Leaving Hibs
has extended my career!
Lovell looks to press home his
case for no defence! - STUART CROWTHER STUART
LOVELL WILL TOMORROW lead Livingston
out onto the Easter Road pitch, and from the heart of the West Lothian
sides midfield attempt to demonstrate to Alex McLeish that his time at
Hibs would have been better served in the midfield and not as a wing-back!
Signed from Reading by
McLeish as a striker, Lovell never quite fitted the bill in that role, but
when dropped back to the midfield demonstrated a versatility that allowed
him to claim a regular slot in Alex McLeish's side. But Lovell soon
found himself in an entirely new role at Easter Road, as a wing-back, a
position he did well in but not one he enjoyed. This led to a couple
of very public bust-ups with his boss, leading to Lovell's move to West
Lothian - and who can now argue that it was not a smart move by Lovell!
Stuart Lovell when at Easter Road (sns)
Jim Leishman not only
put Lovell back into the middle of the park, but made him team captain,
and Lovell has excelled in both roles. He said: "The
boss moving me to midfield really helped because if I was still playing
the role I had at Hibs it would have taken two years off my career.
I don't see any reason why I should not finish my playing days at
Livi." The latter point should not be taken too
seriously by Livingston fans however, as Lovell had said much the same
thing a year ago when part of a Hibs side that was sweeping all before
them. That is much as Livingston are doing this season, making the
clash at Easter Road all the more interesting for both sets of fans.
Hibs need a victory badly, as the gap between Alex McLeish's side and
3rd-placed Livi cannot be allowed to grow any further if Hibs are to
launch any sort of challenge for a European slot.
Alex McLeish meanwhile
is calling on Hibs fans to pull together behind the club. The Hibs
boss is not immune to the grumbles from the Easter Road stands, and
believes that the drop in confidence among some of his players can only be
helped by supporters tempering their criticism. "Everyone
must be together, the fans as well," McLeish said last night,
adding: "It is easy to criticise when things
are going wrong but this is when I earn my corn. I cannot go into
the changing room, wave a magic wand and say "There is your
confidence back", we must keep working. But this is also a time
for having faith in people as well. If I reacted the way some
people would, I would be chopping and changing the team every week."
McManus - moved closer to Easter Road (sns)
Tam McManus is hoping
that a move from Glasgow to Edinburgh will help get his own performance
back on track. The Under-21 international has pondered a move from
his native Glasgow for some time, and travelling in to Easter Road for
training daily in the company of John O'Neil has finally worn down the
young striker almost as much as moans from his boss to move nearer the
stadium! "The manager has been at me for
ages to move," McManus said, adding: "He
could see in training some days that I was not as fresh as I should have
been and he put it down to all the travelling. I was always
shattered getting up at 7am to travel through to Easter Road with John
O'Neil.
"But
now I'm only five minutes from the ground and I can even walk to training
if I feel like it. I feel more settled and hopefully that can be
reflected with better performances and a few more goals - starting with
Livingston tomorrow."
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