2023-2024?

[RIP]

Ron Gordon, Ben Kendall, Ian Gordon, Steve Kean, Shaun Maloney and Gareth Evans are clearly working on a longer term plan.

Young players recruited for the Development Squad.

An U18 team that are the best in Scotland by a country mile.

A complete new coaching team.

How long did it take tiny Belgium to become the top ranked team in Europe?

OK, just a theory but I suspect that anyone expecting immediate success is gonna have to wait under the current regime.

[rcarter1]

Good luck to them, building from a strong youth set up it is the right thing to do.

Having resolved myself to the fact that the team is going to be a bit of a liability for the forseable, Im going relax and lower my expectations for this season. If we get into relegation bother, then its a different story.

[RIP]

Good luck to them, building from a strong youth set up it is the right thing to do.

Having resolved myself to the fact that the team is going to be a bit of a liability for the forseable, Im going relax and lower my expectations for this season. If we get into relegation bother, then its a different story.

It’s interesting though how few of our fans seem to realise that there’s a 2 year strategy underway at Easter Road.

A complete turnaround in management personnel and a new signing philosophy. Fast athletic players signed, many of them for next season.

There needs to be far more regular briefings on YouTube and HibsTV from top management at Hibs and clarity on their ambitions.

An explanation of the Three-Squad Masterplan and what their targets are for the medium to long term

[The Harp Awakes]

Good luck to them, building from a strong youth set up it is the right thing to do.

Having resolved myself to the fact that the team is going to be a bit of a liability for the forseable, Im going relax and lower my expectations for this season. If we get into relegation bother, then its a different story.

Agree it's the correct approach.

Vitally important though that we start picking points up soon. If we do get dragged into a relegation battle with the likes of St Johnstone and Dundee, I don't think we're well equipped to deal with it.

[heretoday]

It’s interesting though how few of our fans seem to realise that there’s a 2 year strategy underway at Easter Road.

A complete turnaround in management personnel and a new signing philosophy. Fast athletic players signed, many of them for next season.

There needs to be far more regular briefings on YouTube and HibsTV from top management at Hibs and clarity on their ambitions.

An explanation of the Three-Squad Masterplan and what their targets are for the medium to long term

Quite so. But some folk want a new manager every week with a magic wand.
This is real football, not some computer game.

[Hibernian Verse]

I think they are trying to go down the same route as FC Midtjylland & Brentford.

[Steve20]

Ron Gordon, Ben Kendall, Ian Gordon, Steve Kean, Shaun Maloney and Gareth Evans are clearly working on a longer term plan.

Young players recruited for the Development Squad.

An U18 team that are the best in Scotland by a country mile.

A complete new coaching team.

How long did it take tiny Belgium to become the top ranked team in Europe?

OK, just a theory but I suspect that anyone expecting immediate success is gonna have to wait under the current regime.

That only works if it eventually comes together, which it hardly ever does when teams do this.

It's like "it's a 5 year project". When clubs say that is translation for 'we're crap and need an excuse for now'.

First team needs improved and fast.

[Smartie]

Ron Gordon, Ben Kendall, Ian Gordon, Steve Kean, Shaun Maloney and Gareth Evans are clearly working on a longer term plan.

Young players recruited for the Development Squad.

An U18 team that are the best in Scotland by a country mile.

A complete new coaching team.

How long did it take tiny Belgium to become the top ranked team in Europe?

OK, just a theory but I suspect that anyone expecting immediate success is gonna have to wait under the current regime.

Fair point and it maybe wasn't something I had given enough consideration to.

Whilst building for the long-term is certainly admirable, football is a short term immediate game as well - and whilst putting those building blocks in place it is important to remain competitive in the here and now. Maloney (and everyone else at the club) needs to give us belief that he knows what he's doing, he also needs to be qualifying for Europe next season with the potential financial rewards that can go with that.

We were third last season and have an impressive recent track record of getting to cup finals. Someone elsewhere has quoted stats showing our league form since September is bottom 2 material alongside Dundee.

So whilst I think the call for patience and the desire to build for the long-term is fair enough, we are in a position where we should be winning more football matches than we are - and I certainly don't think it's totally unreasonable for the natives to get a bit restless whilst form is as poor as it has been.

[Tommy75]

It’s interesting though how few of our fans seem to realise that there’s a 2 year strategy underway at Easter Road.

A complete turnaround in management personnel and a new signing philosophy. Fast athletic players signed, many of them for next season.

