Cowdenbeath 1, Hibernian 2.

SPFL Championship Attendance-2563 A BRAVE second-half performance just failed to earn Cowdenbeath at point at rain swept Central Park on Saturday.

Trailing by two goals at the break, the Blues came right back at Hibs in the second period and could well have taken something from the game.

The first-half saw Hibs start well and grab two goal, the second just before the break, but after the interval it was a different home team.

The midfield took a grip of things with Jon Robertson and Lewis Milne controlling periods of play and Callum Gallagher posing the tiring Hibs defence problems.

After Robbo pulled one back there were chances to level things but the ball would just not run for Cowden.

If there was to be a real complaint from a home point of view, it was again the fact that they lost the first goal of the game inside half an hour.

The defence, which played well for the most part, was caught sleeping and Hibs took advantage, and they switched off just before the interval to concede another.

But to their credit Cowden battled back and in the second-half controlled long spells of play and could have drawn the match.

Sean Higgins and Kudus Onyenuga had their opportunities as did Gallagher, but they could not fashion a second goal.

The opening ten minutes saw both sides struggling to get to grips with the heavy rain and slippery surface but in the first serious Hibs raid David Gray’s low cross from the right had Cowden in trouble and Nat Wedderburn slipped in trying to clear but Colin Marshall stepped in to boot the ball to safety.

Hibs had another opening when Lewis Stevenson’s cross looked set for Jason Cummings and it took a timely interception by Marcus Fraser to keep the home goal intact.

But in 20 minutes at the other end, Dean Brett created trouble for the Hibees with a great run and Paul Hanlon and Liam Fontaine got in a fankle with the ball running past Mark Oxley and inches wide of the ‘keeper’s left hand post.

But in 25 minutes the home defence did not deal well with a punt into their box and HANLON got the necessary space to fire the ball past Robbbie Thomson from an acute angle.

On the half hour Cowden tried to get back into the game and Oyenuga tried his luck from 25 yards and the ball zipped past Oxley’s right hand post, then Miller’s free-kick brought out a fine save from Oxley.

But it was Hibs who got the key second goal. Again the home defence struggled to deal with another ball shelled into the box and Jason CUMMINGS fired the ball low past Thomson from 12 yards.

Hibs replaced ‘keeper Oxley, who had developed a back strain, at the break with 19 year-old Klenton Perntreou and he was in action inside two minutes when Milne slanted the ball into the box, but before the last line could get to it Hanlon cleared.

Cowden were certainly dominating possession and the ball was constantly in the Hibs half and the goal came after 64 minutes.

Milne’s 30 yarder was parried by the sub ‘keeper and the midfielder got the ball back and his long cross was perfect for ROBERTSON to head past the Albanian.

Soon after Gallagher latched onto a Milne corner and his header was only inches over but Hibs came back at the Blues and substitute Harris twice went close.

Cowden kept searching for a second goal but the Hibs defence worked very hard to keep them out and make it six games unbeaten for them.

Cowdenbeath: Robbie Thomson (7); Kyle Miller (6), Dean Brett (6); Colin Marshall (6) (Iain Campbell 73 (3), Natt Wedderburn (7), Marcus Fraser (6); Jon Robertson (7), Lewis Milne (7), Kudus Oyenuga (6) (Craig Sutherland 67 (3)) Sean Higgins (6), Callum Gallagher (7). Subs not used, Thomas O’Brien, Darren Brownlie, Chris Kane, Pat Scullion and Jamie Sneddon.

Hibernian: Oxley (6) (Perntreou 46)); Gray (6), Stevenson (7); Hanlon (6), Fontaine (7), Robertson (6); Handling (7) (Kennedy 75 (3)), Allan (7), Malonga (6) (Harris 83 (2)) , Craig (7), Cummings (8). Subs not used, Stanton, Hefferman, Sinclair, Booth.

Referee-Craig Charleston (7).