St Johnstone produced a phenomenal second half comeback to secure a precious victory in front of 1,000 joyous Perth supporters.
A goal down to a Mykola Kuharevich header, Callum Davidson’s side were a team reborn after the break and took full advantage of playing against 10 men for 20 minutes of the contest.
Nicky Clark and Stevie May got the goals to clinch the fourth win of the season – both headers as well.
They haven’t moved up a place in the Premiership but they’re now closer to the top six than the bottom of the table.
A game of two halves
With 34% possession, no shots on target, barely any passes strung together and one goal behind, there looked precious little prospect of a St Johnstone comeback at half-time.
A combination of changes in personnel, a change of system and a change of mentality transformed this match, though.
A red card for Kyle Magennis certainly didn’t hurt either.
The wait for a 90-minute performance may not be over but this was a magnificent turnaround, whatever the numerical advantage Saints ended up with.
Hibs hadn’t lost at home in the league all season.
When Saints pass the ball with composure and show the right attacking intent, they are a very good team in the making.
McLennan’s first start
Connor McLennan has had to wait a while for his first start since signing on loan from Aberdeen on deadline day.
His had been the role of impact sub – on five occasions, with a total of just under 90 minutes of action.
Callum Davidson decided that this was the time to put him on from the beginning, as part of a tweaked formation.
McLennan grafted in his left-sided role behind Nicky Clark (with Drey Wright on the right).
It was a mixed bag when the ball was played into his feet – sometimes he held the ball up well or used his strength to draw a foul, on other occasions (not long before the opening goal) he was careless with his pass.
McLennan seldom got the chance to run at a Hibs defender in or around the box in the first half.
And the one time he did, shifting the ball on to his right foot, his effort was well wide of the target.
It was Saints’ only shot of the half.
McLennan certainly did his bit in the second 45 revival – off the right this time.
With just over 10 minutes left he was first to a rebound from a May effort but he couldn’t find the net.
His night’s work wasn’t done, though.
The former Scotland under-21 international came up with his best cross of the match to pick out May, who did the rest for the winning goal.
Willie and his VAR toys
Willie Collum is probably the best referee Scotland has.
But Willie Collum also, how shall I put this, has a predilection for making himself the centre of attention on occasions.
Having him in charge of the VAR gizmos brought reassurance and trepidation in equal measure.
The SFA and SPFL really needed the new era of officiating to get off to a ‘what was all the fuss about’ start.
All in all, it did.
The goal checks didn’t take too long and there was nothing that appeared to border on a contentious decision.
It was reassuring that the first VAR decision was to back-up Kevin Clancy’s booking of Martin Boyle for diving in the box just eight minutes into the contest.
Probably not the last time that will happen this season.
Friday night IS for football
As much as this game has attracted headlines and attention from the neutrals because of the VAR curiosity factor, for Hibs and St Johnstone fans it was all about the usual stuff – their team, the points, the occasion.
Over 1,000 Perth supporters snapped up tickets, with demand outstripping supply.
The reason the well ran dry was Hibs were able to fill the rest of the ground with their own people, making it the largest home attendance in three and a bit decades.
There are two inescapable conclusions to be drawn.
The first is that cutting ticket prices to £10 for adults has made a big difference.
When you see Saints supporters boycotting trips to the likes of Tannadice because of the entry fee, questions need to be asked.
£10 might not be sustainable every week but the price on the ticket should be closer to this mark than £30, that’s for sure.
Conclusion number two is that Friday night football should be here to stay.
Not every week.
A Saturday match-day experience is a fundamental part of the Scottish football fabric.
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