Another derby, another disappointment.

Same old story from Hibs after yet another sucker punch, ironically, because of a Rocky error. We’ve seen this story before, far too many times and it’s way beyond time that Hibs did something about an appalling derby record.

Montgomery brought in Josh Campbell and Joe Newell for Elie Youan and Jimmy Jeggo, with neither change particularly surprising, nor was the set-up in the now routine 442 formation.

The match itself was sparked into life with two early penalties, one for either team. As so often happens in this fixture, though, the spark was quickly extinguished as first Lawrence Shankland struck his penalty against the post, before Martin Boyle saw his saved by Zander Clark.

There remains a question over the referee’s decision to only brandish a yellow card to Kyle Rowles, who was adjudged to have handled what was a clear goal-scoring opportunity. The laws state that it’s a red card offence, so Hibs would be justified in feeling aggrieved to have seen a yellow issued. It’s perhaps another instance where Hibs could question the purpose of VAR if it can't help the referee in such clear-cut circumstances.

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Indeed, Hibs might also have asked about a potential handball as the first half drew to a close, with the ball striking Rowles again with his arm in an unnatural position – again, though, there was nothing from the VAR team or the referee.

With neither team taking advantage of their spot-kicks, the rest of the game played out in typical derby fashion. There was lots of huffing and puffing, but no real quality. Hibs probably had the upper hand after Josh Campbell was forced off with a nasty ankle injury. His replacement, Élie Youan, injected some energy and guile into the Hibs team but if truth be told, we never seriously threatened the Hearts goal, with Clark only making one save of note from Dylan Vente, who might feel he should have done better with his chance.

As the game entered injury time, it was left to Rocky Bushiri – who had conceded the penalty at the start – to make the mistake that would prove to be the difference between the sides. His mistimed header let Shankland run through on goal, and we all knew what was coming next.

Hibs are struggling at the minute, the recent run of wins was not achieved with convincing performances, and a heavy defeat to Celtic before the abject display at St Johnstone has certainly cooled the fans’ opinion of Montgomery. His insistence on playing Boyle through the middle and forcing Vente to drop deep has, along with a complete drop in form from Youan, almost completely blunted an attack that was touted as one of the best in the league at the start of the season.

Hibs have had five shots on target over the last three games, and are finding goals hard to come by. The enforced absence of Adam Le Fondre hasn’t helped, and Monty is yet to find a way to effectively fit in Boyle, Youan, Vente, and Jair.

It could be argued that the issue lies before the attack, Hibs middle two, be that Newell and Levitt or Newell and Jeggo, are forced to sit deep so without Vente dropping into a midfield position, the gap between middle and front is leaving the forward with very little to work with.

Hibs will now lose Lewis Miller, Boyle, Bushiri and JoJo Wollacott to international duty. With the squad already depleted through injury, Montgomery has his work cut out to keep Hibs in touch at the top end of the table, or even to hold on to their top six spot. Both Dundee and Aberdeen are within touching distance of Hibs with games in hand, albeit one of those is against each other, and could take Hibs’ position as the last of the top six teams if results go their way.

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It feels like the team needs some major surgery. Chris Cadden, Adam Le Fondre, and Harry McKirdy will all be nearing a return to first-team action, and they will need to have an impact quickly to get Hibs’ season back on track. Failing that, this January transfer window will be a chance for Montgomery and Hibs’ director of football, Brian McDermott, to really show their value in finding bargains on a budget who can come in and plug some of the gaping holes in the first team at the moment.  

Whatever happens in January, it would be great if Montgomery made turning Hibs’ fortunes in the derby fixture around before the season’s out. It’s often said that a manager’s time at Hibs rests on this fixture, and with one win this decade for Hibs against Hearts, there’s little tolerance for more of the same going forward.