Ross McCormack (left) was praised by the Motherwell manager

"Over the 90 minutes, it's a fair result," he said after the 4-2 defeat.

"All credit to Motherwell, I thought they played terrifically well in a 30-minute period in the first half.

"We were off the pace, a couple of yards short across the pitch, and they punished us. We were beaten by a team that played very, very well."

Hibs had gone into the game on a high after Sunday's 3-2 victory over Celtic in the Scottish Premier League.

"You could put our sluggishness down to a little bit of tiredness after putting a lot into Sunday's game, but maybe that's an excuse," said Collins.

In the first half, I don't know if it can get any better for us than that Motherwell manager Mark McGhee

"Motherwell were hungry, with good movement from their three strikers, and we struggled to cope with that.

"It's painful, but that's football and we take it on the chin and look forward to the next match."

Motherwell manager Mark McGhee wondered whether his side could play any better.

"I think we probably should have scored more, but you're only going to take a certain percentage of any chances and I think we've got to be fairly satisfied with four," he said.

"It's the best we've played this season. In other games, it's been there in spells, but we're pleased how quickly they have grasped the way we want them to play.

"In the first half, I don't know if it can get any better for us than that. I hope we're not peaking too early."

McGhee, who even joked it was "a bit like watching Brazil" in the opening 45 minutes, reserved special praise for former Rangers forward Ross McCormack.

"Ross looked fantastic in pre-season, but he injured his arm in the last pre-season game against Nottingham Forest and missed the first three games of the season," said McGhee.