Hibs’ Head Coach Neil Lennon believes that yesterday’s victory over Dundee at Easter Road was ‘arguably the best result of the season considering the circumstances.’
With influential players Steven Whittaker, Darren McGregor and Danny Swanson missing the game due to injury, Hibs lost Dylan McGeouch, David Gray and Brandon Barker during a high tempo and often bad tempered 90 minutes.
Martin Boyle opened the scoring in the opening minute before Marcus Haber equalised for the visitors
Ofir Marciano produced a world class save to deny Dundee striker Faissal El Bakhtaoui before Simon Murray struck the decisive goal with a volley from a superb Anthony Stokes cross.
After the game Lennon told BBC Scotland: “It’s a fantastic result, arguably the best of the season considering the circumstances.
“We’re down to 15 fit players, we lost three today, but the second-half performance was more than I could have expected from the team.
“I thought they were breathtaking at times, particularly the last half hour.
“Second half, we galvanised and played well. I felt we could have won the game by more and I felt we had a perfectly good goal disallowed, Stokesy’s onside.”
Dundee manager Neil McCann insisted that Stokes should have been sent off earlier due to a punch on Jack Hendry however the incident was witnessed by the referee’s assistant who clearly felt that the Dundee player was simulating an injury and the referee John Beaton booked both players.
The Hibs’ fans agreed with the assessment and booed Hendry throughout the remainder of the game and chanted ‘Cheat’ when he was in possession.
When Lennon was asked about the incident he responded: “I’d need to see it before I can make a comment.
“If he has punched him, there might be retrospective punishment, but [not] if the referee has seen it and the other officials have seen it [and] they’ve warranted it a yellow card.
“There was lot going on in the game and I didn’t think we got the rub of the green with decision at times, but I’m not here to criticise the referee today. I’m just thoroughly proud of my team.
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
