A mixture of international call-ups and injuries have left Hibs with fifteen fit players for today’s Betfred League Cup game against Paul Hartley’s Cove Rangers.
Head Coach Jack Ross however sees this as an opportunity for the players who have not featured in the league this season to improve their match fitness with three games in six days.
Hibs beat Highland League side Brora Rangers 3-1 on Wednesday to start the campaign and travel north today missing five internationals. On Tuesday they meet Forfar Athletic in Forfar before another trip north on Saturday to meet Ross County when hopefully everyone will be back in contention.
Ross told Hibernian TV: “I think they were all excited to play an a lot of them individually did fine in the (Brora Rangers) game. It is different when you have not been playing regularly, just being into that flow in games both physically and mentally.
“It’s never easy but in the early part of the game I thought we were very good although we lost our way a little we still achieved the victory so I think the players can take confidence in that.
“We have had consistency this season and used the fewest number of players so these games are always going to give people opportunities.
“With the number of players we have called up (for international duty) and we have some more injuries we are down to fifteen fit players for tomorrow and that’s including two or three younger ones so players are going to get the opportunity to play a good run of games so hopefully that’s a benefit moving forward as well.
“Some of them will have knocked out three successive games in six days including the Forfar game so that will be good for them. It keeps them engaged mentally. Physically it will be good for them and it will stand them in good stead because as I said we have a much smaller squad so we are going to need them during the course of the season.
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.
