Mcginn and Fyvie deal double blow to Hibs

The sun is going down in more ways than one. In fact it’s already gone down on the football career of the willing student Kevin Thomson describes as his “toughest test yet”.

It’s mid-afternoon on a frost-bitten pitch on the western fringes of Edinburgh. Thomson is trying to teach an old dog new tricks.

Except they are not really tricks. In fact, they are the opposite of tricks. They are the basics, which should have been learnt approximately 35 years ago – at least.

Yours truly has signed up for a one-on-one session with the Kevin Thomson Academy. Sadly the crisp weather that has left the pitch bone hard has contrived to cut the session down to just a few passing drills that still leave the ancient apprentice wheezing.

“This is the one Pedro Mendes excelled in,” Thomson announces with reference to the elegant former Rangers midfielder and just before he begins pinging the ball into my feet.

“Chop, left, chop, right, chop, left, chop, right.” He means control it firsttime with the inside of the foot, then stroke it back with a different foot each time.

The term good feet for a big man, used so often in conjunction with Duncan Ferguson, isn’t applicable here. The ball is skewing off at different angles. Embarrassing. “It’s a bumpy ground,” notes Thomson, sympathetically.

We move on to the next drill. “A bit more energetic this one,” says Thomson as he marches out the dimensions of an eightsteps-by-eight-steps box, oblivious to the perspiration already forming on his student’s brow.

It hinges on short, sharp passing, with orders given out by Thomson. One touch, two touch, three touch. He throws in requests for volleys and half-volleys.

Every so often he sends you running round a cone, whereupon you return slightly dizzy and disorientated to resume a drill designed to improve reflexes, stamina, touch and also stimulate the brain.

It’s surprising how hard it is to listen to instructions and then carry them out when the ball is being struck towards you with the crispness expected of someone who only stopped playing professional football a few months ago.

But that’s the beauty of it. Being put through your paces by a player renowned for being one of the best passers in the business.

And, bloody hell, it’s fun, something the heroically patient Thomson wants to ensure is the case, for six year-olds as well as 43-year-olds who are pretending the light hasn’t long since died, and all ages in between.

Just wait ’til they see me at Monday night fives. Neil Lennon has revealed Hibs could be without key midfielders John Mcginn and Fraser Fyvie for the Ladbrokes Championship clash against second-placed Dundee United next Friday.

Mcginn, pictured, has already been ruled out of the trip to Tannadice as he begins eight weeks on the sidelines having undergone surgery on the ankle problem which has been troubling him in recent weeks.

But now Lennon has a major concern about Fyvie, admitting the Easter Road club’s medical staff are “working round the clock” in a bid to help him overcome the groin injury which forced him off during last weekend’s 4-0 demolition of Queen of the South.

At the time, Lennon disclosed that Fyvie had been enduring an ongoing but slight groin problem while expressing the hope he’d be fit to face United. However, the injury is now more serious than first thought.

The Hibs head coach said: “There’s a bit of swelling around the groin but we are still hopeful he will be OK for the Dundee United game.”

However, Lennon conceded that while he has options, it was “not ideal” to have Mcginn, who eventually found the pain from the calcified bone in his left ankle too great to bear, and Fyvie out at the same time. He said: “We have the likes of Dylan Mcgeouch and Marvin Bartley, who can come in and do a job for us but we are working round the clock to have Fraser ready for next Friday.”

Mcginn had an operation to “shave” the bone yesterday, the 22-year-old later tweeting to say it had been a success.

Lennonhadhopedmcginn might be able to continue playing until after the United match but disclosed having the operation now should mean the former St Mirren player won’t miss as many games as he might have done had he continued to delay going under the knife.

He said: “John was too sore after the Queen of the South game. He was starting to get pain not just in the local area but up the lateral side of his leg. There was always the danger that it could fracture with it being so unstable.

“John came walking in with a limp on Monday and you have to look after the kid’s welfare at the end of the day. It was too much to ask him to keep risking it. There is some sort of result in that he won’t miss as many games as he would had he stayed on for the Dundee United game.

“We’ll get him back in midjanuary which is an important stage of the season. He’ll miss seven games instead of nine so that is a bonus if all goes well.” Lennon described Mcginn’s operation as “pretty routine”.