Hapless Hibs hit a new low at Dens as Dundee scored three first-half goals to pile further pressure on David Gray.

After a well-executed opener from Nicky Cadden in the opening minutes, Jordan Obita saw red for a dangerous challenge and the evening swiftly unravelled for the Scottish Premiership's bottom side. Dundee pressed on to make their numerical advantage count brutally, as Jordan McGhee and Seb Palmer-Houlden struck either side of a Nectar Triantis own-goal to bury Hibs before the interval.

The decisive third stemmed from a calamitous error from Josef Bursik, the goalkeeper taking a heavy touch from a backpass that allowed Palmer Houlden to pounce. It was a moment that summed up Hibs' miserable season to date, and leaves them with still only a single league victory this season. Substitute Curtis Main added a fourth for the hosts in stoppage time, but the result had already long been secured.

Hibs plumb new depths

It says an awful lot that this is not the first time this season that we're talking about Hibs finding outlandish ways to lose football matches. You would call this the nadir but it would be naive to assume that it can't get any worse. Hibs look like a side completely shorn of belief, composure, and, in some cases, fight and desire. Yes, the start was bright. Yes, the red card completely swings the game in Dundee's favour. But that doesn't detract from what followed - a surrender.  There was nothing about Hibs post-sending off that suggested they would be able to weather the storm. Obita going off should've lit a fire under the rest of the team. Instead, they folded. Players can declare in front of the media that they are fighting to turn this around, but the only thing that really matters is proving that on the pitch. In the circumstances, a defeat would have been easier for fans to stomach if Hibs had forced Dundee to fight tooth and nail for it. That they didn't leaves you wondering just where the club goes from here. Gray and his coaching team can't escape blame for how this season has transpired so far, and they haven't tried to, but this was yet another painful case of individual errors leading to yet another collapse.

The Obita red card

The moment the game flipped. A poor touch from the left-back, who minutes earlier had provided the assist for Cadden's opener, led to him clumsily trying to atone, his foot going over the ball as he attempted to play it, and catching Mo Sylla on the ankle. Referee Nick Walsh did not hesitate, immediately reaching for the red card. The incident calls to mind Joe Newell's red card at Tannadice; a well-intentioed attempt to rectify an error leading to a sending off that was hard to argue with. As it was with Newell, it's another example of an experienced player making a poor decision that turns into a game-changing moment. It's inexcusable stuff, and particularly galling for supporters when it followed an undoubtedly positive start to a highly significant game. We'll never know what might've happened otherwise, but the reality is that Hibs have once again made life unnecessarily difficult for themselves, and paid for it dearly. That's now four red cards in the last seven matches. Unsustainable.

Calamitous from Bursik

Singling out already struggling players is never fun, but the contribution of Hibs' goalkeeper to their current predicament cannot be ignored. Whether it be from outright blunders or simply not doing well enough in key moments, Bursik is costing his team points. The on-loan Club Brugge man is a conundrum. Until the mistake for Dundee's third, he's commanded his area well and made a brilliant save to deny Lyall Cameron.

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But whether it's concentration, confidence, or a combination of factors, he's prone to making these mistakes seemingly out of nowhere. For a team that's already struggling, that simply can't happen. When the chips are down, you have you be able to rely on your goalkeeper to bail you out. Bursik, though, it has to be said, is now consistently throwing his side into more trouble. 

The R word

Is it too early to seriously consider that Hibs are now in a genuine fight for Premiership survival? Other than it *only* being November, there's very little to suggest that such talk would be premature. No wins since September, players bereft of confidence, a poor disciplinary record, lack of steel, and a tendency to self-destruct - there are so many red flags. The Scottish Premiership has proven several times over that 'too good to go down' doesn't apply, or, in Hibs' case being too big a club to suffer the drop. There should be enough talent in this side to steer clear of this scenario, but the further into it you are dragged, the more difficult it becomes to haul yourself away from it. For the reasons stated above, this is not a team well-adjusted to a dogfight. In contrast, several of those above them either are, or have at least been over the course before. Unless something changes rapidly, the threat of going down feels very real.