ROSS: DON’T JACK IT IN TOO SOON, IRVINE
JACK ROSS insists new boy Jackson Irvine could stay at Hibs beyond his short-term contract.
The Easter boss described the capture of Australia midfielder Irvine as a “coup” – underlined when Ross pitched him straight into his starting line-up to face Kilmarnock on Saturday.
Irvine’s performance belied a hiatus of more than 10 months since his last competitive outing for Hull with an all-action, 73-minute showing, helping the club secure a 2-0 triumph.
However, Irvine has only signed up until the end of the season and will consider his options again in June.
Ross said: “Jackson was being careful about where he’d go for the next stage of his career. We had to put forward our case for this to be the right place for him in the short-term and hopefully longer than that.
“He’s fitted in well, he’s chatty and will put himself among people. I spoke to him on the phone and enjoyed the conversations so I’m excited about working with him. His pedigree is good, his recent career is good. He really kicked on again when he moved to England and his international record is very good as well. He’s a real coup for us in that respect.”
Irvine’s firmly in contention to start in Saturday’s Betfred Cup semi-final against St Johnstone, a competition he won with Ross County in 2016, defeating the Hibees in the final.
Ross added: “I was surprised that he lasted as well as he did (against Kilmarnock) because he had only trained a couple of days with us.
“But we had a good chat and he felt ready. He will get better but his contribution was excellent for someone who hasn’t played since March.”