It was far from a classic in Paisley as St Mirren and Hibernian played out a goalless draw in the William Hill Scottish Premiership with chances at a premium.
The second half was a huge improvement on a dreadful opening 45 minutes and Hibs were indebted to goalkeeper Jordan Smith for extending their unbeaten record to 12 games but Alasana Manneh was sent off just 13 minutes into his debut from the bench.
David Gray’s men remain in fifth place, three points behind Dundee United and three ahead of their opponents who moved into the top six with the point.
It was a subdued start to proceedings with neither side creating a notable chance, although St Mirren were in the ascendancy in the opening 10 minutes with over 70 per cent possession.
Hibernian defended well early on as the hosts peppered the box with crosses, with Warren O’Hora making one crucial block to deny Mikael Mandron.
The visitors arrived in Paisley in excellent form but they offered little attacking threat during the opening half-hour as they repeatedly went long. But O’Hora headed wide from eight yards out when unmarked after a pinpoint corner delivery from Nicky Cadden.
O’Hora’s effort was the only chance of note during an arduous first half, with the game not helped by the pitch cutting up significantly. There was plenty of endeavour from both sides but a lack of quality and it was a tough watch.
The start of the second half was in stark contrast, with a string of chances in the opening 10 minutes, and Hibs had Smith to thank for keeping it goalless with the 30-year-old in inspired form.
Smith made two comfortable stops from Killian Phillips and Mandron before producing a brilliant double save on 53 minutes, denying Toyosi Olusanya from close range before springing to his feet brilliantly to tip Mark O’Hara’s goalbound effort round the post.
The much-maligned Rocky Bushiri was enjoying an outstanding game at the heart of Hibs’ defence and he enjoyed a running battle with Olusanya.
There was a moment of huge controversy on 73 minutes when referee Ross Hardie awarded Hibs a penalty for handball against Phillips. St Mirren boss Stephen Robinson and his players were incensed, and rightly so as O’Hara headed the ball off Phillips’ head and Hardie overturned his decision after a brief VAR check.
Hardie was at the centre of the action as he dished out several yellow cards for scrappy fouls and it ended with Manneh enduring a debut to forget.
The former Barcelona youngster picked up a soft booking just after entering the pitch on 71 minutes and Hardie dished out another extremely questionable yellow after an aerial challenge with Phillips as Manneh received his marching orders just 11 minutes into his debut.
St Mirren were unable to capitalise on their man advantage as the game petered out and in truth it looked destined to be goalless from the first whistle.
Ange Postecoglou insisted his controversial cupped ear celebration to Tottenham fans in a 1-0 loss at Chelsea had been misinterpreted on another bad night for the Australian.Spurs slipped to a 16th defeat in the Premier League this season thanks to a 50th-minute header by Enzo Fernandez, but it only told half the story of a typically frenzied London derby.VAR was required to rule out a fine strike...

Chelsea climbed back into the Premier League’s top four as Enzo Fernandez’s header early in the second half earned a 1-0 derby win over Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.Enzo Maresca’s side were under pressure after limping into the international break playing football that had ceased to excite home fans, but they largely had the better of a disappointing Spurs team that failed to tak...

David Moyes believes James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid a red card for his reckless challenge on Alexis Mac Allister as Everton were beaten 1-0 by Liverpool on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal, which Moyes claimed should have been ruled out for offside, gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were...

Jack Grealish dedicated his goal to his late brother after scoring in Manchester City’s 2-0 win over relegation-threatened Leicester on Wednesday.The England international hit his first Premier League goal for 16 months, on his first start in the competition since last December, as City moved back into fourth with a comfortable success at the Etihad Stadium.It came on the 25th anniversary of...

David Moyes bemoaned an “offside” goal that gave Liverpool a 1-0 win over Everton – but admitted James Tarkowski was lucky to avoid an early red card on a controversial night at Anfield.Diogo Jota’s 57th-minute goal gave Liverpool a 100th derby win and moved them a step closer to the Premier League title, but both sides were left unhappy with decisions from referee Sam Barr...

Eddie Howe hailed Sandro Tonali’s shooting power after seeing him cap a fine display with a stunning winner to edge Newcastle into the race for Champions League qualification.The 24-year-old Italy international brought an incident-packed encounter to a fitting conclusion with a 74th-minute piledriver which beat goalkeeper Mark Flekken from an improbable angle to hand the Magpies a precious 2...

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery believes Marcus Rashford is “progressively getting better” in all aspects of his game following his first Premier League goal for the club.The on-loan Manchester United forward set Villa on course for a comprehensive 3-0 win over fellow European hopefuls Brighton with a 51st-minute finish at the Amex Stadium.Rashford’s milestone strike came three days ...

Southampton boss Ivan Juric vowed to keep fighting as relegation moved sharply into focus after Crystal Palace denied them only a third Premier League win of the season.Substitute Matheus Franca’s stoppage-time header, to secure a 1-1 draw for the Eagles, means Saints will be down at the weekend if they lose at Tottenham and Wolves beat Ipswich.If relegation is confirmed on Sunday, Southampt...

Derby boss John Eustace insists his side are reaping the rewards for the hard work they have put in since he was appointed as manager after the Rams earned a 2-0 win over Preston to climb out of the Sky Bet Championship relegation zone.Derby came out firing after a lacklustre opening period and Craig Forsyth coolly slotted the hosts in front with his fourth goal of the season.The Rams doubled thei...

Notts County manager Stuart Maynard hailed a “massive” three points as his side comfortably saw off MK Dons at Meadow Lane to maintain their promotion challenge.Two stunning strikes from David McGoldrick and Will Jarvis from the edge of the box, either side of Nick Tsaroulla’s close-range effort, earned County a convincing 3-0 win.“I think every three points is massive now,...



- 1 Hot WAG flaunts 'astonishing' washboard abs in bikini
- 2 Danny Rohl hails Sheffield Wednesday resilience in draw at Cardiff
- 3 Alfie May double sends Birmingham step closer to Championship
- 4 Marcus Rashford scores first Premier League goal for Villa in win at Brighton
- 5 Ryan Lowe and Conor Hourihane felt team deserved more as Wigan and Barnsley draw
- 6 Mat Sadler hails Taylor Allen set-piece skills after Walsall snatch draw
- 7 Chris Davies says Alfie May’s goal drought never concerned him
- 8 Football fan 'eats' raw pig's head in ultimate insult
- 9 Marcus Rashford still looking to improve after firing Villa into FA Cup semis
- 10 Chelsea prepare €70m for Barcelona defender