There needs to be far more regular briefings on YouTube and HibsTV from top management at Hibs and clarity on their ambitions.

An explanation of the Three-Squad Masterplan and what their targets are for the medium to long term

I think a lot of fans are aware but are just fed up getting fed the same old nonsense. I'm early 30s and have had season tickets on and off for the past 20 odd years, that whole time we have been told that we are planning for the future, putting in various plans/strategies etc and none of them come to fruition.

What frustes me is that planning for future and looking after the here and now seem to be mutually exclusive. We are on a poor run but are being told to sit tight because good times are coming. I'm sorry but that just isn't good enough.

[LunasBoots]

It’s interesting though how few of our fans seem to realise that there’s a 2 year strategy underway at Easter Road.

A complete turnaround in management personnel and a new signing philosophy. Fast athletic players signed, many of them for next season.

There needs to be far more regular briefings on YouTube and HibsTV from top management at Hibs and clarity on their ambitions.

An explanation of the Three-Squad Masterplan and what their targets are for the medium to long term

The thing is we hear this stuff all the time from the club down the years, 5 year plans, 2 year plans....think most fans just want a every game plan instead of the same old lines about a plan that may or may not work a couple years down the line just yo be told a similar 'plan'.

[Killiehibbie]

It's good to be building for the future and the manager can do that once he sorts the present first team.

[RIP]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfURqlqvpeI

I've just watched this interview from Academy Director Steve Kean about the investment made by Ron Gordon in bringing in more coaches (like Beuzy) and starting an U23 Development team next season.

For all of the understandable comments about 'Results now!' - that has been the failed mindset since Tony Mowbray left in 2006? In the past 15 years we have had ELEVEN different managers/Head Coaches with an average tenure of 16 MONTHS!! WTF!!

The managerial and player Merry-Go-Round that so many fans clamour for only creates a permanent state of instability. We never seem to have a settled side. Yet in the most successful periods in our history e.g. Famous Five, Tornadoes, Golden Generation, Stubbs era we relied mostly on home grown talent, many of whom came up through our own youth ranks.

Now, in the Facebook and Twitter era, so many fans seem to expect that the next player or manager will be better than the present incumbent. It's almost never the case.

I vote for investment in the academy, a head coach that stays more than two years, and is given time to see his vision realised. :flag::thumbsup:

[Since452]

Having a project/transition for two years at a club that should be challenging for trophies and Europe every season worries me. It's ok for Brentford who have absolutley no expectations. I'll maybe hold off on a season ticket until 2024 until we maybe get it right.

[Greenside]

Ron Gordon, Ben Kendall, Ian Gordon, Steve Kean, Shaun Maloney and Gareth Evans are clearly working on a longer term plan.

Young players recruited for the Development Squad.

An U18 team that are the best in Scotland by a country mile.

A complete new coaching team.

How long did it take tiny Belgium to become the top ranked team in Europe?

OK, just a theory but I suspect that anyone expecting immediate success is gonna have to wait under the current regime.

Good post. Good thread. Some common sense at last.

[Steven79]

That won't sell season tickets for next season...

[Wilson]

That won't sell season tickets for next season...

Maybe not but we'll shift a bundle in 2 to 5 years.

[ErinGoBraghHFC]

Hibernian FC SPFL champions 23/24 then👀

[GreenCastle]

Maybe not but we'll shift a bundle in 2 to 5 years.

Maloney will be gone by the then and we will have to recruit players for a new managers system unless the youth teams play the same way and they step up.

Would be surprised if Ben will still be here in 2 years time.

Who knows..but Livi / St Mirren surely have plans as a club too so it’s not like improving the youth academy is a Hibs exclusive.

We also can’t forget we have an Edinburgh rival improving and I would rather not widen the gap and instead I would rather continue being competitive/ winning games against teams with similar resources let alone teams with much less ££ like Livi and St Mirren.

[I'm Spartacus]

So say the OP is correct, why can't the club communicate that strategy and get the buy in from the stands?

We have some shocking results, then put a good shift in for the derby, then we are back to a defeat.

I try to express how I feel and find it hard, I say I'm worried, nervous, but maybe I'm just totally disconnected due to not knowing the plan hence why I'm worried.

[Pretty Boy]

Managers at our level just don't get 2 or 3 years without some level of success. I'm not arguing that's right but it's just the way it is. Even if they do deliver success in that time then there is every chance they will move on to another, bigger job.

