Motherwell boss Stuart Kettlewell joked that Hibs keeper David Marshall 'angered the beast' by nearly saving Kevin van Veen's penalty in their 3-1 win at Easter Road yesterday.
The Dutchman went on to blast in a sizzling free kick nine minutes from time to score his 20th goal of the season and end Hibs' hopes of snatching an equaliser.
Kettlewell heaped praise on his star striker, for bouncing back from a heart-in-mouth moment for the Well gaffer.
He said: "I thought the goalie was going to throw in hat on Kevin's effort, and I had my heart in my mouth at that point!
"Kevin's such an honest lad and didn't have his best first half, but when you've got a guy at the top end of the pitch who is such a goal threat and can step up in those moments is terrific, and I thought he was much better in the second half.
"David Marshall maybe angered the beast, but Kevin has been terrific since I came in. I have to pay testament to him - and I'm not making this all about him - but in the last 10 minutes or so you start to see the energy levels of pressing across from the side, working from two and three players to try and get the ball back.
"He definitely got a lift from his two goals, I think you could see that.
"Kevin is a big personality and character in our dressing room and I think our players get a lift from that.
"He said something to me just after the game, which I find really interesting. He felt that he was short of his levels but his team-mates really stepped forward.
"That's what we're trying to create. If there's a unit or a group of players that aren't maybe at their best, it's about making sure they're still competitive in the game.
"I thought we were good for the three points."
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