THIS was an afternoon that threw up more questions than answers. How long will David Gray remain in temporary charge of Hibernian? When will they end this awful run of results? And will St Mirren ever win again?

All hung in the ether come the conclusion of this encounter when Joe Shaughnessy’s late equaliser denied Gray a winning start to his stewardship. The former full-back enjoys legendary status around Easter Road for his Scottish Cup-winning heroics but even that doesn’t grant him special treatment when it comes to news on the appointment of the next manager.

Hibs take on Dundee on Tuesday and then Celtic in the Premier Sports Cup final on Sunday and Gray says he’ll keep turning up to take the team with Craig Samson and Eddie May until someone tells him not to.

“To be honest it’s been that much of a whirlwind that I’ve not thought about myself or what I want to do moving forward,” he said. “It’s just pure and simple about moving forward to Dundee and starting to think about that.

“I have no idea if I’ll still be in charge for Hampden. The foreseeable future to me means until someone tells me to do something different. Me, Eddie and Sammy will continue preparing the team to the best of our ability. We’ve got Dundee before the cup final and that’s the most important thing now.”

Hibs have won just one of their last 10 league games and must have thought they were on their way to putting a dent in that awful record when Josh Campbell put them ahead early in the second period.

The defeat to Livingston in midweek had spelled the end for former manager Jack Ross but, for his immediate successor, throwing away two late points almost felt harder to take.

"On Wednesday night we got what we deserved, which was nothing,” added Gray. “Today, to lose the goal very late on is disappointing but the manner was different. The positives to take are that we lost the other night but picked up a point today in horrible conditions. 

"I thought the players managed it really well, in difficult circumstances - on and off the pitch. We started well, created enough chances in the first half and their goalkeeper was easily the busier one. Unfortunately we just couldn't get over the line in the end."

It was attritional stuff for the most part, not helped by a blustery wind that made every pass an adventure into the unknown. Throw in two teams bereft of confidence and it was never going to be a classic.

Only two chances of any note were created in a dismal first half and both went the way of the visitors. Jamie Murphy had the first, dashing forward down the left before unleashing a shot that Jak Alnwick did well to parry. The second was an easier chance, Martin Boyle flighting in a cross for Kevin Nisbet who headed tamely at the goalkeeper when he ought to have scored.

St Mirren, in contrast, offered little beyond bluster and noise. Curtis Main filled the lone striker role in the absence of the injured Eamonn Brophy but spent much of the contest drifting out to the touchline giving his team no focal point in attack.

That lack of firepower was evident as they tried to chase the game after falling behind seven minutes into the second period. It was a goal, ironically, that came from a St Mirren attack.

Matt Macey gathered it and sent Murphy running down the line with a terrific throw. He found Boyle whose ball in was blocked by Charles Dunne but only as far as Campbell who steered his shot beyond Alnwick.

St Mirren, belatedly, started to show some ambition in an attacking sense. And after Main had seen a header saved, Scott Tanser crossed for Shaughnessy who applied a terrific finish to earn his team a draw.

“The draw with Ross County when we had 27 goal attempts felt like a defeat,” said Goodwin. “This game, because of the manner we came back, the heads never went down and kept believing, so it’s another point on the board. We have to take the positives from it.”