Goals from Owen Elding and Ante Suto round off a dominant performance to give Hibs their first home win over St. Mirren in three years and calm worries of inconsistency.
First-Half
The first chance of the match fell Hibs around 10 minutes in as on-loan Tottenham forward Dane Scarlett got on the end of a Jack Iredale cross. However, his header was easily saved by Shamal George in the St. Mirren goal.
A quick free kick from Nicky Cadden five minutes later would play through Owen Elding, but the Irishman fluffed his lines, failing to connect with the ball which allowed George to easily collect it. St. Mirren would then go up the park which called for Raphael Sallinger to intervene, preventing a header bound for Jake young mere yards out.
Hibs would then counter attack straight away and this time, Miguel Chaiwa was the one asking questions of George, with the keeper saving well from the midfielder’s left footed effort just outside the area.
Dane Scarlett would have another chance just before the 20th minute as Iredale did well to win the ball in midfield and offload to him, but his effort from outside the area was wide of the mark.
Hibs, as usual would trouble their opponents down the left hand side with Nicky Cadden and Jack Iredale consistently linking up before delivering a cross. One of these crosses would go close to setting up Owen Elding’s first Hibs goal as Iredale got past two defenders before delivering a low ball bound for the Irishman, but George would once again get his hands on the ball.
Elding would eventually get his goal five minutes before the interval as a fantastic cross from Dan Barlaser was flicked on by the teenager, who marked his first Hibs start with his first goal.
Second-Half
Nicky Cadden and Felix Passlack would combine shortly after the break as the German met Cadden’s cross with a volley that would smack off the frame of the goal as Hibs went close to a second.
David Gray’s side were then let off as Miguel Chaiwa was dispossesed in midfield but Sallinger would provide an excellent save to deny substitute Mikael Mandron from equalising.
St. Mirren would start to grow into the game in the second-half, but Hibs would be the ones to score next as Ante Suto tapped the ball barely over the line following a low cross from Nicky Cadden. The forward now has two Hibs goals in his opening three, all from the bench.
After Suto’s goal, the pendulum would swing St. Mirren’s way, but only slightly as the only real chance in the closing stages was cleared away easily by Jack Iredale.
Post-Match
Reflecting on the match, David Gray said:
“Delighted with the performance, but the most important thing today was all about the three points, especially off the back of that real disappointment last week. You don’t always get what you deserve in football but I think we certainly got what we deserved today.“
The Hibs manager would also single out a few of his players and their performances, in a match where Hibs were great across the board, he said: “Delighted for Nicky [Cadden], because injury wise he’s been a bit stop start. You know, he’ll really benefit from 90 minutes.
“Got into some really dangerous positions today… was probably unfortunate not to get an assist, Felix, I don’t know how it doesn’t go in at the back post, but it was really good football.
“That’s where you want to see Nicky Cadden, in they positions because you know the quality he’s got.
“As a collective the performance was really good. I could name you a few- Dan Barlasser and Jamie McGrath, you know they brought real quality to the game.”
Stephen Robinson’s post-match frustrations were clear
He said: “The two goals are really, really poor.
“Individuals not doing their job, which they’re set out to do, and you’re gonna lose games if you do that.
“We’re conceding really soft goals, which is so unlike what we’re made of and that’s why we’re not winning football matches at the moment.
“I know that we’re going to have a scrap and a fight to make sure we get the points to stay in this division.”
The manager’s injury and transfer window frustrations were also clear, with St. Mirren having a hampered squad. Robinson said: “People say you brought midfielders in and they’re not playing. Well, that tells you something.
“January is a really, really difficult window for clubs of our resources. We don’t sign people who are playing football. We don’t sign people who have a record of scoring goals because we don’t have the finances to do that.
Robinson was then quizzed on the lack of appearances for new signing Alan Campbell. He said: “I’m not going to individualise anyone. If people aren’t playing when we’re on a losing run, then they’re not doing enough in training, or they’re not fit enough. One of the two. I mean, I don’t know any manager that doesn’t select his best team.
“If I’m playing players out of position then that tells you others haven’t stepped up quite yet and it’s up to them to do so.
Hibs now move three points clear of Falkirk in fifth. They have only lost twice at Easter Road since the defeat to St. Mirren in November 2024 that left Hibs bottom and David Gray’s job in doubt.
As for St. Mirren, they continue their inconsistent run that followed the League Cup triumph. Stephen Robinson’s side are now only three points above the relegation play-off spot.
Hibs travel to Celtic next week whilst St. Mirren host high flying Motherwell.
