Celtic 2-1 Hibs: Down but still not out

JOHN HUGHES is probably becoming weary of the sound of his own voice in recent days, forced week after week to defend both himself and his players as the statistics continue to mount against them, the record book showing Hibs have managed just one win in nine games so far this season.

Delve deeper and those figures don't improve any, hence the current wave of unrest sweeping through sections of the Easter Road support, their frustration and exasperation at what they've been watching boiling over at Rugby Park as they vented their spleen at the manager.

Hughes' exhortations to look beyond the results and to the performances have been largely ignored, the only fact of interest in football being the final scoreline and so this game will to most probably be viewed as just another defeat to be added to that lengthening list of disappointments.

But while Celtic certainly deserved victory, the fact it wasn't by the margin being predicted by the merchants of doom, who were reckoning it was only a matter of by how many, suggests that while Hibs may be down at the moment, they are by no means out. Over the years, teams too numerous to mention have merely capitulated having conceded a goal within the opening five minutes, quickly finding themselves two, three or even four down before they've even had the chance to catch their breath.

Even Hughes possibly feared the worst when he saw former Hibs stars Scott Brown and Anthony Stokes exchange passes for the former to lash a vicious shot high into the net, leaving the remaining 85 minutes as the sternest test of his side's resolve and strength of character.

Perhaps the Celtic players themselves, given the stark contrast in the respective fortunes of the clubs at present, felt that was it, that they'd be able to score at will against a team which, shorn of the services of Colin Nish and Darryl Duffy through injury and new signing Valdas Trakys deemed not ready for 90 minutes, particularly at a place like Celtic Park, was left with only Derek Riordan up front.

Riordan cut a waif-like figure against, as team-mate John Rankin put it, the "monsters" of Glenn Loovens and Daniel Majstorovic, their massive frames making it clear their opponent would get little change from them should he want to get physical, a scenario which left the Hibs star to live on his wits.

To that end, Riordan was full of movement, helping his side knock the ball around prettily enough without ever threatening Fraser Forster in the Celtic goal, Hibs' first shot on target a scuffed effort from their striker in the 52nd minute.

Sixty second earlier, however, Loovens had nodded in Celtic's second, the big defender arriving late from a chat with boss Neil Lennon on the touchline to meet Shaun Maloney's corner.

Rankin did hook the ball clear but the midfielder confessed it had, as assistant referee Brian Templeton indicated, crossed the line. It was a massive blow to Hibs, as Rankin admitted. "If we'd managed to keep it at one for the first 20 minutes of the second half we'd have had a chance but that goal killed us, after that it was an uphill struggle," he said.

Again, though, rather than throw in the towel, Hibs dug deep and were given a glimmer of hope three minutes later when Riordan somehow managed to chip the ball across and over the gigantic frame of Forster, all 6ft 7in of him, and into the top corner of the net.

As so often proves to be the case, though, it was too little, too late, Mark Brown's crossbar preventing Efrain Juarez from making it three for Celtic. And, while Lennon felt his side should have enjoyed a greater winning margin, Rankin insisted it wasn't entirely comfortable for the Glasgow outfit.

He said: "You could sense the nerves at 2-1. We'd come here last year and given a good account of ourselves, winning 2-1 and losing 3-2 so we knew we would get a chance and when we got it you could feel the crowd getting on their backs."

Riordan did have a half-chance for an equaliser, hammering a volley over the bar, leaving Celtic to enjoy a 14th straight SPL win under Lennon.

Rankin said: "Should we have gone route one? Is that the way we play football, I don't think so. If you look at our front five or six today we weren't the tallest so we needed slick passing and movement to break them down. Derek was up-front, 5ft 7in against two monsters, with Edwin de Graaf and David Wotherspoon trying to get close to him like myself and Liam Miller. "We had a lot of possession and Derek made a great contribution but at the end of the day unfortunately we gave ourselves too much to do. Perhaps we feel a bit hard done by that we didn't get something but Celtic deserved to win."

This match, of course, followed reports of a "bust-up" in the away dressing room following the Co-operative Insurance Cup exit at the hands of Kilmarnock, Hughes forced to stress that both Nish (ankle) and Sol Bamba (groin) were missing through injury and for no other reason.

And Rankin insisted things had been blown out of proportion, saying: "When you are beaten there are always going to be raised voices, arguments. It shows you care, that there's character, guys who want to win and have the desire to do so."

Again, however, Hughes was left with the task of trying to reassure supporters that things will turn in Hibs' favour, citing the effort and commitment of his players. He said: "I felt our performance was good, to go to Celtic Park you have to be hard-working and solid and I think that was evident.

"I thought we could have got something but you can't concede early goals in each half. The first one was right through the middle and we should have snuffed it out but to lose the second from a set-piece was disappointing.

"Our passing was good, we had good possession and in the second half we had a real go. You feel for someone like Derek, producing that quality of finish and ending up on the losing side.

"But we are in there battling, you could see the spirit, the work ethic the boys are putting in. All credit to them. I've been saying to them that you train as you play and that was evident in this match.

"We have to stick together, that result will come and then we'll be up and running."