PDA

View Full Version : Thoughts on our pre-season



matty_f
29-07-2017, 07:27 PM
With the league campaign kicking off next weekend, how do you feel about our prospects on the back of that pre-season?

I am really optimistic, we've recruited splendidly and will hopefully see Stokes join as well. The team is playing good football, scoring goals and winning games.

I can't wait to get back to Easter Road, it's shaping up to be a very exciting campaign.

Carheenlea
29-07-2017, 07:33 PM
I've not looked forward as much to a new season as this one for a long time - strong squad gelling well and new recruits settling in very nicely indeed, as are the promoted youngsters. A solid set of performances has confidence high and raring to go.

lord bunberry
29-07-2017, 07:34 PM
Things are going swimmingly

frazeHFC
29-07-2017, 07:35 PM
Sceptical when we brought Ambrose in, was proved wrong. Sceptical when we signed Murray, and I'm being proved wrong again. Both great signings!

Playing good football and scoring goals. Positive about the season ahead.

21.05.2016
29-07-2017, 07:36 PM
So far so good. Decent squad with hopefully 1 or 2 new additions yet to come.

aljo7-0
29-07-2017, 07:38 PM
Yup. Can't wait either. Got my first season ticket for a few years.

Baw187
29-07-2017, 07:40 PM
I'm quietly optimistic.

I reckon we've recruited well and players like Boyle and F Murray have been performing above the level I expected of them.

My only slight reservation based on the Ross County game is that we might still lack a ruthless streak that would see us maintain the level of consistency needed to make top 3.

Reckon when we're good, we'll be sensational, but fear a bit of inconsistency.

Still, pre season signs are promising.

Souter96Mac
29-07-2017, 07:41 PM
Was going to make a similar thread! Don't think we could've asked for much more from pre season, of course a win against county would've been the icing on the cake but thoroughly pleased with the preparation for the league campaign. We've strengthened, come out of pre season without any injuries. Of course the likes of the Lithuanians and Hanlon still need to get up to match fitness, but I'm sure they'll get up to speed soon.
We've scored goals, coming from all over the pitch. Simon Murray is in great form, whilst the likes of Boyle, McGinn and defenders contributing too. We've also seen Porteous, Murray and Shaw break into the squad in recent weeks who, Ryan and Fraser in particular, have acquitted themselves brilliantly and have given Lennon a right headache for future team selection.
However the real test starts next Saturday against Partick who will be a tough team, but I'm confident we will win.
Still hoping we get Stokes through the door as our 8th signing of the window, with potential one or two more.
Can't get too complacent, but it is pleasing seeing Hearts struggle whilst we're progressing

Northernhibee
29-07-2017, 08:05 PM
I'm optimistic but still think that Murray might struggle when he doesn't have the space or time afforded in a game against the likes of Arbroath or Alloa. He's still impressed me though. Think we need a couple of strikers in still and maybe an attacking midfielder.

Think we'll be top five at the moment.

Sir David Gray
29-07-2017, 08:08 PM
We're still two or three players away from having a squad capable of challenging for the top four, which I'm sure is where Lennon thinks we should be aiming for. We're still too light up top and I'm sure that will be addressed over the coming weeks but at the moment we don't have enough goals in the team to challenge at the top end of the league.

We're very strong defensively and also in midfield we're very good, we're just needing to improve in the attacking areas and then we'll be a real force this season.

Vini1875
29-07-2017, 08:14 PM
We're still two or three players away from having a squad capable of challenging for the top four, which I'm sure is where Lennon thinks we should be aiming for. We're still too light up top and I'm sure that will be addressed over the coming weeks but at the moment we don't have enough goals in the team to challenge at the top end of the league.

We're very strong defensively and also in midfield we're very good, we're just needing to improve in the attacking areas and then we'll be a real force this season.

Totally agree with this. Another two quality players and avoiding injury to the rest should see us have a good season. Injuries and suspensions could kill us though. Also optimistic about the young guys taking a step up.

bingo70
29-07-2017, 08:16 PM
I've not seen much of us pre season but Lennon was raving about Boyle after the game today, he was saying he's really upped his game to a different level.

Could he be a big player this season?

H18 SFR
29-07-2017, 08:17 PM
Sceptical when we brought Ambrose in, was proved wrong. Sceptical when we signed Murray, and I'm being proved wrong again. Both great signings!

