Hibs ease pressure with laboured win

Hibernians 2
Pietà Hotspurs 0

Hibernians are back in the reckoning for a Championship Pool berth after a hard-fought win over a stubborn Pietà Hotspurs side at the Hibs Ground.

Two successive defeats had seen Hibs drop out of the top six but yesterday the Paolites were desperate to bag all points to revive their aspirations of avoiding the Relegation Pool. Facing a struggling Pietà who are passing through a very dull patch, one thought that Robert Gatt's men would find little difficulty to return to winning ways.

However, the match turned out to be a hard fight for the Paolites who after a very disappointing first half stepped up a gear after the interval and managed to secure the points with well-taken goals from Edmund Agius and Andrew Cohen.

The result will ease some pressure off Hibs who received a lot of criticism in the past two weeks after their poor displays against Sliema Wanderers and Marsaxlokk. Still, they will have to show significant improvement in their remaining two matches to make sure of a top-six berth.

Gatt was forced to make two changes as goalkeeper Mario Muscat and midfielder Uzeh Edafe were ruled out with a one-match ban. Alex Camilleri took Muscat's place in goal while Terence Scerri was back in the frame after missing the defeat to Marsaxlokk.

Pietà coach Carmel Busuttil effected only one change with Clyde Pulo starting on the bench. He was replaced by Ryan Camilleri.

The first half was a drab affair with both teams showing a lot of commitment but still lacking any flair with the result that scoring chances were few and far between.

The first action of note arrived on 21 minutes when the Hibs fans shouted 'penalty' as Bernard Sciberras seemed to have handled the ball when dispossessing Terence Scerri in the box... referee Clayton Pisani saw nothing untoward.

Three minutes later Adrian Pulis tried his luck from the distance but his long-range shot finished wide of the Pietà goal.

Hibs were slowly starting to dominate possession but they were lacking any kind of punch up front with the Hotspurs doing well to contain any approach from their opponents.

The Paolites' abject display was starting to irritate the fans. They booed their favourites who, according to them, were playing below par.

Four minutes from the break, Cohen's inswinging corner created a melee inside the box but somehow the Hotspurs survived and cleared the danger.

On 43 minutes, goalkeeper Miguel Montfort was forced to make his first save of the afternoon when he fisted away Ndubisi Chukunyere's stinging shot.

Gatt's half-time talk seemed to have inspired Hibs who took little time to break the stalemate after the restart. The clock marked 50 minutes when substitute Jonathan Xerri's delivery into the area was missed by Terence Scerri but not Agius who fired an unstoppable drive that gave Montfort no chance.

Pietà withdrew Dominic Mifsud and introduced Clive Pulo as Busuttil looked to add more flair to his team's attacking moves.

Galabov almost hit a surprising equaliser on the hour. The Bulgarian picked up a sloppy clearance from Camilleri and with the Hibs no. 1 out of his place Galabov's audacious chip flew just past the upright.

But Hibs were just about showing the better play and on 67 minutes Cohen's shot was blocked by the alert Montfort.

It was the turn of the Hotspurs to shout for a penalty on 70 minutes when Martin Deanov fell under the challenge of Aaron Xuereb but again the referee waved play on.

The match was growing in intensity in the final part with the Hotspurs trying hard to find a way through as the Paolites were breaking away swiftly for a second 'killer' goal.

It was Hibs who reached their objective on 80 minutes. Substitute Ben Camilleri was tripped just outside the area and Cohen stepped up to curl the ball into the top corner to double his side's lead.

There was little interest left now as Gatt's men easily administered their lead till the end to stay in the hunt for a place in the Championship Pool.

Hibernians: A. Camilleri-6, R. Mintoff-5.5 ('46 J. Xerri-6), A. Pulis-6, T. Fleri Soler-6 ('76 J. Pearson), A. Xuereb-6, P. Doffo-5.5, E. Agius-6.5, C. Failla-6.5, A. Cohen-6.5, T. Scerri-6 ('63 B. Camilleri-6), N. Chukunyere-7.

Pietà: M. Montfort-6.5, C. Cassar-6.5, B. Sciberras-6.5, M. Deanov-6, Q. Refalo-6 ('76 F. Sulas), C. Sammut-6, S. Kondev-6.5, D. Mifsud-6 ('58 C. Pulo-5), E. Herrera-6, R. Camilleri-6.5, R. Galabov-6.

Referee: Clayton Pisani.

Scorers: Agius 50, Cohen 80.

Yellow cards: Kondev, Sciberras, Agius, Xerri, Cassar.

BoV Player of the match: Andrew Cohen (Hibernians).

Next fixtures

February 9 (National Stadium): 2 p.m. Birkir-kara vs Hamrun; 4 p.m. Marsaxlokk vs Sliema.

February 10 (Tedesco Stadium): 1.30 p.m. Floriana vs Msida; 3.30 p.m. Pietà vs Mqabba.