David Martindale reveals what sparked Lee Johnson ding dong as Livi boss in Martin Boyle 'dive' caveat

The evacuation before kick-off at the Tony Macaroni Arena turned out to be a false alarm.

But David Martindale has warned Premiership rivals the threat from his Lions is very real. The West Lothian men were at it again yesterday, humbling Hibs yet again in a dramatic 2-1 win that had a bit of everything. Ayo Odileye thumped home a header in the last minute to secure the points after Nohan Kenneh had cancelled out Joel Nouble’s early opener for the home side.

Livi were worth their win after a barnstorming first 45 minute, a resilient 20 minute second half spell when Hibs turned up and then a grandstand finish. Martindale reckons there’s even more to come from his side after they can even surpass the Lyndon Dykes inspired top six finishers of two years ago. He said: “I think there’s something special happening at Livingston with this group of players.”

Martindale’s Lions certainly have a taste for Hibs managers as the boss said: “I was just told a stat that we’ve beaten Hibs four times now under four different managers. You had Jack Ross, Shaun Maloney, David Gray and now Lee.

“That’s a great stat for Livi.”

Martindale was beaming at the end but it was a fairly bad-tempered encounter. A second half flashpoint earned both managers yellow cards after sub Martin Boyle took a tumble in the box The Livi gaffer said: “Our analyst was watching it in real time and he told us it was a dive, so that’s why we had that reaction from our bench.

“Martin has won a few penalties against us over the years but I don’t think he’s a cheat. He goes down and commits you to making contact with him.

“So when we heard it was a dive the whole bench erupted and from Lee’s point of view he thought it was a penalty.”

The fact Boyle was on a