What Does Everyone Expect Of Hibs in 2010?

[Speedway]

We've got a couple of months until Christmas, so what are your expectations of Hibs in that time and what makes tyou think that they are realistic?

Personally, I think Calderwood will shut the back door between now and Christmas and we'll be conceding 1 or 0 more often than not.

I think he'll bring in a couple of reliable non-spectacular workhorses to help the cause in January and we'll limp into the top six beyond that.

What does everyone else think will happen and why?

[since90plustwo]

top half finish will do me, were not as good as we think we are so 5th/6th place is our target

[NORTHERNHIBBY]

A finish in single figures will be an achievement. That the board dug deep to bring in a manager from England suggests to me that there will be money for him to start anew with a fresh canvass. We won't reach the top six imo. Even if we make major changes in the next window, we still would not have enough time to gel and get playing. I would be very much surprised if get into double figures in points earned away from home between now and the season end though. If we can get a bit more stingey at ER, that should see us not go down, but right now, we are playing the sort of football that brings relegation nearer.

[Sir David Gray]

With things the way they are at the moment, I expect us to avoid relegation by about 10 points and be put out of the Scottish Cup, whenever we come up against a first division/SPL side.

I would be stunned if we made the top six or got to the semis/final of the Scottish Cup.

[Barney McGrew]

Hopefully we'll become more difficult to beat, although currently that wouldn't be too difficult

The second round of fixtures will give us mostly home fixtures against the other teams we look like we'll be competing with for the top six (Dons, United, Motherwell, St Johnstone), so hopefully by that time we'll be putting some results together and will be beginning to climb the table. On the downside, if we don't then we have some tricky away games against the teams that we're currently down at the bottom with.

I'd then expect some fairly major surgery of the squad come January too with Calderwood being allowed to bring some of his own signings in.

[MB62]

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I would be very much surprised if get into double figures in points earned away from home between now and the season end though. If we can get a bit more stingey at ER, that should see us not go down, but right now, we are playing the sort of football that brings relegation nearer.

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top half finish will do me, were not as good as we think we are so 5th/6th place is our target

We really are bad if we are not as good as we think we we are.

[NORTHERNHIBBY]

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We really are bad if we are not as good as we think we we are.

i think we are quite bad....but hopefully not as bad as i think we are.

[smurf]

We absolutely must become tighter at the back.

But it doesn't start at the back. IMHO teams get through our midfield far too easily.

It needs brave decisions.

[Sylar]

8th place finish and out of the Scottish Cup at the QF stage.

6 new signings and 4 departures in the January window.

[PaulSmith]

The expectation that I have for 2010 is for Calderwood to be absolutely clear in his own mind that six or seven players that started on Saturday have had their chance at ER and proved to have not been of suitable quality.

I then expect the Board to try and save the season by bringing in 2/3 or 4 players in the same mould as Stokes, Riordan and Miller (when he first came). Mucking around trying to get a gem from the reserves of other clubs, taking a gamble on players that have had 16 clubs in 16 years is not the way forward. We need to see and hear what plan the manager has and he requires to be backed by the Board and the fans.

I do not want another cryptic message a la Mixu ("I had drastic changes planned") or Hughes ("the bigger picture at the club"), I want to know what the combined plan is from Calderwood and the Board..laid out in black and white so I know what I'm buying into.

and not shirk away from

[Westie1875]

Win the derby, stop shipping goals and speed our game up. The rest should follow.

[Greenblood70]

Pretty much as the OP describes, more difficult to beat initially with a greater emphasis on working for each other. I think one up front away from home will be his usual tactic with support from midfield getting up quickly (sic) to support.

Was interesting to read at the weekend of Calderwood making a point of Ossie Ardilles influence on him. Maybe trying to hint that he'll be looking in the longer term to try to play in an attractive way rather than the pragmatic dour approach that people associate with him (rightly or wrongly).

Overall I think he'll get there but there are not many quick fixes I can see at the moment.

[Stevie Reid]

A team with the heart, desire and bravery to battle - because sadly that's what the rest of the season is most likely to be.

However, after what we were served up on Saturday - a team with a new manager and many players nearing the end of their contracts who should be looking to impress, live on the telly against a team whose form was ever worse than ours and a manager under severe pressure - I am finding it hard to envisage us being up for it.

[HenryMonk]

my hopes for season are CC gets shot of the dead wood at ER and that probably means most of the 16-20 players out of contract.
hes in a very lucky position in the respect that he can virtually build an entire squad soon, or at least start planning it.
look at celtics hooper! he came from blue sq league, so hopefully he knows of a few gems down there.

as for league, think ive given up on 3rd place for europe next season already, so hopefully a very good scots cup run, which starts next year and leaves CC plenty time to start stamp his mark on team.

