Hibs, boosted by Saturday’s 2-0 victory over lowly St Johnstone in the cinch Premiership, go in against a St Mirren side buoyed by their narrow 1-0 win over Hearts, in an intriguing Viaplay Cup quarter-final at Easter Road on Wednesday (19.45).
Stephen Robinson’s visitors sit second in the league with 14 points, only two behind pace-setting Celtic, and they are unbeaten in their last five cinch Premiership games.
They are the third top scorers in the division behind Celtic with 14 and Hibs on 11 – The Buddies have scored ten goals – and Hibs are fifth in the table with seven points and they are unbeaten in their last three league fixtures.
Statistics show that the Easter Road side have three wins and St Mirren two in the last five meetings between the sides and Aussie-born defender Lewis Miller insists the Hibees are in a good position.
Personally, Miller is on a high after scoring his first goal for the club, a header across the goalkeeper after a superb cross from Joe Newell, and he told Hibs TV that the win over struggling St Johnstone was “a great result”.
He will not need to be reminded that the Paisley men were the first team to visit Easter Road in the league this season and they came away with three points from a 3-2 win, forward Alex Grieve netting the game-winner after 89 minutes, when former boss Lee Johnson was in charge.
Miller said fans can now see the philosophy of football they are trying to play since the recent arrival of new head coach Nick Montgomery and he added: “We are keeping the ball and we are moving the ball around well.
“We got a lot of opportunities and we could’ve scored a few more (against St Johnstone). If we stick to the gaffer’s game plan we are all confident we can have a successful season.”
The 23-year-old insists the squad are moving in the right direction since the arrival of Leeds-born Montgomery and said: “The gaffer has been great with the players.”
Montgomery coached Miller, who has been capped at under-23 level by Australia, at Central Coast Mariners and the player, who signed a three-year-deal in June 2022, and the player said: “He is almost like a father figure to me because I have known him for that long, so his guidance has really helped me progress as an individual.
“The boys are starting to gel with him so if we continue to keep playing the way we are playing then I am sure we will be pretty hard to beat – especially at Easter Road.”
PICTURE: Celebration time at Easter Road on Saturday. Picture by Ian Jacobs
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