LE FONDRE FAREWELL
Monty hails veteran as he heads for exit
NICK MONTGOMERY confirmed Adam Le Fondre is on the way out at Hibs as he revealed plans for a summer squad cull.
Vastly experienced striker Le Fondre joined on a one-year deal under former boss Lee Johnson and has notched five goals in 27 outings.
But Montgomery, whose side host Aberdeen tomorrow in a bottom-six dead rubber, admits the 37-year-old looks set to return south of the border.
Montgomery, who has a total of 18 players out on loan, also plans to strip back the development squad after claiming he would need four training pitches to accommodate everyone.
On former Reading, Bolton and Sydney marksman Le Fondre, Montgomery said: “I’ve known Adam a long time, his family live down south and he spent three or four months out with a knee injury.
“He’s a big character. Those discussions have been that there likely won’t be a contract for him here next season. He’s the ultimate professional, an out-and-out goalscorer – I’m sure he has a lot to offer moving forward.
“But he’s getting to the age now where he’ll be looking at what he’s doing moving forward.
“It’s not been a concrete decision but it’s been discussions where it’s likely he will move on and be back with his family down south.”
Hibs announced earlier this week that club legends Paul Hanlon and Lewis Stevenson would depart this summer but Montgomery admits no decision has yet been made on former Scotland No.1 David Marshall.
He added: “I’ll sit down with Marsh at the end of the season and see what he’s thinking.
“That’s what the man deserves, he has been absolutely outstanding for me this season.” Montgomery admits
Hibs need to focus their resources on making the senior side better, despite Billy Foley’s £6million cash injection.
He added: “The club went down the route of development players. But we’ve all agreed, as a club, that what the fans want to see – and the most important thing – is a strong XI, a strong bench.
“That’s the process we’re going through at the minute, trying to reduce the number of contracted players at the club – and bring in quality over quantity.
“Ideally you’d probably want 20-22 players, if you keep everyone fit.
“Maybe 24, with young players on top of that. But a squad of 45-50 players contracted at the minute, it’s too big for a club like Hibs.
“We obviously haven’t had those numbers actually on site this season because we’ve got 18 players out on loan.
“But, if they all came back in the summer for the first day of pre-season, I would probably need all four training pitches at HTC to play the games on!”
Harry McKirdy, Ewan Henderson, Nohan Kenneh, Riley Harbottle, Dan Mackay, Allan Delferriere and Dylan Tait are among the first-team players out on loan.
Most are contracted for next season but Montgomery admits there is unlikely to be any future for them at Easter Road.
He added: “I need players who I know can make an impact straight away next season. Those are honest conversations and difficult decisions you need to make but one or two could come back and may not be able to move on.”