WE’RE CUMMING UP SHORT NOW
Lenny blasts Jason and shot-shy Hibees team-mates SCOTTISH CHAMPIONSHIP
Neil Lennon has accused Jason Cummings of not contributing enough to Hibs after another wasteful performance.
The Scotland Under-21 striker has netted eight goals this season but has been guilty of missing chances in recent games. And against Queens he missed two glorious close- range opportunities to send Hibs back to the top of the Championship.
Instead, Queens retained top spot with a hard-fought draw although they failed to secure a huge win after Lewis Stevenson saw red for Hibs.
Lennon also questioned why the likes of Grant Holt, Martin Boyle, James Keatings and Brian Graham – with four goals between them – are not getting on the end of chances.
He said: “My attacking players were poor and this needs to be addressed.
“Jason has missed two gilt- edged chances – a header from five yards and one from a corner where the ball drops to him two yards from goal. All he has to do is make decent contact and we are a goal up.
“We should be doing better in the final third. These chances all seem to fall to Jason. Listen, he’s a good goalscorer but if he isn’t scoring goals then he isn’t bringing much to the team at the minute. He needs to do better.
“We’re dominating games and creating chances and the vast majority come to Jason. So, we can ask the others, ‘Where are you? Why is everything falling to Jason?’
“I don’t want to be too critical, and there are parts of Jason’s game he needs to tidy up, but we can’t keep relying on him. We set high standards and I want to make the players better.”
While attention was on Cummings after the match, it was a former Hibs forward, Stephen Dobbie, who was the first to threaten, producing a superb pass to send Dale Hilson through on goal just 90 seconds in.
But Ofir Marciano made a fine save with his legs to deny the winger.
Cummings wasted a golden chance when he nodded a David Gray delivery straight into the arms of Lee Robinson from point-blank range.
With incessant rain and a whipping wind playing havoc, Marciano was struggling with his kicking.
But Hibs – playing into the gale in the first period – came closest to scoring, with Gray heading wide and Graham’s low shot narrowly off target.
Cummings had a terrific chance after the break when a John McGinn corner fell kindly to him just six yards from goal. But he couldn’t sort out his feet quickly enough to get a shot away.
Hibs were soon reduced to 10 men, with Stevenson receiving a second yellow card for hauling down Hilson, having been cautioned before the break for crashing through Jamie Hamill.
Lennon added: “Once again we go down to 10 men for a long period of the game and I’m not convinced it was a red card. Lewis hasn’t pushed the boy, he just put his hand out, and he was going down any way.”
Queens, pushing for a winner, saw their best chance come and go when Hi lson saw a close- range effort superbly parried clear by Marciano.