Hibs ended the year with comfortable 3-1 over Dundee United in front of the maximum 500 fans at Tannadice this afternoon.
Head Coach Maloney made two changes to starting XI that beat Aberdeen 1-0 in midweek.
Drey Wright started his first league game of the season, whilst Lewis Stevenson replaced the injured Paul McGinn in defence.
Long term injury victim Melker Hallberg was listed amongst the substitutes.
Hibs had an early chance but Wright dragged a shot just wide from the edge of the box.
It then took some excellent defending from Charlie Mulgrew to keep Hibs at bayas the visitors dominated possession.
The breakthrough eventually arrived in the 38th Martin Boyle’s effort fell kindly for Kevin Nisbet to find the net from close range.
United players appealed for offside but after consulting his assistants Willie Collum gave the goal.
Chris Cadden almost doubled Hibs advantage but his shot deflected just wide.
Just before the break Ben Siegrist produced a superb save to deny Boyle.
United started the second-half on top and Matt Macey did well to save at his near post from Nicky Clarke.
Jamie Murphy (pictured) replaced Wright on the hour mark and had an early chance but fired over the bar from the edge of the box.
At the other end Adrian Sporle’s powerful effort was pushed round the post by Macey then United had to play the final 15-minutes with ten men after Mulgrew went off injured after the hosts had used all three substitutes.
Hibs doubled their advantage with 12-minutes remaining when Boyle unselfishly cut the ball back to Cadden who fired the ball into the net for his first goal for the club.
Hibs should have made it 3-0 but Nisbet tried to set up Murphy instead of finishing himself.
United pulled one back with one minute remaining following a superb goal from Declan Glass but Murphy wrapped things up in the last minute of added time.
After the final whistle Maloney told BBC Scotland: “I think our defensive players were exceptional. I was really impressed with the first half, to have that amount of possession and shots, and the way we played. It was just a shame there were no supporters here.”
Dundee United: Siegrist, Sporle, Mulgrew, Clark, Neilson, Freeman (Niskanen 46’), Harkes, Mochrie (Glass 62’), Watson (Chalmers 71’), Meekison, McMann. Substitutes not used: Newman, Hoti, Thompson, Smith.
Hibernian: Macey, Doig (McGregor 72’), Hanlon, Porteous, Wright (Murphy 61’), Boyle, Nisbet (Doidge 82’), Stevenson, Doyle-Hayes, Cadden, Campbell. Substitutes not used: Dabrowski, Hallberg, Allan, Scott.
Referee: Willie Collum.
Attendance: 500.
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.
