Hibs keep faith in howler-prone Malkowski

This is despite the fact the Pole was culpable for the loss of two goals which cost the Easter Road club victory in the Edinburgh derby last week.

Identified by team mate Rob Jones in the immediate aftermath of the 2-2 draw with Hearts as the reason why Hibs didn't claim all three points, Malkowski has earned the support of his colleagues over the past week as well as the backing of the interim management team of Mark Proctor and John Park.

"Zibi is a confident lad," observed the youth coach. "He gets up and gets on with things. I would also say the players here have been really good and rallied round him. I'm sure Zibi will be fine. I know Rob was really disappointed after the Hearts match because he prides himself on conceding zero goals each week. He's a true defensive leader and was just disappointed at the end of the match when two goals were chucked away."

Asked if the toughest selection decision they faced against Dunfermline concerned whether or not to stick with Malkowski, Park indicated the coaches were aware of the goalkeeper's errors against Hearts but seemed willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

"Thanks to modern technology, we can take a close look at the game against Hearts and learn that Zibi has had nothing to do except pick the ball out of the net twice," said Park. "At the first goal, it seems clear that he's decided to come and take part by going for a punched clearance he should never have come for. He knows that was a mistake.

"But I don't think we can blame Zibi 100 per cent for the second goal we lost. It started with a short free kick when Paul Hartley came deep for Hearts. Our first attacking midfielder didn't go and pick him up and stop the long ball through. After that, the shape of our back four wasn't set up properly. If you look at the tape, you can see they're too close together.

"After that, Zibi has gambled and their centre-forward has got the shot away. Maybe he didn't cover the front post brilliantly. But apart from that he's only had a few pass-backs to deal with. In many respects, it was the best we've played in a long, long while. We never gave Hearts a kick of the ball. It would be hard to change a team that's played as well as that."

If Malkowski is given the opportunity to make amends on the strength of a team performance which was exhilarating in spells, the Hibs players know they need to perform at the same level of intensity against teams in the bottom half of the SPL as they do against Celtic, Rangers and Hearts.

After defeating Rangers, for example, Hibs engaged reverse against Falkirk and St Mirren.

Chris Killen, the club's imposing centre-forward, is aware of this worrying contrast and knows the players need to show more consistency.

"Against the smaller clubs, it's true we seem to struggle a bit because we don't apply ourselves as we should," he said.

Park added: "We've been failing against the lower teams and the match against Dunfermline is as big a challenge for us as the Edinburgh derby. We have to get the players focused and ready to break down the opposition. People know we're a talented side who can pass the ball for fun. So they pack the midfield and defence against us. It's up to us to break them down in wide areas."

Unlike other candidates for the vacant manager's job, Proctor has an opportunity to impress the Hibs board over the next couple of games against Dunfermline and Aberdeen. If his skills as a youth coach have been well documented, the former Darlington assistant now has an opportunity to show he can be a manager in his own right. "I have no idea whether what happens in this period could win me the job," he said. "All that John and I are concentrating on is getting the boys prepared mentally and physically for a tough game against Dunfermline. We're in the results business and that's what we'll be striving for at East End Park."