[Green_one]

Basically pray for some points before Xmas and see what signings we can get in January (not too hopeful).

Somewhere between 6th and 9th in the league by the end.

Clear out and start again next season.


The reality is that all the other teams are poorer than most seasons and we are still struggling. The act that Rudi bloomin Skacel can get a hat-trick reflects how poor the league is.

[BEEJ]

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8th place finish and out of the Scottish Cup at the QF stage.

That would be my expectation level as well.

However, once Duffy and Zemmama are fit again we might have reason to be a bit more optimistic, even to the point of a top 6 finish.

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6 new signings and 4 departures in the January window.

I think it will be the other way around - more departures than signings. We have five players coming back from loan in January and CC may well see them as being part of his forward plan.

I'm looking forward to the likes of Booth and Byrne being available for selection.

[IWasThere2016]

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We've got a couple of months until Christmas, so what are your expectations of Hibs in that time and what makes tyou think that they are realistic?

Personally, I think Calderwood will shut the back door between now and Christmas and we'll be conceding 1 or 0 more often than not.

I think he'll bring in a couple of reliable non-spectacular workhorses to help the cause in January and we'll limp into the top six beyond that.

What does everyone else think will happen and why?

Post Stokes - and it was the correct decision to sell given the issues - we are going to struggle to outscore teams. Our striking options - apart from Deeks - are lamentable. We have insufficient goals from the midfield also.

We MUST add a striker(s) in January - inaction is NOT an option!

OF aside, the league is so tight that a decent run can make all the difference - we will only do this with newblood IMHO.

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The expectation that I have for 2010 is for Calderwood to be absolutely clear in his own mind that six or seven players that started on Saturday have had their chance at ER and proved to have not been of suitable quality.

I then expect the Board to try and save the season by bringing in 2/3 or 4 players in the same mould as Stokes, Riordan and Miller (when he first came). Mucking around trying to get a gem from the reserves of other clubs, taking a gamble on players that have had 16 clubs in 16 years is not the way forward. We need to see and hear what plan the manager has and he requires to be backed by the Board and the fans.

I do not want another cryptic message a la Mixu ("I had drastic changes planned") or Hughes ("the bigger picture at the club"), I want to know what the combined plan is from Calderwood and the Board..laid out in black and white so I know what I'm buying into.

Wow! I wholeheartedly agree Paul but I doubt you are going to get that

[Beefster]

I'd like Calderwood to show that no player is undroppable if he's not performing. I'm fed up seeing the same players on the pitch irrespective of their form.

I'm not fussed about results or league position until next season, so long as we're not in danger of relegation.

[Speedway]

Based on Beefsters comment about no undroppable players, what about

Brown

Hart
Stephens
Grounds
Hanlon

Wotherspoon
Bamba
Murray
Miller

Riordan
Trakys

Have I left any 'form' players out?

[Jim44]

I'm confused to read that Calderwood appears to think that we are club but not a team and that this pleases him. He noticed that players were not inclined to fall into cliques. First choice players mingled with squad players. But on the occasion when he did want Hibs to perform as a team they failed to do so. "We have to be a team, rather than the good individuals that I can see we are." To me this suggests that the players are not trying or pulling for each other. It'll be interesting to see how Calderwood deals with this problem which seems to have been within the club for ages.

[At The Edge]

I expect Hibs to still be in the bottom 6 come xmas, but well clear of the relegation zone, Duffy will have to prove hes up for it when he returns and i think he will.
I think also that if any players come in, they will be more defensive minded, to shore up our defence. then come summer, the full clear out will begin.

[ScottB]

I think we can forget about Griffiths, according to the Daily Ranger Blackpool are in for him.

What I'd like to see...

Fitness, fight, passion, bottle and teamwork. There are qualities that any player can possess, regardless of ability. It's time we saw some from ours.

What I expect...

Beating Hearts. Pure and simple. A performance like Saturday and things will get ugly, and this time it will be purely aimed at the players (who perhaps have gotten off lightly despite the failures under Mixu and Hughes). A hiding off the Yams is unthinkable in our current circumstances, a good win will give us the boost we need.

Further out I'd like to see the players CC wants shot of starting to leave in January, send home or release any of the loanees / one year deal players. I'd like to see some reserves / youth players from England arrive, perhaps an attempt at signing up Rooney from ICT? Basically players with potential from the clubs around us. When we were at our best we were a young hungry side with a few seasoned pros, now we are a side of journeymen and last chance salooners, that's what needs to change.