Playing good football and scoring goals. Positive about the season ahead.

Totally agree, I'm now well and truly a Neil Lennon believer. I think his signings this window have been truly exceptional. I was at Alloa today, Slivka looks superb

NORTHERNHIBBY
29-07-2017, 08:18 PM
The new league cup format has given us meaningful games and it's good to see that most of the squad has had a decent amount of playing time to get match fit. Would like to have seen all our players signed and given a full 90 minutes but you can't have everything.

Jonnyboy
29-07-2017, 08:22 PM
I've not seen much of us pre season but Lennon was raving about Boyle after the game today, he was saying he's really upped his game to a different level.

Could he be a big player this season?

I think his pace will cause defenders no end of trouble, bingo. Sure, he doesn't always produce a decent end product but he will do at times and that could well open up defences

Hibby Bairn
29-07-2017, 08:22 PM
I believe we have a better squad than all bar Celtic. Aberdeen will have benefit of experience and playing together for a while. But definitely better than Rangers, Hearts, St J. And should definitely take care of Partick.

660
29-07-2017, 08:22 PM
Totally agree, I'm now well and truly a Neil Lennon believer. I think his signings this window have been truly exceptional. I was at Alloa today, Slivka looks superb

Yeah I think this is what NL was brought in for. His signings last season seemed like quick fixes for obvious deficiencies he saw and was confident he’d get us up with pretty much the existing squad. Probably contributing to a frustrating season last year at times.

The team next year will be Lennons team and it’s looking like he’s done well in a massive transfer window for the club.

bingo70
29-07-2017, 08:23 PM
I think his pace will cause defenders no end of trouble, bingo. Sure, he doesn't always produce a decent end product but he will do at times and that could well open up defences

That's how I've always seen him but Lennon seemed to think he's moved on from that perception of him so far this pre-season

Sir David Gray
29-07-2017, 08:24 PM
I've not seen much of us pre season but Lennon was raving about Boyle after the game today, he was saying he's really upped his game to a different level.

Could he be a big player this season?

Boyle was very good today, his cross for the third goal was outstanding.

tamig
29-07-2017, 08:25 PM
Totally agree, I'm now well and truly a Neil Lennon believer. I think his signings this window have been truly exceptional. I was at Alloa today, Slivka looks superb

What role did Slivka play and what type of player do you reckon he is?

I wasn't there today.

Sir David Gray
29-07-2017, 08:42 PM
What role did Slivka play and what type of player do you reckon he is?

I wasn't there today.

He played an attacking role, looking to get forward with the ball whenever he could and also broke up the play a few times as well. He also looks pretty quick.

I know it was only Alloa he was up against today but he looks very decent.

Baw187
29-07-2017, 08:50 PM
A quality that is often glossed over with Lennon is his ability to improve players he thinks have potential through proper coaching. I think this is what we're seeing with Boyle as he has definitely improved his game.

It looks like he's been given a few pointers on how to take up better positions that allow him to exploit his pace. And his final ball, while still a little here and there, has improved.

Jonnyboy
29-07-2017, 08:58 PM
That's how I've always seen him but Lennon seemed to think he's moved on from that perception of him so far this pre-season

Yep, he's definitely improved under Lennon's coaching :agree:

frazeHFC
29-07-2017, 08:59 PM
Boyle might not be the most clinical finisher, but his 3 assists for Murray in the past 2 games have been brilliant. Always liked him and he seems to be ever-improving.

lord bunberry
29-07-2017, 09:02 PM
Boyle might not be the most clinical finisher, but his 3 assists for Murray in the past 2 games have been brilliant. Always liked him and he seems to be ever-improving.
Imagine him running at that hearts defence.

Col2
29-07-2017, 09:11 PM
Very optimistic. Especially given we should expect at least one new striker and good chance this is stokes. Murray has had a fantastic start to the season but as already said it's against lower league opposition (remember Graham having a good few goals for Ross county on league cup one year ago).

I think we have a very strong defence, a range of quality in midfield and just need one or two more in attacking area aka Stokes and Commons. If we get them then we have a very strong squad and exciting season ahead.

Onceinawhile
29-07-2017, 09:21 PM
It's been a very good pre season. Too many positives to list them all.

