Top line summary

  • 'Understands' angry fan reaction at full-time
  • Feels Hibs unlucky not to get a penalty
  • Accepts they must rely on results elsewhere but won't give up on top six

There was a sense of anger among fans at the end, can you understand those frustrations?

"It was a game we knew we needed to win. We expected three points and everybody expected three points but that's football, it's a cruel game. We had 72 per cent possession and we lose to a team that had two shots on target. That's football at times. We have to accept that's not good enough, two lapses of concentration in a game where you need maximum concentration. We had enough chances to win the game. We possibly could have had a penalty in the first half on Marcondes. We knew in the second half we needed to come out in the conditions, be calm and play against a team putting ten men behind the ball and looking for transitions and counter-attacks. We got caught with a long ball down the side and we have to defend that better. It's their first shot on target and we go a goal down. It's really frustrating. We get back into the game from conceding like we did and yeah, I can understand the frustrations. I'm frustrated, the players are frustrated - it's a game without doubt we should have won. We have to be better in both boxes and that's what let us down today."

With your destiny out of your hands, do you feel you've blown your top six chance?

"We have to be positive and we have to believe that results go our way. All we can do is go to Motherwell next weekend knowing that we have to win the game to give ourselves a chance of still making the top six. Until that's mathematically impossible, we have to believe. We've been on a good run. We lost at Rangers last week and I'm really disappointed to lose that one today because we needed to win. We could have put big pressure on the teams above us but it's out of our hands now."

What was your reaction when you saw the Dundee score?

"I obviously wasn't looking at that during the game. I heard afterwards. If we can take any positive out of today - which is difficult - then we take that as one. We don't want to be relying on other people. There are two teams we could have caught if we got maximum points. Now it's one team and we have to rely on their results. It's not ideal. But until it's impossible we have to believe and prepare and get three points next week."

There were fans booing at full-time, what's your message to them ahead of next week?

“The message is we have to stick together and hope results go for us. We know we wanted to be in a position where we were comfortably in the top six but that’s not been the case. There have been a lot of changes and challenges this season but I have never given up hope of finishing in the top six.  It’s easy for people to look at the negatives – yeah, it’s a big negative that we lost today – but the boys put the effort in. The conditions weren’t ideal for football but to have 72 per cent of the ball and dominate like we did, it’s really disappointing. 

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"I’m frustrated for the fans because if we had won today then we would have put big pressure on the teams above us and it would have been more comfortable going into the last game.  We have to keep going and hope results will go for us. We have been on a good run. At Ibrox last week it was our first loss in seven and we lost today in game we shouldn’t have done. I understand everyone’s frustrations. No one is more frustrated than me and the players."

The set-piece goal conceded, was that an individual or collective error?

"It's a collective thing. We work on it all the time. I think we've been good defending set-pieces lately. We made a lot of changes in January, and we went through a period when we possibly conceded goals from set-pieces. It's a moment where we have to clear the ball, we put it out for a corner when we shouldn't have done, and then we have to defend the corner. We had got back into the game at 1-1 and applied a lot of pressure. Their keeper pulled off some big saves but we had to be patient and just keep going and hopefully win the game, so when you concede from a set-piece it's really disappointing. It can't happen. There's nothing we can do after that apart from try and get back into the game. It's really disappointing to lose two goals from two shots on target but it can be a cruel game at times. We have to be disappointed in ourselves for two lapses in concentration that have put us in a position where we're relying on other people now but until it's mathematically impossible, we have to believe we can still get into the top six."

Did Will Fish take a knock or was that a tactical change?

"Will wasn't feeling well at half-time. I thought Nathan came on and gave us good energy. He was involved in getting us back into the game."