The first eleven league matches out of the way, Hibernian have met every side in the SPL this season - and in doing so quite possibly experienced just about every emotion possible! As promised by John Hughes before a ball had even been kicked there have been high points and low points - and typically of an Edinburgh Derby at the weekend, people are going to work this morning trying to figure out just which category that particular game falls into.

Perhaps 'neutral' is the best way to describe the feeling, as having seen their side perform superbly well at times this season there were high expectations from the Hibernian camp going into the Derby. Then again, when the team line-up was revealed on Saturday morning, and it was missing three key players who have done so much to create the feel-good factor that exists at Easter Road right now - well, these expectations were perhaps lowered.  And yet…. Hibernian defensively were rock-solid on Saturday, quite how much of that was down to an ineffective home side is open to debate, but in the age-old saying of the game, you can only deal with what you have in front of you. In that respect Hibernian dealt very well with what came at them, and had they been able to show the same penetration at the other end that was seen in the final 20 minutes then the entire picture might well have been different.

Perhaps though Colin Nish summed things up pretty well, and the feelings of those wearing green and white this morning could reflect on his post-match comment: "If you are not playing well and still don't get beat, then I think it shows the team spirit you have. I thought the goalkeeper, the back four and the defensive players were brilliant on Saturday. It was the attacking players that were maybe lacking in quality, but then as always in these games it turned into a bit of a battle which usually takes away the quality."

The opening 45 minutes for the Hibernian striker all passed in a bit of a haze, seeing very little of the ball but never feeling his side was under the type of pressure in defence that usually accompanies such a situation: "It was a hard shift for our midfield as well, and sometimes in the first half I would win a header and wonder where everyone was. But it is also hard for them because they were being asked to do a job and get back." While comfortably holding Hearts, John Hughes knew that if his side was going to have a chance at three points more was needed at the sharp end of the park.

The introduction of Derek Riordan along with a few other tweaks did at least produce that, although ironically it was defender David Wotherspoon who created and executed the best chance of the game for the visitors: "I think we changed the formation a little bit when Derek came on, we went 4-3-3 and put wee John Rankin further in. From there I think Ranks, Liam Miller and Kevin McBride started to get on the ball more and passed it about a bit, and from there we got a few chances."

While the credit for the best Hibernian effort goes to Wotherspoon, had the ball gone in striker Nish was ready to claim it - as he did in similar circumstances at Celtic Park last season when a well-struck Steven Fletcher strike glanced off his head - and into the net. "I still can't believe that my header did not go in," Nish said, adding: "I thought it was going in and I scored one like that last year against Celtic. This one was a wee bit different but I honestly thought it was going in. I didn't see the ball coming all the way but it was a great save from the goalkeeper, who got a wee bit of luck with it bouncing back off the post."

A deal of the pre-match talk was of Hibernian using their luck this season - Hearts were this time the beneficiaries of their own luck, although to be fair goalkeeper Balogh certainly made his own with as fine a save as we are likely to see this season. And in the end, for all that has been said and done around the latest Edinburgh Derby that was what earned the home side a valuable point.

Pics: Alan Rennie for Hibernian TV