United we stand, divided we fall
Hibs boss fights back ahead of Celtic clash as two players suffer injury setbacks....

Normality or whatever you call it will return to Easter Road on Sunday as one week on from the Cup Final the club returns to League duty against runaway leaders Celtic.  Probably not the game that most fans would want straight after a Cup Final defeat but Celtic it is who Hibs play hopefully in front of a decent sized crowd.  It is back to league business and back to the aim of finishing in the top six of the SPL before the split which takes place in a few weeks time.  Bobby Williamson and his players will want to achieve this for the fans they admit they sorely let down last Sunday.

The last game against Celtic was played at Parkhead and it was a 6-0 drubbing by the champions elect.  At Easter Road however Hibs have fared a bit better with one win and one loss in all competition with the scores being 2-1 for the winning side on each occasion.  Hibs are of course the only side to have beaten Celtic in domestic competition and this is something that the Hibs fans can remember as we go to face them again.  Celtic face Barcelona next Thursday night and minds will undoubtedly be looking towards this.  This fact could help or hinder Hibs in their bid to inflict another defeat on Martin O’Neill’s men.  If Celtic win in Spain they will be on cloud nine as would anyone who had managed to beat them.  On the other hand if they should go out of the UEFA Cup competition it could, however I think there is only a slight chance of this, affect their morale ever so slightly.

Bobby Williamson will have a central defence headache for Sunday’s game with both Mathias Doumbe and Colin Murdock missing due to suspension.  This is another thing I am sure the manager could do without as these two have been strong in recent games in the centre of defence.  But with Yannick Zambernardi having made a good recovery and Jonathon Baillie waiting in the wings they are also options for Williamson.  Jonathon Baillie’s only first team game was against Celtic and he will be hoping that he could get another chance to face them and again show what he is made of trying to secure a place in the starting eleven on a regular basis.

Baillie set for in a repeat of his debut?  (sns)

As the first game after a distressing loss in the Cup Final the players and the coaching staff will be looking for the Hibernian family to rally round and support them in this fixture.  Fans can now put their disappointment aside for an hour and a half and stand up and be counted as Hibs fans.  Last Sunday wasn’t easy for anyone to take and the young lads as well as the older heads will need some reassurance that the fans are still behind them as they strive for a top six place.  Since the loss to Livingston there has been a lot of bickering for want of a better word between Hibs fans and it has turned into Hibee vs. Hibee.  This is not what we want.  So on Sunday those who are going to attend the game put your misgivings and disagreements aside and be united in one thing – the support of Hibernian Football Club and it’s staff.

Good luck to the boys and try your best that’s all anyone can ask of you.  And those who are going to the game enjoy it!

Bobby Williamson has not completely dismissed talk of him leaving Hibs for the vacant manager's position at Nationwide League side Plymouth Argyle.  Speaking on the club's official website, the under-fire Hibs boss simply said, "There's a lot of speculation flying around, as usual. It is part and parcel of football, unfortunately there's people having fliers at it. I'm not going to add to that because I'm totally focused on what's going on here and that's always been the case. I've not heard the club saying anybody's been in touch and I don't expect the club to be telling me anybody's been in touch.”

With pressure building in the stands for changes to be made with regards to performances as well as results, Williamson knows that he has a tough job ahead of him.  Route one football is not what the fans are looking for but with an injury list that is only now starting to look like it could shorten slightly, he's signalled his intent to look forward and positively to the next game as each comes.  “You can't cry over things you haven't got and we've always tried to be positive. I went with three strikers last Sunday against three defenders - I think Hibs fans in the past have complained about managers not being positive enough and not being attack-minded enough, but I don't think you could level that at me on this occasion. We started with three and finished with five and even put Colin Murdock up front to try and get the goal we needed. It's very much going to be a rollercoaster ride as long as I'm in charge here because if we aren't getting the goals we need then caution has to be thrown to the wind, we'll always try and get back in the game rather than settle for a 1-0 or a 2-0 defeat.”

Meanwhile, Stephen Glass has suffered another setback in his bid to return to action.  The midfielder has had to undergo another operation after failing to respond to treatment on his injured knee.  "Stephen Glass has been in for another operation to find out the extent of what's wrong with his knee. It has not responded so we'll have to have another look at that, while Ian Murray had blood samples taken and he's going to have a couple of scans to see what the extent of the damage is. He's done a bit of training but we don't think it's anything to do with that - once we get the results of the samples and the scans we can get a diagnosis.”