Show Rocky some love

[Percy Vere]

Following on from the thread about Rocky asking at the Q&A why Hibs fans hate him, I’m asking for some love for the big man.
Personally I like him and believe at 21 he has got developing to do, but he could be a very good player.
But whether you think he’s great, bad or somewhere in between he’s a Hibs player and we need to show as a support we give players a chance and the respect deserved for pulling on the jersey, going out there and doing your best. GGTTH

[OldEast]

I've sent him a message on instagram telling him to dry his eyes and man the **** up.








Only joking 😂😂😂 It's a message of support.

[Colr]

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Following on from the thread about Rocky asking at the Q&A why Hibs fans hate him, I’m asking for some love for the big man.
Personally I like him and believe at 21 he has got developing to do, but he could be a very good player.
But whether you think he’s great, bad or somewhere in between he’s a Hibs player and we need to show as a support we give players a chance and the respect deserved for pulling on the jersey, going out there and doing your best. GGTTH

My son thinks he’s immense and has his name on the replica shirt!

[jacomo]

Mon the Rocky!

Bulldoze this league.

[Gmack7]

He has all the physical attributes of the modern top player, hopefully the right coaching can help him develop into the player we hope and need, we may end up with a much younger version of Efe, that would do for me👍

[Dalianwanda]

I’ve sent him a message..he might not read it but hope he does.

Hopefully plenty of others do too

[Northernhibee]

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I’ve sent him a message..he might not read it but hope he does.

Hopefully plenty of others do too

Likewise.

[04Sauzee]

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I’ve sent him a message..he might not read it but hope he does.

Hopefully plenty of others do too

Sent a message on Instagram
Sent and email to the club for them to pass on

Gutted to think one of our players is feeling like this.

[sadtom]

Social media is the curse of this generation. Too many limp-dicked, mouthy no marks who’d get biscuit @r5ed if they were forced to repeat their bile to his face.
I don’t use twitter, instagram, so can’t send a message of support that way.
On the off chance that he looks on here, I’d want him to know he has my full support and I would love big fellah to kick on and shut those clowns up.
If enough fans post messages of support on here, perhaps one of you who do use instagram could send him the link to this thread to show him there is love and encouragement for the guy.
C’mon big Rocky! 💚

[Percy Vere]

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My son thinks he’s immense and has his name on the replica shirt!

I’ve a lad I take to games. He loves him too.
Thinks he’s a machine

[Percy Vere]

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He has all the physical attributes of the modern top player, hopefully the right coaching can help him develop into the player we hope and need, we may end up with a much younger version of Efe, that would do for me👍

Nice. Absolutely.

[Percy Vere]

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Sent a message on Instagram
Sent and email to the club for them to pass on

Gutted to think one of our players is feeling like this.

👍

[Since452]

Good luck to the big guy. It's a new era at Hibs and he gets a clean slate. Last season is in the past.

[Mick O'Rourke]

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My son thinks he’s immense and has his name on the replica shirt!

Rocky will come good for the Hibees.

[Greenworld]

https://theathletic.com/3375656/2022...rnian-norwich/

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[sadtom]

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https://theathletic.com/3375656/2022...rnian-norwich/

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Any chance you could cut and paste?

[Coco Bryce]

I want him to succeed so much more with us knowing that Hibs don't want him and have been actively trying to punt him since he signed.

[patlowe]

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https://theathletic.com/3375656/2022...rnian-norwich/

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This article suggests he is the kind of player who is in his own head a bit and needs reassurance to perform at his best. We need to see this as a fresh start, back him and see what LJ can do to bring out his best.

[Hibbyradge]

The Athletic

Rocky Bushiri on Norwich, Blackpool and settling in at Hibs: ‘I was playing with an injury last summer – I knew I was’

Rocky Bushiri on Norwich, Blackpool and settling in at Hibs:
‘I was playing with an injury last summer – I knew I was’
By Michael Bailey
Jun 22, 2022

“He is just 22, has played over 80 senior matches and has a lot of room for improvement. We believe we can add value to him that will benefit the club in the future.”

So said Hibernian head of recruitment Ian Gordon in early June, as Rocky Bushiri completed a permanent move from Norwich City. He had been with the Scottish Premiership side on loan since January.

By that point, The Athletic had already enjoyed the company of the former Belgium Under-21 international at the Hibernian Training Centre — or HTC — over a cup of tea and with the poster backdrop of Easter Road.

It was also easy enough to assume that Bushiri’s time at Norwich was effectively over.

Three years have passed since Bushiri was preparing for the European Under-21 Championship in Italy with Belgium. At the same time, the centre-back opted to leave Oostende for his shot at English football — hoping to follow in the footsteps of his idol, Vincent Kompany.

Norwich had been freshly promoted to the Premier League, but the majority of their transfer activity that summer involved young players they hoped would become top-flight-ready in a few years’ time rather than helping their immediate cause.

They were duly relegated, while Bushiri has left without making a senior appearance as Norwich recouped their initial £100,000 outlay.

