Hibs’ long-serving defender Paul Hanlon is looking forward to trips to Celtic Park and Tynecastle after the international break and insists that the players in the dressing room are ready for the challenge of keeping their run of form going as long as they can.
Hibs are currently in second place in the table, two points behind Hearts following four consecutive wins although Hanlon missed the last town games due to injury.
The match against Celtic is likely to be a high-scoring affair with both sides in top form, following six goal victories last weekend and Hibs have been allocated an extra 200 tickets for the game.
He told Hibernian Media: “It took us a while to get going in terms of performance, but the last few games have been great and we’ve started keeping clean sheets.
“The squad changed a lot in the summer, we came back to tough European games so it takes time. But the boys have settled in and you can see how well the club have recruited.
“We haven’t played any of the so-called bigger teams and it’s early days so we have to keep our performance levels high and we where that takes us. We have a tough two games coming up and a really tough December.
“We’ve managed to take a good number of points so far, but Parkhead and Tynecastle will probably be a real measure of what kind of level we are at.
“We don’t have a massive squad but there’s depth with a lot of players who can play in different positions, a lot of cover and we’re ready for the challenge.
“We’ve recruited well and the boys who were here already here have stepped up, shared around the responsibility and we have kicked on as a team.”
He is also looking forward to his Testimonial Darts Day on Sunday 9 December at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange, beginning at 12:30pm, especially as Hibernian fan and darts legend Gary Anderson will be taking part in the event.
Also joining him at the oche will be some of his current and former team-mates, plus manager Neil Lennon, and other darts icons such as Devon Petersen and Peter Manley.
Whilst it is not a competitive event, the defender is planning on honing his skills to ensure he is not finishing in last place.
He continued: “I’m delighted that someone of the calibre Gary Anderson is going to be at the Darts Day. I hope he doesn’t take it too seriously though as it’s just meant to be a bit of fun!
“We have a darts board at the training centre but it doesn’t get used all that often anymore. I’ll definitely be getting the extra practice on in the coming weeks to make sure I’m ready for the event.
“It’s a light-hearted event, but I know none of the lads want to finish last on the day so it will be interesting. I’m sure everyone who comes along will have a great time.”
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.