I'd also like to see a few of the young boys appearing in the first team once we've picked up a bit of form and the boo brigade have shut up. Last thing we need is ruining any of the youngsters with that crap, which is what I fear may happen at the current time!

[heretoday]

I'd like to see Hibs playing with confidence.

Pundits keep telling us it's all about confidence so there you go.

I hope also that Calderwood can bring in the right type of experience in January because recent buys have not been up to standard and I don't think the "youth" will be able to get us out of trouble.

[matty_f]

I'd expect to see the gradual but noticeable emergence of a clear system being used, and for us to get harder to beat through conceding fewer goals.

I'd also hope to see a fixed starting 11 that will play every week, save for injury and suspension. That, IMHO, is as important to building and fostering a true team spirit as any bonding session is.

After that, a slow but steady climb up the table, adding some quality in January and scraping a top 6 finish in the last week or two before the split.

We're not a million miles off a top 6 place as the points stand at the moment. To think that we're out of the running for that at this stage in the season is totally defeatist.

[delbert]

What I expect from this team in 2010 is pretty much what they have given us for the first 9 months, absolutely nothing. What I expect in 2011 is wholesale changes by a new manager who has hopefully by then sussed out the scale of the job to be done, and who does it strongly and bravely, with absolutely no sentiment whatsoever, and ditches the deadwood this club now finds itself full of. If he does this then I will heartly applaud him, and give him the supoort needed, this is no time for tinkering around the edges, January 2011 should be a momentous month for our club as far as ins and outs are concerned.

In all honesty, avoiding relegation would do me this season, I was around when we got relegated at the start of the eighties, it was horrible, and I have to say that team was superior in almost every department from our team now, frightening.

[Golden Bear]

Plain & simple - Avoiding relegation and surviving a couple of rounds in the Scottish Cup.

Hopefully CC can take it from there next season.

[Pedantic_Hibee]

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I'd expect to see the gradual but noticeable emergence of a clear system being used, and for us to get harder to beat through conceding fewer goals.

I'd also hope to see a fixed starting 11 that will play every week, save for injury and suspension. That, IMHO, is as important to building and fostering a true team spirit as any bonding session is.

After that, a slow but steady climb up the table, adding some quality in January and scraping a top 6 finish in the last week or two before the split.

We're not a million miles off a top 6 place as the points stand at the moment. To think that we're out of the running for that at this stage in the season is totally defeatist.

Cheers Matty, you saved me typing out the exact same hopes.

[greenlex]

We will get beat next week win the derby and rangers will drop two points ti us the following week. We will become extremely hard to beat and climb the table to finish 4th behind Motherwell. There will not be as big a vlearout in the summer as we think at this moment in time. Scottish Cup semi disappointment to Celtic too.

[lyonhibs]

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With things the way they are at the moment, I expect us to avoid relegation by about 10 points and be put out of the Scottish Cup, whenever we come up against a first division/SPL side.

I would be stunned if we made the top six or got to the semis/final of the Scottish Cup.

This

By December, it would be nice if the spectre of relegation was behind us, or at least we looked capable of putting some serious distance between ourselves and the bottom 2/3. I don't think we'll get relegated, but not on your nelly will we do anything in the SC.

5th or 6th for me, although unless CC really does bring about a seismic shift in the mentality of a lot of the players, the last 5 games in the top 6 - were we to get there - could be grim (again...........)

I know folk will say, "with the players we've got.............." but look at the starting line-up from Pittodrie. Only Bamba (if he gets his heid out of his arse), Hanlon, Wotherspoon and Miller could be described - with a straight face - as anything above "not very good" (descending right the way to "completely useless" in some cases).

Granted, there's Riordan, Murray and Hart to come back in and add something to the squad, , but allow for injuries/suspensions and our practically guaranteed awful run of form between December and Febraury (if we ever get off THIS run of terrible results that is), and this season looks barren indeed.

GGTTH

[Vini1875]

I expect things to turn around and fitness levels to improve. I don't any reason to rule out a 4th place finish as I don't think any of the teams like motherwell, hearts, dufc or aberdeen are any better than us.

I really hope CC is ruthless with the players though. I can understand that he is looking and assesing them at the moment, but after the derby I hope he knows who will figure in his plans and who will be gone.

Given that so many are out of contract in the summer I would expect them to start playing better for either a renewal or a move elsewhere.