THE outcome of this match hinged on a controversial penalty award.
So did the contest which was waged inside Easter Road afterwards.
The flashpoint had brought an instantaneous response – Paul Cairney hadn't even time to appeal before referee Steven McLean pointed to the spot – but the fall out took far longer to clear up. The contention spilled over into the media room afterwards. Kenny Shiels, the Kilmarnock manager, accused the Hibernian midfielder of taking a dive before remarking that "quite a few referees had turned up", while also citing past litigious disciplinary cases. Pat Fenlon, the Hibs manager, was less verbose but just as adamant in his belief that his player had been fouled.
Where you stood on the issue of the penalty depended on where you had been standing at the time. Kyle Letheren perhaps held the best vantage point and his view was clear, if coloured slightly by an intention to absolve Ryan O'Leary – who conceded the penalty – of any wrongdoing. The goalkeeper had seen red following Cairney's tumble, reprimanding the midfielder aggressively, and his remarks afterwards punctured any hope of a detente.
"I thought he dived, as you could tell from my reaction – I wouldn't react like that otherwise," said Letheren, whose mood was hardly improved by scoring an own goal before Leigh Griffiths converted Hibs' penalty. "I know it, he knows it and everyone around us knows it. I was furious and that sort of thing needs to be kicked out. I pushed him and he gave me a wink and that's that, he has conned the referee. There is no room for it. It affects results and we were the best team for the vast majority of that game."
That last point provoked far less controversy. It was true that Letheren had more time on his hands than he did the ball, but his side lacked conviction in attack. Shiels put the result down to the differing fortunes of either side; others might point to the difference Griffiths makes to Hibs.
The on-loan Wolverhampton Wanderers striker was typically tempestuous, but there is a maturity to his play which is often lost under unflattering headlines, snarling comments and two-fingered gestures. In a sense that is unfair – both to the player and his talent – and it is likely that Griffiths will only ever be truly understood on a football pitch. His movement was astute and productive, his penalty assured and one instance of skill, to manipulate the ball around Rory McKeown, hinted at a player who may soon outgrow his childhood heroes.
The extent of his contribution can also be explained by numbers. Griffiths has scored in three league matches this season and, of those, Hibs have won two and drawn the other, the points accrued helping a hitherto beleaguered club move within a point of top spot. It would be unfair to suggest that he is the sole reason for such a resurgence – only two of Saturday's starting XI had been at the club prior to Fenlon's appointment – but Griffiths has still played a cardinal role in elevating both his side's and his own prospects this season.
"Can he make the step up to international level? I can see that – just the way he strikes the ball, his movement is top class and he works his socks off," said Alan Maybury, the Hibs defender who earned 10 caps for Republic of Ireland. "It's just putting it together all the time and losing the stuff that you guys want to write about all the time."
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