Hibernian secured a slender 2-1 home lead over Shkendija in their UEFA Conference League third qualifying round first leg after Warren O’Hora scored late.
The Easter Road club dominated for large spells but struggled to convert pressure into goals until the second half. The victory gives Hibernian a lead ahead of next Thursday’s third qualifying round return leg.
Hibernian head coach David Gray focused on the positives while admitting the performance was far from perfect. Gray said: "The players showed character to get back in front again. We didn’t play our best but found a way to win the game, we have to take confidence from that." He added: "Winning games of football is difficult. It’s half-time in the tie and the thing that gives me confidence is we can be a lot better than we were tonight."
First half chances
Shkendija made a confident start at Easter Road before fading as Hibernian settled into the match. Jason Kerr went close with a header, and Martin Boyle had a turn and shot deflected wide for a corner.
Owen Elding drove forward before unleashing a low left-footed drive that whistled just wide, while defender O’Hora had a shot comfortably saved by goalkeeper Ferat Ramani.
The frustration among the Hibernian support was evident during the first half, with more groans after the break as they made their feelings clear about their team’s decision-making. Shkendija were more adventurous after the interval and Hibernian keeper Rafa Sallinger was forced into a smart save to keep out Drilon Islami’s deflected drive. At the other end Josh Mulligan and Miguel Chaiwa both fired wide.
Gray turned to his bench and brought on Callum Wright for his competitive debut and Ante Suto. Suto was involved right away with a lay-off for Felix Passlack, but the wing-back’s stinging shot was straight at Ramani.
Late drama and goals
Wright looked lively and he made the difference in the 73rd minute when his dangerous low pass was flicked in with an audacious back heel from Elding. However, Hibernian’s joy was short lived after the visitors levelled less than three minutes later. Captain Arvin Zejnullai sprang clear before feeding substitute Marko Gjorgjievski, who clipped the ball past Sallinger from a tight angle.
There was more drama to come as O’Hora grabbed a precious winner. The Irishman was left with a simple tap-in after Kerr’s header from Obita’s corner came back off the post. Hibernian came close to a third in the final seconds, but Kerr had an effort cleared off the line.
