Hibs won for their fourth Premiership game in a row with a narrow victory over a dogged Kilmarnock side who found themselves reduced to 10 men again.
Both sides had great chances to go ahead within the first 15 minutes of the clash with Junior Hoilett and Kyle Vassell both wasting opportunities.
Hibs then started to apply some sustained pressure on the Killie defence and made that count when Nectar Triantis headed home from a dangerous Nicky Cadden corner.
David Watson failed to track Triantis’ clever run and the defensive midfielder made no mistake with a bullet header from close range.
It was 1-0 at half-time and despite it being a rather even game, Hibs probably just about deserved to be ahead.
Kilmarnock responded well after the interval as they made Hibs defend with a couple of corners, but were soon reduced to 10 men for the EIGHTH time this season.
Danny Armstrong received a harsh looking second yellow card for a tackle on Triantis, who appeared to make more of the challenge than necessary.
In fact, it was difficult to determine any contact on Triantis from Armstrong, as Killie searched an equaliser with a man disadvantage.
The Ayrshire side competed well with 10 men as Hibs struggled to dominate the ball as would be expected with an extra player.
However, the Hibees found their way to victory in the end as Not The Old Firm discuss three things we learned from the game.
Hibs squeeze out another win
This wasn’t a pretty three points by any manner of means – but Hibs will absolutely take it as their forward momentum in the Premiership continues.
The wind made for difficult conditions in Leith and Kilmarnock were defensively dogged throughout the clash.
Hibs lacked quality and so had to rely on a lapse of concentration from Kilmarnock at a corner to score the only goal of the game, which of course ended up being the matchwinner.
David Gray’s men actually made things harder for themselves after Killie went down to 10 men as the visitors looked the more likely to grab a leveller.
But Hibs managed to hold out and they are now 10 points ahead of bottom side St Johnstone.
Danny Armstrong red card controversy
Danny Armstrong’s second yellow card midway through the second-half will be the main talking point from a Killie perspective after the game.
It appeared to be an extremely soft yellow for the winger who was penalised for tackling Hibs star Triantis inside the opposition box.
Kilmarnock managed to cope well enough afterwards but couldn’t create as many chances as they did in the first-half to cause Hibs any real problems.
Kilmarnock can take positives despite loss
If it wasn’t for Watson’s failure to pick up Triantis for the goal, this one could have ended 0-0. Neither side really deserved to win but Killie can take pride in their display.
Killie showed an attacking threat in the first-half and defended well across most of the match. Fine margins cost them a result in the capital and it’ll be a frustrating one for Derek McInnes to take.