2nd Dec 2017 Partick Thistle 0 Hibernian 1 (SPFL Premiership - game 15)

matches:2017-18: ← 21game 2223 →

40y, 4m, 19d	Alan Archibald	Neil Lennon

no changes
no changes

		Adam Barton (0-1, og 48 mins)
		Lewis Stevenson (0-1, og 48 mins)
Jordan Turnbull

Steven Lawless (Kris Doolan, 60 mins); Miles Storey (Conor Sammon, 75 mins); Chris Erskine (Gary Fraser, 80 mins)		Simon Murray (Oli Shaw, 65 mins); Anthony Stokes (Brandon Barker, 77 mins); Martin Boyle (Deivydas Matulevicius, 90+2 mins)

32y, 7m, 22d	Tomáš Černý	Ofir Marciano
27y, 1m, 10d	Paul McGinn	Paul Hanlon
23y, 1m, 2d	Jordan Turnbull	Darren McGregor
22y, 7m, 27d	Niall Keown	Efe Ambrose
25y, 2m, 25d	Danny Devine	Marvin Bartley
26y, 10m, 25d	Adam Barton	Vykintas Slivka
21y, 11m, 13d	Blair Spittal	Dylan McGeouch
24y, 0m, 15d	Ryan Edwards	Lewis Stevenson
23y, 10m, 28d	Miles Storey	Martin Boyle
30y, 9m, 24d	Chris Erskine	Simon Murray
26y, 7m, 20d	Steven Lawless	Anthony Stokes

25y, 10m, 27d

25y, 1m, 3d	Ryan Scully	Kevin Dabrowski
30y, 11m, 21d	Kris Doolan	Deivydas Matulevicius
31y, 0m, 26d	Conor Sammon	Brandon Barker
20y, 8m, 24d	Kevin Nisbet	Oli Shaw
23y, 5m, 0d	Gary Fraser	Fraser Murray
19y, 1m, 12d	Andy McCarthy	Ryan Porteous
31y, 11m, 1d	Martin Woods

notes

Both sides generally in playing order.
Hibs filled only 6 of their 7 allocated bench slots.

TTA report

An even first half saw Erskine shoot straight at the keeper and Spittal go close with a 30-yard free-kick. Hibs went ahead from an OG (48) when Barton glanced a header past Cerny. Hibs posed more problems after that and should have gone further ahead. Thistle fought on but they lacked a clinical finish.

Media report

Alasdair Lamont, 02-Dec-2017, bbc.com

Hibernian climbed to third place in the Scottish Premiership after Adam Barton's own goal earned them a narrow win over bottom side Partick Thistle. Chris Erskine tested Hibs goalkeeper Ofir Marciano in a drab first half. Barton's glanced header nestled in the bottom corner of the Thistle net three minutes into the second period. Replacement Kris Doolan was denied by Marciano, and Anthony Stokes went close for Hibs as Partick fell four points adrift at the foot of the table. The result maintains Hibs' unbeaten away record - they have not lost on the road since March, and a Championship defeat by St Mirren - and lifts them to within a point of Aberdeen, who meet Rangers on Sunday.

The first half was a virtual write-off in terms of meaningful action, with Thistle's Erskine blasting straight at Marciano inside the box, and Spittal's deflected free-kick drawing another good stop from the Israeli international. It may have been a measure of Neil Lennon's dissatisfaction that the Hibs boss continued his half-time team talk out on the pitch before the second half got under way. Perhaps spurred on by his manager's words of wisdom, Martin Boyle quickly took the initiative, driving purposefully through the Thistle defence, only to be scythed down by Jordan Turnbull. And though Stokes' initial free kick was defended well enough, when Lewis Stevenson curled the ball back into the box, Barton's unfortunate intervention took it past the wrong-footed Tomas Cerny.

Hibs sought to punish Thistle further but Alan Archibald's men weathered the storm to fashion opportunities of their own, the pick of which was created by Miles Storey and almost converted by substitute Doolan, but Marciano saved instinctively with his leg. Thistle's failure to convert chances has been their downfall this season - the Premiership's lowest scorers played Storey, Doolan and Connor Sammon up front over the course of the match but couldn't find an equaliser. Indeed, the visitors could have stretched their lead further when Stokes rounded Cerny but could not finish from a tight angle, and Efe Ambrose miscued his square pass from deep inside the Partick box. Results elsewhere leave Thistle further adrift at the bottom of the table and though they have a game in hand on Dundee and Kilmarnock, they need to find a cutting edge - and quickly.

Reaction

Partick Thistle manager Alan Archibald (speaking to the BBC):

I think it was a very even game, there wasn't a lot in it. We worked their goalie with the best chances in the game. I thought it was quite a good game to watch. I'm quite positive about our play today. I thought we played some good stuff. We've still got to be positive, we've got a massive game next week [against Kilmarnock]. We've got a tough run of games coming up but they're good games in terms of six-pointers and we need to make sure we get points from them because we've got a chance to close that gap.

Hibernian head coach Neil Lennon (speaking to the BBC):

I would like us to win games more comfortably although I'll take the win - it's a fantastic win and we've played very, very well. I thought we dominated territorially and possession-wise but that doesn't win you games and that's a bit of a bugbear at the minute. We missed some great chances to kill the game off second half and had to rely on Ofir to make a great save at one stage. Martin Boyle has been outstanding this season and he was outstanding again. He's one of the best players in the division now.

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