Tommy Wright hits out at doubters as St Johnstone win at Hibernian

Posted Sunday, November 04, 2018 by PA

Tommy Wright took a swipe at St Johnstone’s critics after watching his side rack up a fourth successive victory with a 1-0 result at Hibernian.

The Northern Irishman was clearly irked by the negative reviews his side had received from some quarters following a run of five matches without a win earlier this season, including 5-1 and 6-0 defeats against Rangers and Celtic respectively.

However, those woes are now a distant memory after the Saints roared into the top half of the Premiership thanks to Joe Shaughnessy’s late header against Hibs.

Wright said: “Maybe some nice things will be written and said about us now because I think we proved what a good side we are.

“We had four games, two to Celtic where we lost one narrowly and another where we went gung-ho and got what we deserved. Rangers beat us 5-1 in probably their best performance of the season and we lost 2-1 at Hearts.

“But I was never panicking. I know plenty of other people were and some so-called experts wanted to put the boot in. I’d like to know where their foot is now.”

St Johnstone’s victory should have been more handsome, with Tristan Nydam striking the crossbar and Danny Swanson seeing his penalty saved by Adam Bogdan – their third missed spot-kick in three games.

Wright said: “I am getting used to it so I’m probably a bit numbed to them!

“Liam Craig is the designated penalty taker but Danny [Swanson] came on and made a real impact so they decided he should take it. Thankfully it didn’t matter in the end, we didn’t let it affect us and that pleased me.”

Meanwhile, Hibs assistant coach Garry Parker described the defeat as his side’s worst performance at Easter Road since Neil Lennon took the reins.

A tumultuous week for the capital club ended with a meek showing against the Saints, with Hibs barely laying a glove on Wright’s men.

After being struck by a coin amid shameful Edinburgh derby scenes in midweek, before insisting Scotland has a major problem with “anti-Irish racism” in his subsequent press conference on Friday, Lennon chose to pass media duties on to his number two.

Parker said: “I’ve never seen a team pass to the opposition so much in my life. It wasn’t good at all.

“I think that is the poorest performance at home since we’ve been at Hibs. Who came out the game with any credit going forward for us? Nobody.

“We picked a team that we thought could go out there and create and we didn’t get anything. That’s down to the players when they cross that white line. It’s decision making.

“It’s a first defeat at home for a long time but you could see it coming. We were flat and had nothing. We were so poor.”