Jake Doyle-Hayes lights up Easter Road with wonder-strike as Hibs move into fourth place

This 2-0 victory for Hibs against Ross County was important on many levels.

Hibs' Jake Doyle-Hayes strikes to make it 1-0 to Hibs.

Their first triumph in the cinch Premiership in 2022, it moves them up back into the top six and up to fourth place in table as they hunt down a European place.

It also eases any fears about them being sucked into a relegation battle, with Hibs now 13 points clear of bottom spot and a forest of clubs beneath them.

Crucially, though, it takes some heat off manager Shaun Maloney, who has had his doubters even this early on from some restless sections of the Hibs support. There is still so much up for grabs for Hibs this season, with a Scottish Cup quarter-final against Motherwell also on the horizon.

Hibs won this match thanks to two goals from distance by their midfielder Jake Doyle-Hayes, the second of which is a contender for strike of the season. He had not scored for the club beforehand, and will struggle to bag a better one.

The first half was about as desperate a 45 minutes that you can watch at this level, however. There was one shot on target – although calling it a shot is false advertising – when Jordan White got in behind the Hibs backline, only to loft the ball gently into the hands of Hibs keeper Matt Macey from a tight angle. White did provide the half’s best moment of comedy, though, when he sank to the turf in the penalty box when Macey came out towards him. His attempt to win a spot-kick was laughable and he was rightly booked by referee Steven McLean.

Hibs tried to be enterprising but failed. Their sole outlet of note was right wing-back Chris Cadden, who continues to impress. He put in some inviting crosses, but Hibs could not get the bodies into the box, and on the one occasion they did, the ball rolled the wrong side of Kevin Nisbet.

The Scotland striker’s fluffed volley summed it up, and when the referee’s assistant held the board up for one minute, it would have been fairer for all inside Easter Road had it been a deduction rather than an addition. Hibs fans booed their team off at the half-time whistle.

Mercifully, proceedings improved after the break.

Hibs came out with intent and forced a flurry of corners, which led to the opening goal. Lewis Stevenson’s delivery landed at the feet of Josh Campbell, and while his effort was blocked, he showed good awareness to prod the ball back to Doyle-Hayes. The Irishman’s strike from 20 yards didn’t lack power but County keeper Ross Laidlaw will regret his weak-wristed attempt to save it.

Laidlaw redeemed himself with a good save to deny Ewan Henderson in a one-on-one situation and, from the resulting corner, the ex-Hibs keeper blocked a netbound Ryan Porteous header.

County poked their noses out of their shells, yet their threat was minimal. It was Hibs who bagged the second goal – and what a goal it was.

A clearance from Ross Callachan was controlled on his chest by Doyle-Hayes outside the box and he showed first-class technique to volley the ball high into the top corner. Laidlaw had no chance with one of the best strikes at Easter Road this season.

Hibs, imbued by confidence, pressed for more goals, but that was to be it. The boos turned to applause at full time – with some extra cheers when the Hearts defeat at St Johnstone came through over the tannoy.

A message from the Editor: Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by Coronavirus impacts our advertisers. If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.