A bold decision, a boss in midfield and three precious points - talking points as Hibs return to winning ways
Not even Sir Humphrey could have bounced gaffer out of his selection
It was certainly, as Sir Humphrey of Yes Minister fame used to say to his master/servant/democratically elected hostage Jim Hacker, a very bold move. For those unfamiliar with the show, a real gem from an age when every sitcom on the BBC was certainly NOT riddled with racism, being saluted for bravery was usually enough to bounce Hacker into rethinking his course of action.
Kudos to David Gray, then, for sticking to his guns. Leaving World Cup-bound Scotland defender Grant Hanley on the bench. Rearranging his midfield. And deploying Jamie McGrath in an entirely unfamiliar position out on the left flank.
Bold, indeed. Foolhardy would have been the verdict, had things gone against Hibs at Easter Road. A stroke of genius, now that it’s paid off.
What did we learn from an ultimately comfortable 3-0 battering of the Bairns? Plenty. Let’s dive in.
The accidental wingback
McGrath was excellent as he deputised for Nicky Cadden/Jordan Obita, neither of whom were available because of injury. Within the opening five minutes, you could see exactly why Gray went for the Irish midfielder – rather than, say, pushing Jack Iredale up from centre-half – on the left flank in a 3-5-2.
“Jamie is someone that you need to tell him once,” said Gray, explaining his thinking. “Tactically, he's a very intelligent footballer.
“When you tell him where he's going to play, or what you'd like him to do, he never looks at you as if to say: ‘What, left wing-back?’ He didn't once suggest that.
“He's very much a team player. You see that in the way he plays. I think, at times today, playing a strange role, he's done exactly what we needed him to do.
“He's part of a team that's kept a clean sheet, which is great. Three goals at home. All in all, a really good day for him.”
Josh Mulligan is the boss of all midfield bosses
There are days when former Dundee all-rounder Mulligan looks as if he’s playing in the wrong age group. Like he’s been dropped in with a bunch of youngsters who simply can’t cope with his energy, drive and physicality.
As he ran all over the top of Falkirk, drawing three bookings in the opening half hour and generally driving John McGlynn to distraction, another thing became obvious. Mulligan has definitely improved since his summer move.
He’s better on the ball, more aware of his surroundings, than he was in those early days of all-action chaos. Hibs have landed a special one there. Even less than half a season into his Easter Road career, he looks like he could go a very long way in the game.
Falkirk paid price for tight offside call
McGlynn is a truly excellent manager. And he did everything he could to get his team something from this game. But the Bairns left Easter Road bemoaning what might have been.
“We expected Hibs to have a go, they've lost their last two games, they're at home and they'll see us, a recently promoted team, they're going to come at us,” said McGlynn. “Hibs were set up to win the ball back high against a possession based team. They managed to do that on a couple of occasions and punish us.”
The one-time Hearts boss also became the latest Scottish Premiership manager – Gray included – to raise questions about the accuracy of VAR when it comes to offside calls, after Ethan Ross had a goal disallowed with Hibs 2-0 up but under pressure, McGlynn saying: “I believe that if the goal is allowed rather than being disallowed, then 2-1 is game on. We were the better team in the second half, full stop.
“When I look at my monitor, which doesn't have lines, it looks like it's onside. Obviously, VAR is there to make sure these things are right.
“I think that would have given us a great lift, having played so well in the second half. It may well have made Hibs a little bit more edgy and a little bit more anxiety, which would have transmitted from the stadium.”
Win sets up Rangers away
Three points. That’s all Hibs picked up today. As they bounced back from losing consecutive league games for the first team in over a year, however, victory felt especially important.
Looking through their dance card for the rest of 2025, Hibs are away to Rangers, away to Dundee United, play host to Hearts and then welcome Aberdeen to Easter Road. The nature of the next two games, in particular, made it vital that Hibs won at home.
“It was, very much so,” said Gray, the former club captain adding: “Especially off the back of what was made of back-to-back defeats going into this game.
“As I said before, it's a sign of how positive it's been for over a year since that's happened. It's a really good sign.
“But you need to then bounce back in the right possible way. They've done that today.
“We're delighted with that. It's given us a platform to build on, because of the fixtures that are coming up. Back-to-back away games, difficult ones.
“But this period is a really important period. I think they've given us a really good platform today to go and build on.”