Boyle dedicates his good form to father after stroke
Dons wilt under pressure but Hibs show fight as Australian makes them tick
Thankfully
I’ve managed to put in a shift for the big man
MARTIN BOYLE is increasingly becoming Hibs’ most influential and important player – and against Aberdeen on Saturday, he was once again the difference.
A goal in each half for the Australian international capped off an impressive week. The previous weekend he scored the insurance goal in a 2-0 win over Dundee United and grabbed another in midweek against St Mirren, also getting an assist for Ryan Porteous’ opener.
His recent good form has been in part motivated by personal reasons, he revealed on Saturday, after his father Graeme suffered a stroke.
“That’s why I was out of the team for Rangers,” Boyle said. “Obviously I know at the back of my mind that he’d kill me if I wasn’t playing. Thankfully I’ve managed to pick up and put in a shift for the big man at the moment.
“He’s on the mend, which is good, hopefully that continues. He’s been by my side from the start, which is crucial. I’ve hit a bit of form for him.”
The win gave Hibs breathing room in third place as they now have a five-point advantage over Aberdeen. They also finally dealt with a monkey that has been on their back all season.
When pressure has surfaced, Hibs have struggled to deal with it. They have lost twice in semi-finals and had suffered defeat in their two previous matches with nearest challengers Aberdeen.
“We had to [win],” Boyle said. “The semi-finals weren’t good enough. We had to come out and show that we had fight and spirit in this team and give the fans what they deserve and push for third.
“We know that we have the capabilities of finishing there, but we need to earn the right and today we did. We were in their faces; they are a good side and we dominated in our box and in midfield as well and we did take our chances.
“We know what is at stake this season, we want to play European football.
“It would be massive for the club and obviously massive for us in the dressing room.”
While, only a win would suffice for Hibs, Aberdeen were similarly in need of a result. Pressure has continued to grow on Derek McInnes and a run of just one win in seven matches before kickoff has not done anything to
ease the frustrations of their supporters.
While Aberdeen did start with a greater intensity than recently, they fell behind midway through the first half when Boyle fired home a penalty which had been won by Jamie Murphy. Lewis Ferguson was adjudged to have fouled Murphy inside the area and Boyle did the rest from the spot.
Chris Cadden’s signing has allowed Boyle more freedom, with his four goals in a week the result. No longer restrained by the defensive responsibilities he has when playing at wing-back, his threat running in behind teams means Hibs have a greater counter-attacking ability once they have a lead to hold on to.
And as Aberdeen poured men forward in an attempt to breach the home defence, Boyle was increasingly astute at exploiting the gaps that began to open.
When Lewis Stevenson gathered the ball near the halfway line and slid it in behind the Aberdeen defence for Boyle to pounce upon, a goal seemed inevitable. The former Dundee man was composed enough to finish through the legs of Joe Lewis to secure the points 20 minutes from time.
McInnes’ side showed little offensively and while he pointed out his new forwards would take time to adjust, his side now face an uphill battle to finish third.
“We’re not carrying that threat going forward and individual slight errors have led to goals for the opposition. To be honest that’s cost us,” admitted winger Jonny Hayes.
“The manager is always going to be the one that carries the faults for his players. We know as a player group we’ve not been good enough, simple as.
“I think players have to bear responsibility, myself included.
“As a team we’re not playing well enough, that’s the be-all and end-all for me.”