Alan Cochrane @ Easter Road

Kilmarnock never gave up in this game, but they were pretty much always second best to a Hibs side which was mobile, focussed and incisive, as they took apart their injury hit visitors. With 11 first team players side-lined, it was difficult for Jim Jefferies to put a team on the park which could compete with their high-flying hosts, let alone take anything from this game, and Jim admitted afterwards that Colin Nish and Grant Murray shouldn't even have been on the bench; he just had to make the numbers up.

Hibs came out of the blocks flying, and Killie had some narrow escapes before inevitably going behind after 11 minutes. Jones caused mayhem in the box at a corner, and when the ball broke to Clayton Donaldson, he hooked the ball over his left shoulder, and into the net. Killie did get up the pitch, and Frazer Wright saw a header from a corner go wide, but any resurgence was cut short when referee Stuart Dougal gave Hibs some assistance they hardly needed. When Wright tackled Donaldson inside the box, the player, the Hibs team, and even John Collins thought he got the ball first. Mr Dougal saw it differently, gave the penalty, and Donaldson got his second.

Before half time, Allan Johnston had a shot from a narrow angle saved by Ma-Kalambay, and Frazer Wright blasted a free kick wide of the wall but wide of the goal as well, but it was apparent that this was going to be Hibs' day. The second half started with Hibs getting their second penalty when Lilley climbed all over Donaldson, and this time there was no doubt, but Donaldson's shot was saved by Alan Combe. Poetic justice?

It showed how much trouble Killie were in when JJ made a triple substitution, bringing on Nish, Gibson and Bryson, and although Gibson and Nish combined to grab a consolation goal, Antoine-Courier had already put the game beyond doubt by knocking in a Donaldson deflection from a Lilley clearance. It was that sort of day.

Killie's misery was completed in 77 minutes when Ryan O'Leary hauled down Clayton Donaldson, got a red card, and Donaldson completed his hat-trick from a third penalty kick, to give Hibs their fourth.

It looks as if it's going to remain difficult for us in the near future as none of the injured players look as if they will be back soon, and David Fernandez getting injured in training, and looking like he will be out for another six weeks, has added to the manager's woes. This is when managers earn their corn, not when it's easy.

Hibs: Ma-Kalambay, McCann, McCormack, Jones, Murphy, Beuzelin (Gatheussi), Kerr, Morais (O'Brien), Chisholm, Fletcher (Antoine-Curier), Donaldson

Kilmarnock: Combe, Fowler, Lilley, Wright, Ford, Locke, Johnston (Gibson), O'Leary, Koudou (Bryson), Hamill, Jarvis (Nish)

Referee: Stuart Dougal