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James Keatings has signed for Hibs after being freed by city rivals Hearts.

The 23-year-old striker won back-to-back promotions during spells with Hamilton Academical then Hearts and now hopes to make it three in a row with Hibs.

Speaking to Hibs TV, Keatings said: “I’m delighted to sign for the club and I definitely believe Hibs can go up as champions.

“I saw the quality in the team whenever I played against them last season and Hibs probably deserved more than they achieved.

“But there’s a new season coming up now and I’ll be aiming to make it three promotions for me and I’m sure the club will be targeting that too.”

“I had other options to go elsewhere and to play in the Premiership.

“But one of the big factors that persuaded me to come here was the manager and I believe he can make me become a much better player.

“Hibs are a big club and the manager has ambitious plans for the future.

“Everything pointed towards this move being the right decision for me and my career.”

Head Coach Alan Stubbs said: “James will bring goals to the team and we’re delighted to add him to the squad.

“It’s an area where I thought we did well last season, but it’s also an area where we can improve.

“His goalscoring record speaks for itself – he’s got a good habit of being in the right place at the right time.

“We want competition for places and we want to score lots of goals. We’re delighted to sign James and the fact he wanted to come here.

“The fact we’ve got this deal done and Fraser’s new contract is a positive sign about how we want to drive the club forward.

“I want to do all my business as early as possible and have the nucleus of the squad in place for the start of pre-season.

“We’ve been able to do that thanks to season ticket sales, HSL and shares; the more sold, the better equipped will be in the transfer market.”

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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.