Really have to dig for negatives. Would have been nice if we'd had the two Lithuanians in a bit earlier, if oli Shaw had gotten a competitive goal, stokes was tied up by now and we'd beaten Ross county.

But all of those are fairly minor and the fact almost all our signings are in for the proper kick off is fantastic and quite unlike us!

Borderhibbie76
30-07-2017, 06:59 AM
A quality that is often glossed over with Lennon is his ability to improve players he thinks have potential through proper coaching. I think this is what we're seeing with Boyle as he has definitely improved his game.

It looks like he's been given a few pointers on how to take up better positions that allow him to exploit his pace. And his final ball, while still a little here and there, has improved.Think the same thing could be said of Simon Murray so far too...think Lennon is coaching him well and sees him as a rough diamond that needs polishing ...Murray alluded to this in an interview during week

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

Ozyhibby
30-07-2017, 07:47 AM
Think we are still a couple of strikers away from where we need to be but overall we look good for top 4 and European footy. Defence looks solid with plenty of cover. Midfield solid again, especially if McGeogh can stay fit and with the intro of Fraser Murray and Slivka could be more effective going forward than last season.
Simon Murray looks a real find.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

calumhibee1
30-07-2017, 08:21 AM
We're still two or three players away from having a squad capable of challenging for the top four, which I'm sure is where Lennon thinks we should be aiming for. We're still too light up top and I'm sure that will be addressed over the coming weeks but at the moment we don't have enough goals in the team to challenge at the top end of the league.

Not sure about that. Aberdeen have a cracking squad, Rangers will be there or there shouts but our current squad is significantly better than anyone else's IMO. I certainly agree we need more goals but to me that would make us a team capable of challenging for 2nd rather than top 4 which we're already more than capable of.

ian cruise
30-07-2017, 08:30 AM
It's been a really good pre season, as good as I can think of. Kept most of our players from last year including SJM so far. I always expected JC to move on so while I would prefer him to still be with us, I wouldn't say his move disheartened me.

We have recruited well, though you wouldn't know it from fam forums at points during the summer. Good number of quality players tied up early and further signings all in well before the end of the window.

Performances have looked good, County worried me slightly as it seemed classic Hibs, plenty of the ball with no one putting it in the net but I genuinely think that was just the team still beginning to gel. Though the teams since have been from lower divisions we've looked more ruthless and I suspect our coaching team are key to that.

Can't wait for Partick.

PeeJay
30-07-2017, 08:34 AM
With the league campaign kicking off next weekend, how do you feel about our prospects on the back of that pre-season?

I am really optimistic, we've recruited splendidly and will hopefully see Stokes join as well. The team is playing good football, scoring goals and winning games.

I can't wait to get back to Easter Road, it's shaping up to be a very exciting campaign.

Difficult not to be a bit pleased with the games and performances, so far - a certain degree of optimism is warranted. We will be meeting teams in the league however, that don't give our players so much space and time on the ball. Should be an interesting opening round of games, still a lot of work to be done with the team though: best not to get carried away ... if we take more than half the points available from the first 5 games I'll be pleasantly surprised ...

Lancs Harp
30-07-2017, 08:37 AM
As ever the proof is in the pudding regarding pre season.

Win all your pre season games and lose your early season openers then pre season has been a failure because pre season is all about being ready for the coming season. However, things are looking very promising, the squad has a depth to it I doubt we have ever seen before, we have some really good youngsters coming through and making a serious challenge for game time. We have made some very interesting signings from abroad, obviously too early to tell if they will make an impact but Slivka inparticular comes with a bit of a pedigree.

We look solid at the back, with plenty of cover, midfield looks balanced both going forward and defensively and again there is plenty of cover. I guess the question marks remain upfront and that is purely based on one game against Ross Co were we struggled in front of goal despite largely dictating the game, but having said that Murray has had a good pre season, settled in well, contributed and obviously importantly for a forward has banged a few in. Boyles improvement seems to be continueing.

I think we'll still introduce another one or two players, whether one will be Stokesy remains to be seen but Im sure who ever it (or they are) it will only further strengthen the team.

Exciting times ahead, I certainly think we make make an impact into the top 4.

Sir David Gray
30-07-2017, 08:42 AM
Not sure about that. Aberdeen have a cracking squad, Rangers will be there or there shouts but our current squad is significantly better than anyone else's IMO. I certainly agree we need more goals but to me that would make us a team capable of challenging for 2nd rather than top 4 which we're already more than capable of.

