Hibs impress to go third but Mcginn picks up thigh injury
● Kilmarnock give their all and new boss Clarke earns ovation despite home defeat
Neil Lennon paid tribute to his players as Hibernian surged into third place in the Premiership with a clinical 3-0 win at Kilmarnock.
But the down side was that their midfield fulcrum John Mcginn had to come off with a thigh injury. Mcginn opened the scoring for Hibs, with Simon Murray and Martin Boyle also finding the net.
Lennon, the Easter Road side’s head coach, said: “It was another great performance and while the scoreline flattered us we were excellent. We were a real threat and scored three fantastic goals.
“To be third in the league at this stage of the season is very pleasing. We are starting to get the results we deserve.
“The players are coming into top class form but we are picking up a few injuries. I had to leave Steven Whittaker out and John Mcginn, as a result of the punishment he has taken, had to come off with a sore thigh. We will see how he is but I wouldn’t encourage him not to go with Scotland next week, I would prefer him to go.
“With the form he is in he deserves the call-up. He’s got tissue damage but it takes a lot to stop John. But unless he is really injured I won’t be phoning Malky Mackay.”
New Killie manager Steve Clarke said: “It was a slow start from us but once we found our feet I thought we did OK. We created a lot of chances but we couldn’t take any of them.”
Three was the magic number for Hibs as they climbed into third position, clinching three top-flight wins in succession for the first time since 2013 with a trio of goals at Rugby Park.
However, the fact that the home fans were cheering as loudly as the Hibs supporters at the end was indicative that they feel something special is brewing under new Kilmarnock manager Steve Clarke.
Killie had a lot of pressure, but Hibs were clinical and had that extra touch of quality, most notably in John Mcginn, who scored the first and played a key role in the second for Simon Murray with Martin Boyle netting a third in stoppage time.
Hibs manager Neil Lennon must have thought it was goingtobe comfortablewhen his side roared into the lead after just ten minutes.
It was a terrific goal too, as the ball was worked to David Gray – back in the side for the injured Steven Whittaker – on the right side of the Killie box.
Mcginn made his move, bursting into the area with purpose and Gray picked him out with a terrific cross allowing the midfield star to bullet a header past Jamie Macdonald.
Mcginn tried to reciprocate in 18 minutes when he drove a great corner from the right and Gray hit the base of the right post with a powerful header.
The Killie fans, who had given new manager Clarke a rousing reception prior to kick-off, must have feared the worst but they stuck by their side and their loyalty was justified as the Ayrshiremen retaliated impressively.
Jordan Jones, fresh from scoring an equaliser at Celtic Park last Saturday, exposed Hibs with his pace in 19 minutes but delayed hitting his shot and that allowed Lewis Stevenson to make a vital block.
Then Killie hit the woodwork twice in the space of four minutes as they started to really dictate the game. Rory Mackenzie hit the left post with a 25-yard shot in 28 minutes that had Ofir Marciano scrambling across his goal.
Then in 32 minutes Kris Boyd hit the underside of the bar with a terrific header after Greg Taylor crossed from the left, having been played in by Chris Burke.
It was a similar pattern in the early moments of the second half as Kilmarnock, inspired by the threat of Jones, really put Hibs under pressure but crucially they could not make it count.
He ripped them apart on the left side in 49 minutes, bursting to the byeline and then producing what seemed to be the perfect cutback for Boyd.
However, the normally deadly striker shot straight at Marciano from inside the six-yard box and a massive chance was missed.
Hibs seemed completely dishevelled at this point as Jones continued to torment them and he won a free-kick in 51 minutes.
Boyd took it and smashed a fantastic 30-yard effort that Marciano did well to push over the top for a corner. The Hibs goalkeeper made an even better save five minutes later when Jones cut in from the left and tried to find the top right corner, but Marciano got his left glove to the shot.
The pressure was alleviated when Hibs found a second goal in 61 minutes.
It was a terrific yet simple move as Mcginn pinged the ball to the right side of the box where Gray drove a low cross to the back post for Simon Murray who was waiting to sweep the ball into the net.
Kilmarnock came back again and they hemmed Hibs in for the last phase of the game without really looking like breaching their defence.
Boyd and Mackenzie had shotsblockedandboydstruck the post again in the final minute with another thunderous free-kick.