Scottish Premiership Preview 2018/19 - Hibernian - Striking out for Second

Hibs were a quality side throughout last season but an early season lack of potency undid them somewhat. A lack of potency is something that’s often been labelled when it comes to Neil Lennon - few Celtic fans can forget the near endless parade of dirge that polluted the club’s striking ranks during Lennon’s tenure. The likes of Teemu Pukki (hard worker but not a goalscorer) or Amido Balde (now playing in Albania) made plenty of people feel that Lennon simply couldn’t pick strikers. Simon Murray hardly helped that view given how he was after his early season burst of form.



But, come January, that all changed. Flo Kamberi and Jamie Maclaren came in on loan and suddenly, Hibs had an exciting strike partnership and everything tied together. In 2018, they accumulated 32 out of 48 points on offer - had they met that level all season, Hibs would have been second. Post-split, they beat Celtic at Easter Road not by chance or by frustration, but by out-playing them and they rounded off the season with a ridiculous 5-5 draw against Rangers that had them 3-0 up after 22 minutes and then pulling back 2 goals to draw in the last 20 minutes. They not only showed the character you’d expect of a Neil Lennon side, they showed a flair and verve that you wouldn’t. Starting the season this year against Runavik of the Faroes, they racked up 12 goals over 2 legs (albeit conceding 5) and showed they appear to be picking up where they left off - ridiculously entertaining, extremely potent but sometimes extremely unreliable.

Now, there is one great unknown here - I sit writing this with John McGinn still a Hibs player. At some point, he won’t be and, with the English transfer window finishing in early August this year a full three weeks before Scotland, it is likely McGinn’s future one way or another will be decided before that point. It is still fair to expect him to be sold and his asking price to be met by (probably) Celtic either with just money or money plus a player and it is even fairer to expect that the price Hibs get for him will be great enough so as to enable them to employ an extremely capable replacement. I am writing all this on the assumption that Neil Lennon is going to sign someone capable - his record suggests he will.

Lennon does need to bring in another striker (Croat Ivan Lendric is on trial at the moment) but his Hibs side, even shorn of Dylan McGeouch, still feel like they could easily be the second best team in Scotland. McGeouch’s talents were in keeping possession and being able to set the pace of the game - his replacement in Stevie Mallan isn’t that, but is more of a threat going forward. If anything, Hibs have replaced McGeouch with another McGinn which changes the balance but gives the side more going forward. With Oli Shaw becoming a more prominent part of the first team also, it’s clear that should Lennon get the replacement for Jamie Maclaren right, Hibs will be better going forward than last season. Given they were pretty good at that already, that’s worth taking note of.

Defensively is where McGeouch will be missed and most will have taken note of the side conceding four in the away leg to Runavik. Hibs lacked a steady hand to slow things down and do the simple things like complete passes and take the sting out of a revival. That’s a trait they worryingly showed against Rangers on the final day of the season also which perhaps poses if not a question of character but a question of composure.

Or, as some may say, Hibsing it.

That’s an unfair term to use - it’s not a case that Hibs lose their heads, it’s that they appear to get a little bit overexcited. Sometimes that will pay off and they will look irresistible. Sometimes it will backfire and they will need to graft to get themselves back into a game. The positive thing is that they’ve shown that they are able to do that when those tests have occurred.

As such, Hibs are fairly easy to get behind. They are fun to watch, they have players you want to watch and they have enough about them to be right in the mix. Some may see that as a very un Neil Lennon sort of side - rather it is an evolution of a Neil Lennon side that reflects not his mantra but the lessons he has learned over the years from Celtic and Bolton. And that makes Hibs an extremely dangerous foe.

Just before coming up, after falling short vs Aberdeen in the Cup, Lennon claimed his side were the second best in Scotland. They weren’t then. But it feels like they might be now.