To finish 4th, we're probably going to need to score between 50-60 goals next season.

I'm not too sure our current squad has that amount of goals in them.

I'm not too concerned as I fully believe that we will bring in at least a couple more players during this window but I would say our current squad is probably aiming for around 5th or 6th place.

Lancs Harp
30-07-2017, 08:47 AM
To finish 4th, we're probably going to need to score between 50-60 goals next season.

I'm not too sure our current squad has that amount of goals in them.

I'm not too concerned as I fully believe that we will bring in at least a couple more players during this window but I would say our current squad is probably aiming for around 5th or 6th place.

Out of interest SDG who would you say were ahead of us if we are 5th or 6th. I would presume you are considering St Johnstone and Hearts but IMO we are better than both od those sides.

Celtic are currently obviously way out in front, I think Rangers will improve quite alot this season and will fight out the second spot with Aberdeen who on paper at least seem to have made improvements in the summer. Fourth spot certainly up fr grabs for me and I cant see anyone amongst the rest that are as good as we are.

Sir David Gray
30-07-2017, 09:02 AM
Out of interest SDG who would you say were ahead of us if we are 5th or 6th. I would presume you are considering St Johnstone and Hearts but IMO we are better than both od those sides.

Celtic are currently obviously way out in front, I think Rangers will improve quite alot this season and will fight out the second spot with Aberdeen who on paper at least seem to have made improvements in the summer. Fourth spot certainly up fr grabs for me and I cant see anyone amongst the rest that are as good as we are.

I think St Johnstone will be there or thereabouts whilst Tommy Wright is their manager. I also wouldn't dismiss Partick Thistle after their season last year.

Hearts aren't a threat to any team in the top six whilst Cathro remains in charge.

The Leith Dutch
30-07-2017, 09:04 AM
I'm optimistic but still think that Murray might struggle when he doesn't have the space or time afforded in a game against the likes of Arbroath or Alloa. He's still impressed me though. Think we need a couple of strikers in still and maybe an attacking midfielder.

Think we'll be top five at the moment.

Presumably that's part of the reason for bringing in Matulevicius - to create space and give the opposition something to worry about.
If the other Murray can force his way into the team by arriving in the box and scoring then even better.

One thing I particularly like about the way Lennon is going about things is that he seems to be assembling a squad he can use in a variety of ways rather than a starting XI that play a formation and some like for like replacements.

I can see a few different formations we can play and it feels like we have the right players to do it.

Dobosz83
30-07-2017, 09:16 AM
I'm excited about the new season, no question about it. Our results and performances have been of a high standard and we have clearly recruited well (with potentially the cherry on top still to arrive).

Bringing in Marciano, Ambrose, Whittaker, Slivkas, Swanson, Matulevicius and S. Murray looks like good business with the two Lithuanians not having had time to get fully up to speed in fairness. Stokes would top the window off superbly and give us that cutting edge. It's now about ensuring McGinn stays and nobody decides to come in for him with tempting money.

The highlight for me has been the break through of Fraser Murray and Ryan Porteous (hopefully Shaw follows suit). Murray in particular has impressive from what I've seen, the potential for this lad is huge.

That said, I' still have this odd reservation about next week and a decent Partick side. We need to get off to a win with top 6 being a minimum target, I'm hoping we push for Europe though and see no reason why we shouldn't be able to do so.

Roll on next Saturday!

jacomo
30-07-2017, 09:26 AM
I'm very pleased.

Lenny is putting together a great squad. Thought it would take a while for the new players to settle but Simon Murray's goals are making that easier.

If Stokes does sign there will be a question about how long he takes to get match sharp but Lenny knows what he is doing.

I have no doubt we will sign at least two more attacking players.

Keith_M
30-07-2017, 09:31 AM
We've done all that could be expected in almost every game so far, which makes me reasonably optimistic. Mostly the opposition has been lower league, which we've quite often struggled with in the past, but each of those teams has been dispatched with relative ease and we've only conceded one goal in those games.

As I mentioned in another post, our goals for and against record is pretty good overall (F-21, A-3)

The one worry is how we'll perform against premier league sides, of whom we've only played Ross County, which was a goalless draw, but we've since signed two more players and I'd expect there's more to come.