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Hibernian drew level on points with fourth-placed Motherwell as they edged a hard-fought match at Fir Park.

Well had won their last four games but it was Hibs who dominated first-half possession and they moved ahead when Martin Boyle seized on a mistake by home goalkeeper Trevor Carson.

Craig Tanner and Deimantas Petravicius went close for the Steelmen and Brandon Barker and Boyle threatened for Hibs.

Motherwell fought in vain for a point but could not pierce the Hibs defence.

The fans might have expected more from the match, with Motherwell having rested Louis Moult, Chris Cadden, Andy Rose and Allan Campbell for the midweek win over Dundee, and Hibs keeping the same starting XI that beat Edinburgh rivals Hearts.

But as the wind swirled around Fir Park the football was not easy on the eye in an uneventful first half.

The visitors had the lion's share of possession and there was skill on show from the likes of Hibs duo Simon Murray and John McGinn, but until Boyle struck in the 27th minute there was not much goalmouth action.

Murray's ball over the top was not dealt with by defender Cedric Kipre. Carson came out from his goal to try to avert the danger but did not connect with the ball as the Hibs winger rounded him and scored into an empty net.

Hibernian midfielder John McGinn takes quite a bit of stopping as Allan Campbell and Chris Cadden found out

Carson had the measure of a McGinn shot soon after but at the other end of the pitch it took Motherwell 43 minutes to create their first chance, Campbell curling a shot wide of Ofir Marciano's goal from 20 yards.

Motherwell made three changes as they looked to get back into the match. At half time on came Gael Bigirimana and Tanner, with Carl McHugh and Elliott Frear making way, and eight minutes later Petravicius came on for Rose.

Petravicius looked like he had pulled Motherwell back into things as he latched on to a low ball from Cadden at the back post, but his effort was blocked on the line by Steven Whittaker.

Tanner sent a free-kick fizzing across the face of goal as Well pressed, but Hibs were also looking dangerous through McGinn's pace and industry in midfield.

Hibs' match-winner against Hearts, Simon Murray, had a goal chalked off for offside and had a shot well saved by Carson before he was subbed.

Motherwell also had a goal ruled out, Charles Dunne offside as he took Peter Hartley's pass, as Hibs held on for their first win at Fir park since 2012.

Post-match reaction

Motherwell manager Stephen Robinson: "In truth, I thought we got what we deserved. I thought Hibs came out of the blocks really well, their shape upset us a little bit.

"They did what I call the 'free stuff' better than us; they came out for every 50/50 ball, they won every header, they just seemed to have more legs than us today.

"In the second half we put up a bit of a fight but we were a shadow of ourselves today.

"The game was lost in the first half. A long ball over the top wasn't dealt with well and then it's always an uphill battle.

"Take nothing away from Hibs, I thought they deserved their victory but we weren't at the races. I think the end of this week has caught up with us."

Hibernian head coach Neil Lennon: "We played brilliantly, it was a fantastic performance. My bug bear is that we're not putting teams away when we're in the ascendancy.

"Motherwell were always in the game and it would make my life a lot more comfortable if we could finish teams off, but a fantastic all-round performance again.

"We changed the shape to negotiate the back three and two up top and it worked a treat, and in the end Stephen felt he had to change but that was down to the way we played and took the game to Motherwell.

"In the second half on the counter attack we cut them open at will and we were a bit sloppy with the final ball at times, but I can't have everything.

"It's a great win and it's a clean sheet against a team who have been rampant this season."