As one of Kirriemuir's favourite sons, Bon Scott, sang on many occasions, the visitors' journey home from Thornton must've been the 'Highway To Hell' as they put so much into this game and yet ended up with diddly-squat.

It wasn't all Kirrie though, indeed it was the Hibs who began the game on the front foot with Garry Thomson rounding Sean Diamond before shooting home from an acute angle to give his side a 17th minute lead. Thomson watched a header just miss the target but it was the visitors who found the net next when Sean McVicar's volley at the back post flew past Ryan Linton. And the same man came mighty close to giving the visitors the lead barely sixty seconds later but Ian Hepburn was perfectly positioned to head the ball to safety.

Just before half-time Chris Ireland watched in despair as he headed the ball off the crossbar following Andy Adam's quickly taken corner-kick and this would surely have given Thornton a boost going in for their refreshments.

Whatever was said in the visiting dressing room at the interval appeared to have done the trick as Kirrie upped the ante in search of their first league victory on the road this season.

After Ryan Linton had pulled off some decent saves, the best being to deny Greg Fairweather, Kirrie's pressure eventually paid off in the 74th minute although it has to be said that Shaun Keatings  was found guilty of aiding and abetting. The Hibs had a free-kick almost at the byeline that Kirrie were defending. Keatings inexplicably gave away possession with Fairweather setting off like Usain Bolt up the left flank and when his low cross came in, all Stuart Drummond could do was inadvertently knock the ball into his own goal.

By this stage it looked like if there were to be more goals then it would be the men in blue who would get them. However, a double substitution in the 75th minute saw Daniel McNab and Ben Anthony introduced to the fray and this had the effect of bringing fresh enthusiasm to Craig Gilbert's side.

It began with Adam Drummond heading McNab's corner-kick narrowly over and then in the 84th minute, Thomson headed home Stuart Drummond's cross only to see it disallowed because of offside, a decision that didn't go down well with the home support. Thomson wasn't taking 'No' for an answer though because less than a minute later he clipped the ball beyond the advancing Diamond to level affairs.

With three minutes to go Nathan Kiristino was sent on with the clear instruction to sniff out a winner. And the Hibs' substitute duly obliged when he rattled the ball home in the last minute to earn his team the three points that for so long looked like an impossible dream.

GI Joinery Hibs' Man of the Match: Garry Thomson

Thornton Hibs: Linton, S.Drummond, McMillan, A.Drummond, Millar, Orrock, Keatings, Hepburn, Ireland, Thomson, Adam. Subs: Kiristino, McNab, Coleman, Anthony, Robertson.

Kirriemuir Thistle: Diamond, McNaughton, Browne, McKenna, Grant, Fairweather, Reid, King, Winter, Brown, McVicar. Subs: Tinley, A.Kettles, C.Kettles, Whyte.

Referee: Chris McNab
AR1: Kenny Brown
AR2: William McAleese

Match statistics:
Attempts at goal - TH 15 KT 5
Attempts on target - TH 7 KT 5
Corners - TH 4 KT 6
Offside - TH 3 KT 5
Fouls committed - TH 6 KT 10
Yellow Cards - TH 1 KT 1
Red Cards - TH 0 KT 0