Three talking points as Motherwell star haunts Hibs again with former Hearts ace sealing priceless win

Motherwell secured another impressive three points by winning 2-1 in the Premiership away from home against Hibs.

Mykola Kukharevych had an effort inside the box smartly denied by Aston Oxborough. Lennon Miller had to head the resulting corner off the line after a header from the Swansea City loanee beat everyone. Chris Cadden was then denied before an Apostolos Stamatelopoulos sucker punch put the visitors in front. Junior Hoilett hit an almost-instant leveller for Hibs, who ended the game with 10 men thanks to a Nectar Triantis dismissal.

That handed Andy Halliday the chance to score his first goal in claret and amber since joining permanently from Hearts. Motherwell sit fourth in the Premiership on 13 points point. Hibs are 10th with five.

With five wins from six in all competitions, the visitors had built up a head of steam. Stamatelopoulos was looking to get them off to a perfect start on his second starting XI appearance for the club but could only fire his half-chance straight at goalkeeper Josef Bursik.

After a quiet, it was Hibs who grew in the attack ascendency. Triantis tried to win them a penalty but was judged to have dived inside the box and was subsequently booked. Kukharevych would then be denied not once, or twice, but three times by Motherwell men.

Oxborough firstly saved his point-blank effort with the keeper and Ewan Wilson combining to scramble away his second. The Ukranian frontman then won the header from the corner and Miller was needed to avert a certain Hibs opener.

It was a bumpy spell for Motherwell but they rode through it unscathed. They needed Oxborough again though near half-time when Kwon curled an effort at the Motherwell goal and the stopper was down quick to stop it curling into the bottom corner.

Having sat on the bench for the last two seasons, the keeper was a relative unknown quantity for fans in claret and amber ahead of this campaign. He has turned from second choice to one of the first names on the team sheet, stepping up again after half-time to deny Cadden at close range when the goal was gaping.

They hadn’t been at their sparkling best and big chances created would suggest it was a good Hibs ought to have been leading. Football has a funny way sometimes of jabbing a team when they least expect it and that’s what Motherwell did to their hosts with a slick free-kick routine. A disguised Miller pass rolled in Stamatelopoulos for a cool near-post finish.

Hoilett had been the danger man for Hibs and having hung on when the chances were raining down, the away team then gifted a leveller, Stephen O’Donnell caught in possession and the Canadian international finished comfortably. It was a blow for a Motherwell team who had just given home fans the jitters of missed chances about to be punished.

Having played 10 vs 10 last week, Motherwell were again playing against 10 due to a second booking. Triantis’ dive in the box came back to haunt him as hauled Tony Watt down to provide a simple decision of making it a pair of yellows and a sending off.

Kofi Balmer had been slinging long throws all afternoon and this one made a telling difference, his latest hot potato starter finished smartly by Halliday. He’d scored for Hearts against Hibs in derby action but this one will have been just as sweet, with Motherwell proving a force difficult to stop right now. Here are three things we learned.

Momentum juggernaut

It says a lot about where Motherwell are right now that they can come to one of Scottish football’s traditionally tough venues, not play at their sparkling best and still win. This Motherwell team are on a roll at the minute and the momentum factor is real. After Triantis’ red card, there was only one winner. Last season they found not winning became a habit. The opposite is happening this campaign.

A new marksman

After an injury at the start of his career, this was the first time Motherwell fans have seen their marquee striker recruit for any real length of time since his injury against Rangers. There will be excitement in the ranks with not just his goal, but overall movement, awareness and how sharp he looks. Real positive signs around Stamatelopoulos.

Slinging it

One talking point heading into this was the battle of the long throw-ins. It was Balmer’s looping launch versus Lewis Miller’s huge heave in a battle few had asked for but were getting anyway. In the end, Balmer’s proved a major asset after another launched was buried by Halliday.