Hearts have had 12 permanent managers in 15 years, Motherwell 8, Dundee Utd 9, St Mirren 10......... It's not an issue exclusive to Hibs (and we have 'only' had 11 permanent managers in that time, the figure earlier included caretakers). Aberdeen are the exception and even then McInnes was deeply unpopular for the last couple of years of his reign.

I really hope this plan with new development sides and an emphasis on youth pays off but if we finish 6th or lower this year, see poor ST sales and don't hit the ground running next season then we'll be hitting the reset button on the 1st team manager yet again.

[WhileTheChief..]

Thankfully it's just a theory.

If that's the plan then thousands of us won't be there to see it. Mental notion.

We need huge improvement next season.

[loanheadhibby]

Maloney will be gone by the then and we will have to recruit players for a new managers system unless the youth teams play the same way and they step up.

Would be surprised if Ben will still be here in 2 years time.

Who knows..but Livi / St Mirren surely have plans as a club too so it’s not like improving the youth academy is a Hibs exclusive.

We also can’t forget we have an Edinburgh rival improving and I would rather not widen the gap and instead I would rather continue being competitive/ winning games against teams with similar resources let alone teams with much less ££ like Livi and St Mirren.

Sadly, I think that gap may widen even further due to the difference in budgets. I am led to believe it was a concern for previous CEO that if our Edinburgh rivals had a decent manager/recruitment team, we would fall way behind as we cannot compete with them budget wise due to FOH. It seems that they are moving in the right direction.

And I think as fans,we are all for building for the future but life is happening now. You can't just keep kicking the can down the road with 2 year projects, 5 year projects etc. The most important guy at the club could be Steve Kean. When SM is successful, clubs will sniff around SM and may entice him away. If we want to build teams for 2/3/4 years, it's vital we start seeing the conveyor belt of talent coming thru.

[Green_one]

Thankfully it's just a theory.

If that's the plan then thousands of us won't be there to see it. Mental notion.

We need huge improvement next season.

Everyone would like to see a young group come through but it hardly ever happens

In truth young players best come into decent sides, as they need support. Unsuccessful sides will make it more likely for any worthwhile players to fail or be sold early.

We sell season tickets on the current side not one several seasons in advance and at the very least need to show marked improvement. Failure to sell seats next season could kill the whole ‘strategy’. If we are counting on fan patience then we all know that will not work. I would begin to lose confidence about the whole management of the club if this was true.

[lord bunberry]

Ron Gordon, Ben Kendall, Ian Gordon, Steve Kean, Shaun Maloney and Gareth Evans are clearly working on a longer term plan.

Young players recruited for the Development Squad.

An U18 team that are the best in Scotland by a country mile.

A complete new coaching team.

How long did it take tiny Belgium to become the top ranked team in Europe?

OK, just a theory but I suspect that anyone expecting immediate success is gonna have to wait under the current regime.
I think it’s clear that’s exactly what we’re doing, I think they’re banking on Maloney steadying the ship and beginning the job properly next season. We’ll see these young guys being brought through gradually next season along with the other promising youngsters already at the club. What the club has to stop doing is giving these youngsters the big build up as the fans see the interviews and the pictures and then wonder why they’re not in the squad while the team are struggling. A message from our owner or CEO would go a long way to alleviating the pressure building on Maloney and bringing a divided support together.

[WhileTheChief..]

I think it’s clear that’s exactly what we’re doing, I think they’re banking on Maloney steadying the ship and beginning the job properly next season. We’ll see these young guys being brought through gradually next season along with the other promising youngsters already at the club. What the club has to stop doing is giving these youngsters the big build up as the fans see the interviews and the pictures and then wonder why they’re not in the squad while the team are struggling. A message from our owner or CEO would go a long way to alleviating the pressure building on Maloney and bringing a divided support together.

I hope not, we need to sign players for the here and now.

No teams plan for 3 or 4 years down the line.

Take care of the short term and you never need to worry about the longer term.

[Since452]

Football fans want to turn up on a Saturday and see their team win. I wasn't thinking about 2/3/4 years down the line when we were getting beat by St Mirren at the weekend. It's a nice notion but i care about the here and now more than the future. If we keep it up we'll have a cracking side for our promotion push.

[RIP]

I think it’s clear that’s exactly what we’re doing, I think they’re banking on Maloney steadying the ship and beginning the job properly next season. We’ll see these young guys being brought through gradually next season along with the other promising youngsters already at the club. What the club has to stop doing is giving these youngsters the big build up as the fans see the interviews and the pictures and then wonder why they’re not in the squad while the team are struggling. A message from our owner or CEO would go a long way to alleviating the pressure building on Maloney and bringing a divided support together.

