Hibs 1-2 Caley : A Great Step Up

By: Ian Rose | November 8th, 2008

As I said before the match, all we needed was something positive, something to stop the bleeding. We got that and more from the Caley today, taking all three points against Hibs and showing definitively that we can, on our day, play a fine game of football. It was 2-0 until right at the end, when Riordan got his consolation, and I don’t begrudge it to him. By all logic, he should have gotten on the scoreboard earlier, when he lined up for a penalty. But amazingly, Ryan Esson, in for benched Mikey Fraser, stopped the pen. I can’t remember the last blocked penalty for Caley in regulation.

A lot of positives today. Dougie Imrie, though still no scoring machine, is a force to be reckoned with on the counter attack, as is Ian Black. Great job to the fan favorites, Blackie and Cowie, on their goals today. Esson proved himself worthy of the starting spot in goal, and I imagine he’ll keep it next week.

This is big in a lot of ways for us. First and foremost, combined with a Hamilton-Falkirk draw and a Hearts win over St. Mirren, it takes us from 11th to 9th. It also takes us from one point above relegation at the start of today’s action to three points out at the end. It does wonders for our confidence, and gives us faith that Ryan Esson might do something special for us between the posts. It stops the losing streak, and with two winnable home matches coming, gives us a chance at a streak in the opposite direction. And, if you’ve been following this blog, you know I’ve talked about the disturbing trend of us losing fixtures we won last season. Well, this one, the first away trip to Hibs, was a 1-0 loss last fall, and we’ve reversed that.

Great day for us, and well done to the few Caley hopeful that made the trip down to Edinburgh. You deserve this even more than the rest of us do.

Season Progress
At this point last season: 12 matches played, 10 points, 11 goals for, 29 goals against
This season: 12 matches played, 13 points, 14 goals for, 19 goals against

Comparable fixtures last season: 12 matches played, 21 points, 17 goals for, 12 goals against
Comparable fixtures this season: 12 matches played, 13 points, 14 goals for, 19 goals against