I don’t know if it’s something I said, or something I did, but it hurts. I thought we were close. I thought this time it was for real. But now the lack of communication . . . what happened to us Jim? What happened? We can fix it, but not if we don’t discuss the problem.

In fairness, Gannon wasn’t talking to anybody after this. The Motherwell manager, who is fast running out of dummies to spit, decided to boycott the post-match interviews and ordered his players to do likewise, leaving an embarrassed press officer to apologise.

Somehow, Sunday’s papers successfully went to press without Gannon’s pearls of wisdom. Whether we can pull the same feat two days in a row . . . well, if you’re reading this you’ll know we managed.

The SPL’s media guidelines require “one manager/coach and one player to attend a post-match press conference”, but these guidelines are not enforced by sanctions, something the league is now understood to be considering reviewing. Frankly, this reporter and approximately 100% of those polled at Easter Road could not care less whether Gannon speaks to us or not, but Motherwell’s fans deserved an explanation for an awful performance.

Gannon has received universal praise since taking over at Fir Park in the summer. His signings have looked good, he has given young players a chance, the team tries to play attractive football and this has been regularly been remarked upon. But apparently the media is out to get him.

In these days of plummeting circulations, collapsing ad revenues, lay-offs and general recession, it’s possible that the media has better things to worry about, but I am often wrong and may just be being naïve. Gannon reportedly boycotted Sky Sports while at Stockport because the company were slow to send an engineer to his house to fix his satellite dish, so maybe his paperboy has been late a couple of times or something.

Anyway, what to make of his team’s hopeless display against Hibernian? They arrived at Easter Road on a run of seven games unbeaten. The only team to have beaten them this season is Hibs. Fans were talking about taking on the Old Firm but the hosts dismantled them, squandering a stupid number of chances, and should have won by at least four or five, John Ruddy and some poor decisions keeping the score down.

Anthony Stokes scored both goals, one in each half, and should have had four himself, fresh-air swiping at the ball from six yards in the first half and hitting the crossbar with a header in the second. Ruddy made three or four superb saves besides.

Gannon, presumably fuming after a first half in which his team did nothing, made two substitutions at half-time. It seemed to backfire badly, rendering still more control to Hibs, who were barely out of Motherwell’s half in the second 45. Of course, that could be our hidden agenda coming to the fore there.

Hibs, meanwhile, are only in danger of getting too much praise from the media, desperate as they are to see someone, anyone, lift the title instead of the Old Firm. After 10 games unbeaten, they remain just two points behind Celtic.
In Liam Miller they have perhaps the league’s tidiest midfielder, their attacking options rival the Old Firm’s, and with talented youngsters such as David Wotherspoon, Daniel Galbraith and Kurtis Byrne getting a chance, they also have depth in the squad.

The Christmas and New Year period will define their season. Five of their next eight games are away and they face Celtic and Rangers, a derby against Hearts, and fellow pace-setters Dundee United in that time – as well as fend off January shoppers. But regular watchers of the team insist that before Saturday they had not been playing well, despite their league position. If the match against Motherwell was a sign that quality is beginning to show itself, and if they are still in touch after January, some doubters could start to think again.

Motherwell now face back-to-back games against the Old Firm, which Gannon might feel is a daunting prospect. Or not. We may never know.