Agree 100%
Maybe we should send a message to Kieran Power or our head of communications.
Come to think of it. I will.

The only manager out of that list of 11 that had a decent top flight win % was Jack Ross. In the latest fan poll on here 65% didn’t want him sacked. Short-sightedness has done us no good. Ron is gambling on changing tack
and trying to invest in the Academy instead. We need him and Ben to go public and tell us that the club will sacrifice a high finish this year in favour of getting us sorted for next season and beyond.

The fans bought into Mowbray’s and Collins’s vision. I’m confident that they could equally buy into Maloney

[Greenio]

Having a project/transition for two years at a club that should be challenging for trophies and Europe every season worries me. It's ok for Brentford who have absolutley no expectations. I'll maybe hold off on a season ticket until 2024 until we maybe get it right.

I'd be worried if they DIDN'T have a long term project of 2+ years.

We SHOULD be challenging for trophies and Europe every season, and we have been and still are really, but you you've got to look further ahead than that, long term strategies drive sustained success, nothing else.

[jacomo]

Fair point and it maybe wasn't something I had given enough consideration to.

Whilst building for the long-term is certainly admirable, football is a short term immediate game as well - and whilst putting those building blocks in place it is important to remain competitive in the here and now. Maloney (and everyone else at the club) needs to give us belief that he knows what he's doing, he also needs to be qualifying for Europe next season with the potential financial rewards that can go with that.

We were third last season and have an impressive recent track record of getting to cup finals. Someone elsewhere has quoted stats showing our league form since September is bottom 2 material alongside Dundee.

So whilst I think the call for patience and the desire to build for the long-term is fair enough, we are in a position where we should be winning more football matches than we are - and I certainly don't think it's totally unreasonable for the natives to get a bit restless whilst form is as poor as it has been.


:agree:

Also, Ron has more immediate plans to grow the revenue of the club and that simply won’t happen if you chuck cup finals and rely on the promise of young players to transform the team next season or the season after.

[Iain G]

I hope not, we need to sign players for the here and now.

No teams plan for 3 or 4 years down the line.

Take care of the short term and you never need to worry about the longer term.

That's a lot of nonsense! We are trying to so both and it makes perfect sense to be building for the future and developing good younger players to being into the first team having bought into what Hibs are all about.

Go and listen to how proud Dabrowski was about his debut and how much it meant to him? If we can get more in with that passion and engagement with the club it will set us up well.

Yes we need to steady the ship and show improvement over the next 6-12 months for the first team but not having a plan for what comes after that would be shouted down as being short-sighted by those on here who are already complaining about us signing promising youngsters 🤣

No reason we can't get it all right is there?

[RIP]

Thankfully it's just a theory.

If that's the plan then thousands of us won't be there to see it. Mental notion.

We need huge improvement next season.

Last season we finished third. That was a significant improvement on past seasons. It’s only seven to eight years ago we were a Championship side.

Three managers binned since reappearing in the SPL and another player churn. The headless chicken merry go round continues with ups and downs in form.

What other successful business is run this way? I’m convinced that Ron will be investing in the infrastructure for a reason. When the Under 23s play in England next season I think people will be following their journey, as they are starting to do with our under 18s.

I want a bright future for my club - not a depressing never ending churn.

[RIP]

https://www.hibernianfc.co.uk/article/an-academy-fit-for-the-future

More details on our youth pyramid

[JohnMcM]

Dear all concerned at Hibernian FC,

Do you think you could be generous enough to make the good things happen soon, rather than in two years time please? I don’t think I have that long myself.

Many thanks for your time taken to consider my request. :greengrin

[CentreLine]

Dear all concerned at Hibernian FC,

Do you think you could be generous enough to make the good things happen soon, rather than in two years time please? I don’t think I have that long myself.

Many thanks for your time taken to consider my request. :greengrin

I’m with you there. Five year/two year/whatever plan is not what we were promised when Ron Gordon took over. And definitely not what we were promised when Shaun Maloney took over to a fanfare of fast flowing entertaining football. How the hell has that now turned in to a long term plan?
If that’s what we are in for I am not sure how long the greater support can put up with this. 55+ years attending matches and supporting our club and plenty of down times in these years but what was a takeover full of promise is turning in to a bad feel for the foreseeable future. Certainly after my years of happy clapping my enthusiasm is being sucked dry right now.
What this club is in desperate need of is stability so let’s all hope that Shaun, Ron and Ben can pull it together and progress quickly, not two, five, ten or an indeterminate number of years of heartache down the line

[WhileTheChief..]

