Hibs 6-6 Motherwell: Huge lead and a Nish hat-trick still not enough

After suffering six successive defeats, few would have envisaged John Hughes' side being 4-1 and then 6-2 up against Motherwell, their rivals for fourth place in the SPL table and that last guaranteed spot in next season's Europa League, four goals to the good and with only 25 minutes to play.

But, yet again, the Hibees' soft centre was exposed, far more cruelly than throwing it all away in the final ten minutes at Celtic Park and far, far worse even than surrendering a derby day lead to Hearts, a result which had helped stoke the Gorgie side's hopes of overhauling their Capital rivals.

All that, however, appeared to have been forgotten as Hughes' players stormed into that commanding lead, one which, had it stood, would have seen them leapfrog Motherwell into fourth and leave the Fir Park club travelling to Ibrox on Sunday knowing only a win would do no matter how Hibs fared against Dundee United at Tannadice.

While this 12-goal thriller, the biggest aggregate scoreline in the history of the SPL, all but killed off Hearts' ambitions, Jim Jefferies' side needing a win over Celtic and a massive swing in goal difference, it still leaves Hibs' own hopes in the hands of others.

If the final round of fixtures sees the table remain as it does today, with Hibs in fifth, they'll then depend on United beating Ross County in the following weekend's Scottish Cup final, an outcome few will count on given the First Division club's track record in this year's competition.

While there's little doubt that when the action got underway last August most Hibs fans would have accepted with alacrity the proposition that they'd be going into the final day of the season, still with a chance of Europe, the early exuberance nurtured by the sight of Hughes' players bounding up the league to the point where third spot appeared guaranteed and even prompted talk of a title challenge has long gone.

In its place is an exasperation, a growing unease at the dramatic downturn which has afflicted the team, this result certain to fuel the raw emotions which are being expressed by supporters who, already on the receiving end following the derby defeat, know they'll be getting it tight from opposition fans in the wake of this capitulation.

The fact that Hibs, having finished sixth in each of the last three years, are almost certain to end at least one place higher this season with their points tally already better than 12 months ago, seems almost irrelevant given what has happened, the goalscoring exploits of Stokes (with 23 for the season), Riordan (17) and Nish (ten) undone by a goals-against column which has taken on a hideous complexion, five at St Johnstone, four conceded against Dundee United and then Hamilton, three at Celtic Park and now half-a-dozen in Lanarkshire.

While Hughes talks of strength of character and "training like champions", the supporters simply want to see a team which has found itself running up the white flag far too often after being in a winning position show a belief in themselves. It's almost, as the manager admitted in the wake of the weekend defeat by Hearts, as if they've somehow become scared of winning, or at least they appear to have forgotten how.

As Nish, who claimed only the second hat-trick of his career, admitted, there was no-one else to blame but the players, the striker saying: "It's unbelievable that we didn't take all three points."

Even the Motherwell fans couldn't quite believe what they had just seen, Craig Brown's team looking dead and buried not once but twice before a last-gasp strike from on-loan Everton youngster Lukas Jutkiewicz ended an unforgettable night with a finish of which Marco van Basten would have approved, holding off Paul Hanlon before driving an unstoppable shot on the angle over Hibs goalkeeper Graeme Smith and into the far top corner of the net.

At that point, all Hibs could be grateful for was that the game didn't have another five minutes to run as defeat would most certainly have been their fate.

What a contrast to less than half-an-hour earlier as many Motherwell fans headed for the exits after seeing Stokes claim his second, and Hibs' sixth. There was, it appeared, no way back with, possibly, the only question being whether Hibs could add to that tally.

It certainly appeared possible with Nish, Stokes and Riordan looking unstoppable. Nish proved actions speak louder than words, the striker having been forced to apologise for some ill-thought views on the Hibs support, turning David Wotherspoon's inviting cross into the net only to see Giles Coke do likewise at the other end.

Recently such a setback has proved too much for Hughes' side but on this occasion they came roaring back, Nish getting enough contact on Riordan's cut-back to beat John Ruddy before Deeks himself got in on the act, latching on to Coke's poor passback to round the Motherwell keeper and slot the ball home from a tight angle.

Nish made it four, and his first hat-trick in almost five years, with another tap-in only for John Sutton to power home a header to cut the leeway at the break.

Motherwell made a spirited start to the second half but any misgivings Hibs may have had seemed to disappear as Stokes prodded home Liam Miller's low cross before meeting Riordan's near-post pass to clip the ball into the net – 6-2 and cruising.

Only three more minutes had elapsed, however, when Jim Murphy's shot came back off the woodwork for Coke to score before Smith allowed a Hateley free-kick to squirm past him, fuelling Motherwell's growing belief that there may, just, be something left for them.

The home crowd sensed as much, too, and when Sutton beat Smith to a Jim O'Brien corner you just knew what was coming. That moment appeared to have arrived when Smith brought Jutkiewicz down, only to redeem himself by saving Ross Forbes' spot-kick. The Motherwell heads went down but rose again as four minutes of added time were announced and they took full advantage as Jutkiewicz claimed that fantastic equaliser.

All this for a tenner or, for kids and pensioners, 1. In these days when fans complain they are often short-changed by the standard of football and lack of goals on offer, no-one could do so on this occasion – unless, of course, you were a Hibs supporter who'd have been far happier with the worst game in the world and a 1-0 win.

Like them, Hughes admitted his emotions were "all over the place", and agreed this was a match his side should never have lost.

Now, though, both he and his players have just 90 minutes on Tayside this Sunday to redeem themselves in the eyes of their supporters.