Brown opted for calm approach as talk turned tide for Hibs

Hibs caretaker boss Billy Brown today revealed how he adopted a “softly softly” approach as he tackled his first half-time talk with the Easter Road side staring another defeat in the face.

Brown had heard his players leave the pitch to a chorus of boos after Manuel Pascali had fired Kilmarnock into the lead, a reaction he found perfectly understandable given the performance the fans had witnessed.

But while Pascali had warned of Brown’s “hairdryer treatment” from his days at Rugby Park with Jim Jefferies, on this occasion he decided to refrain from blasting the players.

He said: “We went off to a chorus of boos at half-time and I don’t blame anyone for that. You pay your money and you are entitled, but it does not help us.

“However, if your confidence is down a bit, going in there shouting and bawling is not going to work, you are just going to destroy people more. It was a case of sorting things out a bit, we changed the system a bit and for al the ball they had they did not really create many chances at all.”

Brown’s changes saw Leigh Griffiths replace Danny Galbraith and Richie Towell come on for Michael Hart, who had made a surprise start in his first appearance of the season following a long battle against injury.

And the caretaker was rewarded as on-loan Wolves striker Griffiths claimed his first goal at Easter Road to earn a precious point for struggling Hibs.

Brown said: “Leigh had been off for a couple of days with a stomach bug, he had a wee bout of gastroenteritis so he really wasn’t up to starting the game. But I knew we could get a half out of him.

“There were things he could have done better but he scored a goal and that’s what he is all about.”

Meanwhile, Hibs’ Under-19 side clocked up their fifth straight win with two goals from Danny Handling securing a 2-1 away victory over Aberdeen.