McGREGOR WANTS HIBS TO LOSE ‘SOFT TOUCH’ TAG

HIBERNIAN veteran Darren McGregor says he and his team-mates ‘let the badge down’ after succumbing to a post-derby slump in their loss to Livingston. And he’s warned that opponents still see the Easter Road side as a ‘soft touch’ who can be knocked out of their stride by simple aggression and determination. Jack Ross saw his men dumped 2-0 at the Tony Macaroni Arena on Sunday, just three days after beating Hearts by the same scoreline at Tynecastle. The new manager expects to strengthen during the January window, and McGregor — just back from injury in time to deputise for the suspended Ryan Porteous — can understand why. ‘I include myself in this,’ said the 34-year-old defender. ‘We let ourselves and the badge down, which is so disappointing. ‘We should be able to win against Hearts and then go again a few days later; the gaffer actually made a point about that to us in the dressing room. ‘We have no divine right to go to Livingston and win just because we are Hibs. We should be giving a far better account of ourselves than we did. ‘The gaffer said we have to set ourselves targets and, for a club like Hibs, that should be top four — at least. ‘But it is easy to sit and say that. You have to go out and put in the hard yards at places like Livingston and Ross County. ‘We can’t be a soft touch and be a Hibs that are perceived to be one of these teams that can be got at. ‘We played well against Aberdeen and got the win and then we did it again against Hearts. ‘Then we let ourselves down against Livingston. We need to be more consistent and start putting runs together. We need to go to places like Livingston and not lose — even if we don’t win. ‘People can make the easy excuse about the (artificial) pitch and things being the reason for the defeat. ‘If you look at Livingston’s results, it tells you they are a really good team who rarely lose at home. We knew what we were up against. When you have 11 guys who are under-performing it is difficult to get three points.’ Ross has identified a number of transfer targets as he seeks to put his own stamp on a squad radically overhauled by Paul Heckingbottom during the summer window. McGregor conceded: ‘I would imagine the gaffer will be looking to strengthen things — they always are, especially a team of our size. ‘But it would be a smart move to look for players that can be better than what you have already.’