How Hibs 'spooked' Kilmarnock in big win as moment that left rival rattled made clear
The Ayrshire side were unable to break their 12-year Easter Road curse
Neil McCann said prior to Kilmarnock’s trip to Easter Road that he’d like to see his team play without fear, however after conceding the opener 13 seconds in against Hibs, he admitted his side were ‘spooked’ for the rest of the game.
It was Owen Elding who struck early before Felix Passlack doubled the hosts’ advantage. As the January additions continue to impress for David Gray, Ante Suto put the icing on the cake in the last minute to make it 3-0. The result means Killie still haven’t recorded a league win in Leith since May 2014.
After the early setbacks, the visitors struggled to get a foothold in the game and were limited to few chances with the exception of Findlay Curtis’ first half strike, that was chalked off by VAR for offside. Under McCann’s stewardship, Killie had somewhat turned a corner in recent weeks after a 17-game winless run, however a positive result in Leith wasn’t on the cards from the get-go.
Early goal ‘spooked’ Killie
McCann claimed after the match that Elding’s opener put a spanner in the works in terms of his team’s tactics. The Hibs striker bagged the second fastest goal of the Scottish Premiership era behind former Killie man, Kris Boyd, who found the target after only 10 seconds when the Ayrshire side defeated Ross County in January 2017.
The Killie boss said: "It was just the worst possible start you could have coming here. We stabilised, but losing such an early goal rocked us, spooked us, and lifted Hibs. We were a wee bit rattled and that's when you're looking for a wee bit of leadership to settle things down. After that initial period, we were the better side throughout the match.
“The start kills us, and they score right at the death to compound the misery. But we probably didn't deserve anything from the game because of our quality. When we got into the right areas, we didn't have any quality in the final third and that's what makes the final difference."
McCann on relegation dogfight
The result means Kilmarnock remain 11th place in the Premiership table with six games to go. The sides above them, St Mirren and Aberdeen faced off in Paisley where the Buddies emerged 2-0 victors. They now both sit three points ahead of Killie, whose goal difference is inferior. Eighth placed Dundee remain five points ahead of McCann’s side as they prepare to host Celtic on Sunday.
The Kilmarnock boss is currently only focusing on what he can control at Rugby Park ahead of the split. He added: "I don't care about results elsewhere. I'm more focused on our result, that's the most important thing. We'll look to bounce back. Starting a game like that is not acceptable, let the fans down today, and ourselves."