affair, the second was at least played at a faster pace. Killie were unlucky not to open the scoring when Joe Keenan cleared off the line from sub Frazer Wright, a real handful at set-pieces. For Hibs, substitute Fabian Morais, he of the dodgiest barnet in this proud league, produced the fiercest shot on target after a purposeful run down the right. But in truth this was poor pickings from two sides who looked more anxious not to lose than keen to win.

MAN OF THE MATCH

For his all-round excellence, faultless decision-making and tireless workrate, it has to be Craig Bryson.

QUICK FACT

Killie's English defender Simon Ford made his debut for Jamaica, the land where his father was born, over the summer, playing three friendlies for the Reggae Boyz.

TALKING POINT

What was going on between Dean Shiels and Steven Fletcher? The two indulged in a shoving match when a Fletcher long range shot went wide, an incident that ended with Shiels clutching the Hibs badge and mouthing pleasantries to his teammate.