THe CHAMpionSHip
NEIL LENNON had mixed feelings after his side earned a point, despite being reduced to 10 men for most of the second half.
The Easter Road side had dominated the opening period and seemed set to go on to victory with a gale behind them in the second period – until the second yellow card saw the dismissal of Lewis Stevenson.
This seemed to give fresh impetus to the Dumfries players and, from then on, Hibs had to battle to hold on to the point which keeps them in second place in the table, just behind Queens.
Lennon said: “Down to 10 men with a lot of the game to go, I’ve got to be happy with a clean sheet and a point.”
He felt the second yellow was harsh and said: “We should have been ahead before that, but there were a lot of chances missed.”
Marvin Bartley returned to the Hibs line-up after his red card the previous week in the 2-1 defeat by Ayr was rescinded by the SFA.
Dropped to the bench were Fraser Fyvie, Andrew Shinnie and Grant Holt.
Queens had changes with skipper Chris Higgins, recovered from injury, brought in for the injured Jordan Marshall.
The game started at a frantic pace with Queens almost catching Hibs on the back foot as Stephen Dobbie collected in midfield and set Dale Hilson through on goal, but Ofir Marciano made a desperate save with his feet.
Hibs retaliated and keeper Lee Robinson was tested with a drive by John McGinn from the edge of the box before Jason Cummings headed into the keeper’s arms from point blank range.
This set the pattern for the early stages with Hibs having the bulk of the pressure but Queens were dangerous on the break.
One of Hibs’ best chances fell to Martin Boyle just before the break when he was given an opening 15 yards out but shot straight at the diving keeper.
Hibs had a rain-lashed wind behind them in the second period, but they were reduced to 10 men when Stevenson was shown a second yellow in 54 minutes following at tackle on Hilson.
This blew the match wide open and Queens, who had been playing second fiddle, suddenly began to pose a real threat in front of goal.
It was corner after corner at each end in the dying minutes but neither side could break that deadlock.
Queens boss Gavin Skelton was delighted to see his side hold on to a point.
“I thought we deserved the point and might well have taken all three,” he said.