Livingston come out roaring after break
DAVIE MARTINDALE put Livingston’s spirited victory over Hibernian down to some t actical t i nkering f rom t he sidelines as his side twice came from behind to record a 3-2 win at Easter Road.
The men from the capital started the game strongly but fell away as the first half progressed before the Lions came out for the second a renewed team as they put a lacklustre Hibs to the sword.
“We got in at half-time and I spoke to the boys about what we needed to do,” Martindale said. “It allowed us to get a bit more pressure on the centrehalves. I thought we were very, very good and worth the three points. We had something like 19 shots on goal and 10 were on target. You can look at possession but possessions don’t win you games of football. Shots on goal win you games.”
Demetri Mitchell was handed his first start and the former Hearts loanee didn’t waste any time in endearing himself to the home crowd at Easter Road. An early Hibs corner was punched clear by Max Stryjek. It fell to the feet of Chris Cadden, whose whipped delivery wasn’t dealt with by the Livingston defence as Mitchell ghosted in at the back post and stabbed home.
The cheers from the stands turned to boos within seconds of the restart. Odin Bailey latched onto a neat through ball as Matt Macey came storming off his line and referee Grant Irvine pointed to the spot. The Hibs keeper was furious but Irvine relented on his decision after a brief chat with the linesman. Livi wouldn’t have to wait long for their equaliser to arrive, though. With 18 minutes on the clock, the visitors won a free-kick 40 yards from goal. Bailey’s delivery didn’t look threatening at first but Macey gambled on meeting the ball first. The goalkeeper couldn’t quite reach it, Ayo Obileye jumped highest and his looped header bounced into the net.
Joel Nouble, making his first Premiership start for Livingston following an impressive loan spell at Arbroath, was proving to be a handful and narrowly bent an effort wide of the far post before a brilliant – if somewhat fortuitous – strike from Cadden restored Hibs’ lead. Situated just next to the right corner flag, he hooked a high ball into the box more out of hope than expectation and watched as it delicately arched over Stryjek and nestled into the back of the net.
But Livi deservedly levelled on 53 minutes. A long throw from the right wasn’t met by a Hibs defender and Jack Fitzwater was at hand to steer the ball home from close range.
Hibs were on the ropes now. Two shots were booted off their line in quick succession before Livi took the lead through Forrest. Some slack passing in midfield saw Hibs gift possession and the ball was quickly worked to the attacker, who did well to drive into the box and create an angle before curling the ball past Macey. Chris Mueller and Jamie Murphy were introduced from the bench as Maloney shuffled the deck but the result was the same.
“Whenever you play Livingston there’s always going to be actions like the first goal or the long throw,” Maloney surmised. “They’re never, ever out the game. I’m really disappointed with how we defended those actions – and really the performance in the second half.”