I’m with you there. Five year/two year/whatever plan is not what we were promised when Ron Gordon took over. And definitely not what we were promised when Shaun Maloney took over to a fanfare of fast flowing entertaining football. How the hell has that now turned in to a long term plan?
If that’s what we are in for I am not sure how long the greater support can put up with this. 55+ years attending matches and supporting our club and plenty of down times in these years but what was a takeover full of promise is turning in to a bad feel for the foreseeable future. Certainly after my years of happy clapping my enthusiasm is being sucked dry right now.
What this club is in desperate need of is stability so let’s all hope that Shaun, Ron and Ben can pull it together and progress quickly, not two, five, ten or an indeterminate number of years of heartache down the line

It's not, that's just the view of a few posters on here.

I won't pretend to know what RG is thinking, but I'd be very surprised if he was expecting fans to wait a few years for success. Every time I've heard him speak he has talked of cup finals and playing in Europe. That's now, not in 2025 or beyond.

[WhileTheChief..]

That's a lot of nonsense! We are trying to so both and it makes perfect sense to be building for the future and developing good younger players to being into the first team having bought into what Hibs are all about.

Go and listen to how proud Dabrowski was about his debut and how much it meant to him? If we can get more in with that passion and engagement with the club it will set us up well.

Yes we need to steady the ship and show improvement over the next 6-12 months for the first team but not having a plan for what comes after that would be shouted down as being short-sighted by those on here who are already complaining about us signing promising youngsters 🤣

No reason we can't get it all right is there?

You might disagree but that doesn't make it nonsense.

I listened to Kevin's interview, it was excellent. We can't afford to have loads of players kicking around for 6 years before getting a sniff of first-team action though. I doubt there would be many players willing to do so either.

You think Melkersen or whoever would stay at Hibs from 19 -24 without playing in the first team? No chance.

I've also listened to every RG interview he's done and he wants us in Europe and cup finals every year. I'm with him on that.

You can be as patient as you want!

[hibee-boys]

Deary me, the club aren’t saying that they’ve given up on the first XI to focus on player pathway, having a medium term plan to develop players doesn’t curtail or impact on planning for the first team.

Ron Gordon made it clear from the outset that the priority was the main product, Hibs first team. It’s pretty evident to me that the purse strings have been loosened to bring players to the club now to help support Maloney. We’ve moaned for long enough, me included, about the lack of players coming through our academy pathway that develop into first team regulars. Something needed to change and it looks like a different approach is being implemented, let’s be honest it can’t be any worse than the output over the past 10 years🤷🏼

[CentreLine]

It's not, that's just the view of a few posters on here.

I won't pretend to know what RG is thinking, but I'd be very surprised if he was expecting fans to wait a few years for success. Every time I've heard him speak he has talked of cup finals and playing in Europe. That's now, not in 2025 or beyond.

Yes you nailed it. That’s what we were promised and I am hopeful Ron’s words are sincere. I am just not seeing where the early posters are getting the idea we are in a long term plan. If we are then I’m not sure it works for me this time. I’ve seen way too many “five year plans”. Stability and success would be nice

[JohnMcM]

Yes you nailed it. That’s what we were promised and I am hopeful Ron’s words are sincere. I am just not seeing where the early posters are getting the idea we are in a long term plan. If we are then I’m not sure it works for me this time. I’ve seen way too many “five year plans”. Stability and success qweowuks been nice

I tried Google translate for that, still none the wiser:greengrin

[RIP]

Who on earth is suggesting a long term plan? Or even a five year plan?

Some people just can’t resist resorting to hyperbole.

It’s a plan for 2022 to create an U23 development squad for next season so to promote players into the first team squad.

Don’t believe me. Believe Steve Kean. Watch his interview on YouTube. Read the Hibs website.

Then tell THEM they are talking nonsense. 😀

[RIP]

https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/sport/football/hibs/elias-melkersen-latest-as-hibs-boss-shaun-maloney-details-improvements-in-training-and-progression-to-matchday-squad-3560167

Shaun says that Elias was signed for the Development Squad and may need a pre-season. Yet further evidence of building for the future.

[CentreLine]

I tried Google translate for that, still none the wiser:greengrin

Edited 👍🏻 Thanks for even trying to find a word. But don’t knock fat fingers, it’s coming to us all 🤨