Old heads intervene as Hibs look for end to dismal run
STEVIE MALLAN hopes a dressingroom summit led by captain David Gray can help stir Hibernian out of their form slump.
Neil Lennon’s men made it six games without a win in Saturday’s abject 3-0 defeat to Kilmarnock, dropping to eighth place in the Premiership ahead of tonight’s home meeting with St Mirren.
Skipper Gray has missed all of that grim sequence, having been injured since early October, but remains anxious to make his influence felt.
The 30-year-old called a squad meeting that allowed the players to exchange frank views about how best to help Lennon’s bid for a revival.
‘It was the more experienced boys having a chat with the full squad,’ said 22-year-old midfielder Mallan. ‘I think it happens at every club.
‘It was a talk about what is happening and everyone here knows the script. We’ll keep what was said in-house but it was just a lively chat among the boys.
‘We know what we want to do as a club. We’ve set our own targets and goals, particularly towards the end of December.
‘Hopefully, after this run of games we’ll know roughly where we’ll sit in the league and can set the next set of goals.
‘We have a good nucleus here. We have older guys like Davie, Paul Hanlon, Lewis Stevenson and Stevie Whittaker.
‘You learn a lot from the experienced players and what they have to say. They’ve been through different highs and lows in their careers, it’s good to get that knowledge.
‘It also helps the younger ones to be a bit more confident in the dressing room and get a chance to speak. It’s a healthy thing.’
Mallan scored two long-range goals when Hibernian routed Hamilton 6-0 on October 6 and moved within two points of the Premiership summit.
They are now 11 points adrift of leaders Rangers after a run of four defeats and two draws.
Despite those bleak results, he believes tonight’s meeting with former club St Mirren — who sit 11th — can be the start of a much-needed upswing.
‘Everyone in the team knows what an important game this is,’ stressed Mallan.
‘Most teams in the league have had a spell when they have been struggling to get a win. It’s just our turn. But the games come thick and fast in December and this is the time to show the strength of our squad.
‘We might be in the bottom half of the table now, but wins against St Mirren and Hamilton take you right back up into the mix. That would give us real confidence going into the games with Celtic, Rangers and Hearts.
‘They’re massive fixtures against the sort of sides we want to be competing with. We want to be a force in this league and over the next few games I think we’ll show we can do that.’
Mallan retains a sense of perspective about the current woes, having been blooded as a professional footballer in far more trying circumstances.
‘When I first broke in at St Mirren, we were down at the bottom of the league,’ said the summer signing from Barnsley. ‘I was just a young boy and it wasn’t a nice place to be with relegation and people losing their jobs.
‘I went through a lot there and it was a hard thing to take.
‘The expectations at Hibs are so high because this is a massive club. They got their highest ever points total last season and I wanted to push myself as a player by coming here.’
Assistant manager Garry Parker is convinced he and Lennon will restore Hibs to fluency for such a vital phase of their season.
‘For the two-and-a-half years we’ve been here it has been going well, but this is a sticky patch,’ said Parker, who confirmed Gray was not ready to return to action. ‘It’s six games now, it’s about time we put it right.
‘It’s our job to get the players performing again. I’m sure we’ll turn it around, in fact I know we will. They need to play with no fear, express themselves and entertain.
‘It’s a team effort, the other coaches help as well. Even the players. The captain David Gray’s getting behind them. He’s called a meeting with them and had a chat. The squad is good, we just need to put performances in.’