Owain Tudur Jones thought he had seen the last of the famous Terry Butcher temper when he swapped Inverness for the capital in the summer, but he is delighted that the former England captain has made the same journey.
In fact, it was Butcher’s reputation in the game that attracted the Welsh internationalist to Scotland in the first place and he is convinced that he is the man to lead Hibs to greater things. Although Butcher dropped several place down the table when he accepted the job, Tudur Jones is adamant that the players are in place to rectify that and it is just a question of confidence although he is not expecting any favours when the team is picked for Saturday’s game against St Mirren.
Speaking at the club press conference at the Training Centre, Tudur Jones said: “Have I seen his temper? I’ve seen it plenty. In fact, it’s harder to remember a game where it didn’t happen! When we went up to play Inverness recently the wall next to his office had been plastered up, and there was a big hole the size of his fist there.
“I’ve also seen a water cooler destroyed to 30 different pieces, which was springing around the dressing room. But you know what you get from him. If you play well and give everything he won’t be like that. He only shows his temper at times when he feels your application and performance isn’t good enough.
“We can adapt to what he’s looking for pretty quickly. What attracted him here would have been the size of the club. But this also isn’t a team who are languishing at the bottom of the table.
“He’s not coming here to take over a bunch of chumps who are unfit and can’t play. But he’ll know we’re low on confidence and we’re the lowest scorers in the league. It’s up to him to try to rectify that. We have to make things happen on the pitch but the gaffer will be giving his utmost to make sure we go out there free of pressure. It’s about making Hibs a team others fear.”
“When you meet him it’s his character that shines through – and his reputation as a player. “When I first signed for Inverness I didn’t know a lot about the club but I knew a whole lot about Terry Butcher. So he’s a big pulling point. He has an aura about him.
The 29-year-old is not concerned that Butcher will hold a grudge about him turning down a new contract with Inverness in the close season. He continued: “He was fine about me leaving Inverness. My reason was because it was a new challenge and I wanted to help Hibs grow into the top six. If anything that has been justified by the gaffer making the same move, but I’m not expecting any favours just because I played under him previously.”
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
