Opinion: Dumbarton Aftermath

Hibs were expected to beat Dumbarton comfortably yet they didn’t so what went wrong.

Losing a game is occasionally acceptable when you see your team put in the right application or through downright bad luck but when you continually fail to learn from your mistakes then you have to expect some flak.

The boos which rang round the visiting support on Saturday after Hibs fans had watched their team succumb to a 2-1 defeat against likely relegation candidates Dumbarton, summed up the situation that we aren’t as good as we like to think we are and can be very easily beaten.

Last season teams found Hibs easy to score against and this season it looks like the pattern is continuing.

Mark Oxley may be a decent modern day keeper in regards to quick distribution and good with his feet but he just doesn’t save an awful lot.

Dumbarton really only had 3 goal bound efforts and they scored with two with the other saved by Oxley’s feet and one can only think Antonio Reguero will be given a chance soon although many believed the same of Tomas Cerny last season.

Perhaps the back line are equally to blame but as all football supporters believe goalkeepers can win or lose games on their own it seems only at Easter Road, ours never do.

Oxley of course wasn’t the only mediocre performance on a day of disappointments.

David Gray never showed the same quality as we were accustomed to last season whilst any ball through the centre seemed to cause Hanlon and Fontaine problems.

Lewis Stevenson was poor once again and while showing great attitude and spirit, his final ball whether short, long or a cross was abysmal.

In midfield, Hibs were overcome with players who are all a little too much of the same without any one of them actually seeming to know what they were doing.

Fraser Fyvie had a stinker. Caught in possession, poor passing and generally looking confused as to his role.

Marvin Bartley started ok but faded in the second half while young Scott Martin looks like he’s probably a year short of becoming a first team player.

Scott Allan was head and shoulders above anyone else on the pitch which was unfortunate as had his teammates been on a similar level they’d have cottoned on to his passes quicker than they did.

It was pleasing to see John McGinn make his debut and he looked like he’ll be a competent performer when up to full speed and looked a little reminiscent of a young Ian Murray in his half hour on the park.

Up front Malonga and Cummings looked disjointed and the latter seemed to drift too deep as he went searching for the ball when he’s at his best lurking around in the penalty box.

Malonga, despite his goal, just looks uninterested and the sooner James Keatings or Farid El Alagui are back the better to provide much needed competition.

Alan Stubbs will also come under scrutiny for this defeat.

McGinn, if fit enough for the bench should have started and whilst understanding he may have wanted to keep Scott Martin’s confidence high, you play your best players and quite simply, McGinn is better than Martin.

His bizarre substitution of Jason Cummings at a time Hibs were chasing the game and replacing him with Sam Stanton was a head scratcher

At the time of his introduction Hibs had, in effect, FIVE central midfielders on the park! It was as puzzling as trying to figure out how Fraser Fyvie lasted the full 90 minutes.

It was as poor a display as I can remember since falling to a similar scoreline at Alloa in the early part of last season and Hibs must improve quickly as a repeat of last year’s dismal opening quarter’s points tally won’t be tolerated this time round.

Match Report: Wtf Was That Hibs?