Lenny’s Hibees can take Heart from their start

ONE brief glance at the Premiership table tells you it has been a hugely successful start to the season in the capital.

But while it is Hearts who have quite rightly taken a huge majority of the plaudits for their outstanding opening to the campaign, the first salvos from neighbours Hibs can’t be underestimated either.

Craig Levein is having a stormer but Neil Lennon is doing the same across the city.

Recruitment has been the name of the game for both managers.

Levein has overhauled his squad brilliantly and some of the signings have worked out superbly with the likes of Peter Haring, Olly Lee and Jimmy Dunne making sterling beginnings to their Tynecastle careers.

Arguably, though, Lennon had a bigger job. While Levein needed more players, he wasn’t losing as many key men. More a case of replacing guys who weren’t up to the job last term.

That wasn’t the case for Lennon. His team had a brilliant 2017-18 and were just a couple of wins away from finishing runners-up to Celtic in their first season since promotion.

But the offensive unit which worked so well for him was almost totally ripped out of his grasp through the summer.

John McGinn and Dylan McGeouch were two of the best midfield players in the country last term and their moves to England were a devastating blow.

With Scott Allan returning to Celtic after his loan spell, as well as wingers Brandon Barker and Danny Swanson going out of the door, it was a virtual rebuilding job in attack.

Remember, Lennon was also facing the prospect of losing Florian Kamberi and Jamie Maclaren as that duo had also come to the end of loan spells.

First job was getting those two back. Lennon also managed to recruit and rebuild his midfield with the acquisitions of Mark Milligan, Emerson Hyndman and Stevie Mallan.

Meanwhile, the Hibs boss has developed Martin Boyle to the fringes of international recognition, has given Efe Ambrose the comfort, guidance and support to get the best out of the Nigerian and is moulding hitkid Ryan Porteous into an excellent defender.

This was all done while trying to juggle Europa League qualifiers through the start of the

Levein is having a stormer but Neil Lennon is doing the same

season so to be sitting second is some effort.

The figures are impressive. When Aberdeen held Hibs in the Betfred Cup quarterfinal, it was the first time the Edinburgh team had failed to score at home in a domestic game since the Dons were there almost a year ago.

Last December, Rangers won at Easter Road and they are the last team to do so.

The one slip this term came at Livingston when they blew a 1-0 lead to lose. Yet, given the Lions’ recent run, that result doesn’t look so bad.

Levein’s Hearts deserve every bit of credit they are getting.

But Hibs and Lennon aren’t that far behind and deserve similar praise.