Aberdeen had the bulk of the chances and Lewis Ferguson and Marley Watkins both forced saves from Matt Macey.

But their fourth defeat in seven games drops them to seventh in the table.

For Hibs, three days on from losing the League Cup final to Celtic, they claimed just their second win in seven to go fifth.

"I'm really proud of the performance," Maloney said. "I loved what they tried to do in the first half despite just two sessions we've had with them."

Just one point separated the sides at kick-off, but while Hibs had been falling down the table, Aberdeen had been rising up it.

It is still two sides far from where they want to be though and that was evident in a game that was far from a classic. Aberdeen, perhaps buoyed by more favourable recent form with three wins on the bounce, shaded the first 45 minutes.

Ferguson's shot towards the near post had Macey scrambling to push it wide, and both Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Dean Campbell had efforts from distance.

Yet the best chance of the half fell to Hibs. Martin Boyle took too long to get his shot away and Declan Gallagher was able to get in and block, with Kevin Nisbet heading the looping loose ball over the bar.

And it was the home side who broke the deadlock in the 64th minute when Porteous rose higher than Gallagher and nodded home a corner kick.

That gave the game the lift it badly needed. Campbell and Calvin Ramsay had half chances for the visitors, before a Watkins header tested Macey at the back post, with the goalkeeper leaping to push it away.

Aberdeen were camped in Hibs' half but were offering little end product, and it could have been 2-0 when the hosts broke on the counter-attack, but Josh Doig couldn't keep his header down.

Man of the match - Ryan Porteous

Anyone in the Hibs' backline could have taken the award for a solid display, but Porteous's winning goal just edged it

What did we learn?

Hibs and Aberdeen have a lot of similarities now in their coaching set-ups. Both have appointed relatively rookie managers, who have cut their teeth coaching abroad.

And they exhibited a similar pattern of play - both devoted to keeping the ball down and passing through their opponents.

But while Hibs are one game into their new era with much work to come, Aberdeen fans witnessed a familiar story with their side.

They had plenty of the ball but struggled to make it count, while a defensive lapse - and they have had plenty of those this season - returns them back to the bottom six.

What did they say?

Hibernian manager Shaun Maloney: "There are lots of positives. In the second half my team had massive heart.

"Aberdeen were very good in the second half but my team defended so well. It's a first step and we'll hopefully try and build on it."

Aberdeen manager Stephen Glass: "We didn't produce as much as we have recently. We lose a goal from a set-piece and didn't do enough to win it at the other end, so you get what you take at the end of that.

"In general the energy level of the team didn't look great and there's no reason for it. It's the last game they're going to play in front of fans for a while so you would expect a better energy level about the group."

What's next?

Hibs visit Dundee United on Sunday 26 December (15:00 GMT), with Aberdeen set to host Dundee at the same time. Both games will go ahead with a reduced capacity of 500 fans due to Covid-19 regulations.