“The transition was very hard, to be honest,” Bushiri tells The Athletic. “In Belgium I was training with the first teams since I was 16. By 17, 18 I had made a few appearances. I was already used to playing with adults.

“Then coming to Norwich, I was with the under-23s but always with a vision that I couldn’t stay there for too long. That’s why I (eventually) went back home on loan to Belgium, just to keep in my position with the adults. Otherwise, it would be too hard and unrealistic to keep up.

“I was used to being away from home, because when I was 13 I went to Bruges and I came back one day a week. Norwich was a big difference but it was amazing to be received there as a new player. There are so many amazing people working there. I had no problems at all. Clive Cook (academy player care manager) looked after me. Even the managers like David Wright (former under-23s boss, now at MK Dons). Loads of people. I can’t even start to name them all.

“I felt well treated. Even when you went on loan, you still had the good feeling of being part of the club. Neil Adams (former loans manager) came to a lot of my games. At some clubs when you’re out on loan you feel like you are not part of the family any more, but I was still in the group chat and things.”

Bushiri’s three years at Norwich became a collection of loans. His first season was due to be spent at Blackpool, but that spell was cut short in January 2020 and he moved to Belgian side Sint-Truiden soon after. The 2020-21 season was split between loans at Mechelen and Eupen, who Bushiri had played for on loan before Norwich and who turned down an option to make that initial move permanent.

Injury issues then scuppered a loan move to Coventry at the start of last season, before Hibs came calling in January.

“It’s football. There are things I can control and things I can’t,” adds Bushiri. “I was excited. I remember after my 2018-19 season I had a few options and I knew that after the Euros there would be more. But sometimes you can start playing differently because you feel like you are playing for a move.

“So me and my agent agreed we would sort things before the Euros, and at the time I thought it was the right decision.”

Bushiri joined Norwich enthusiastic about how the club would support his development. Ultimately he failed to make a single senior appearance, yet he dismisses the idea those initial promises fell short. Sometimes his determination to prove himself was to his detriment.

“I was playing with an injury last summer — I knew I was,” he says of his final unsuccessful attempt to force his way into first-team contention. “I tried to hide it a bit but when the transfer window closed, my first target was to get ready for a January loan. Sometimes I was fit and I trained with the first team under Daniel ****e. Then he got sacked.”


Bushiri made 14 Scottish Premiership appearances for Hibs in 2021-22 (Photo: SNS Group)
Bushiri’s first loan away from Norwich didn’t exactly go as planned.

His first-team involvement at Blackpool was limited — Bushiri played in just four league matches — although he did score an injury-time winner in a home EFL Trophy win over Wolves Under-21s. The defender celebrated by ripping off his shirt in front of what looked like an empty stand at Bloomfield Road. In fact, the attendance was 1,036.

That celebration earned him brief cult status with the club’s supporters, before he was eventually seen as not good enough — by them and manager Simon Grayson.

“We thank him for the bits he did for us. It didn’t quite work out that one,” said Grayson, as the loan was cut short.

“Oh, Blackpool was a bit of a funny time,” smiles Bushiri. “For some teams, a loan is not easy; they feel like they are just helping you out. Most other loan offers wanted a permanent option but Norwich at the time didn’t want that, so we agreed on Blackpool.

“I really enjoyed being with the boys there and stuff. The manager was a good guy. Honestly. But the football was too direct. He had one vision; to get promoted. I understand that now but I didn’t at the time. It was kicking balls and making crosses, and not really a style of play. Being just 19, you are still in the development kind of playing, so you know you’re not at the right place.

“But Blackpool has changed now. It’s completely different. I’ve been watching their games and it is nice to see. Good people. Good football.”

Bushiri has kept his own development in mind too, employing the use of his own mental coach from Belgium for the past year.

“I had so much difficulty controlling my emotions,” recalls Bushiri. “Most of the bad ones. I mean, when I’m happy I think the whole building knows it! But I had no filter.

“You could see last season in Eupen. I got maybe five cards from protests to the referee and when I was in Mechelen I had a difficult moment then. So I started to think maybe it was the moment to talk with someone more experienced.

“I think at the professional level, everyone should have (a mental coach). I always try to keep things separate from football, not bringing my bad mood to the dressing room. Someone away from the club is sometimes the person who knows the best thing to do.

“It can be to just start counting. Small tricks like that. But also I was so superstitious. Too much. I think back to the days where if I didn’t put my right feet in my boots first, I thought I would have a bad game and that would really play on my mind. Then when the manager would tell me to do this, this, this, I would be too distracted and lose it.”

Taking piano lessons helped keep Bushiri on an even keel when suffering from knee and meniscus injury issues at Norwich. In Edinburgh, he has been able to enjoy being fit and playing football.

The opportunity owed a lot to Shaun Maloney, who was appointed Hibernian manager in December having previously been assistant to Belgium boss Roberto Martinez.

Bushiri was known to Maloney, who regularly watched Belgium’s Under-21s. Having taken over at Hibs, Maloney made Bushiri one of his top targets come January.

The loan included an option to make it permanent, which has since been confirmed. Bushiri is taking a significant pay cut to make the move.

“It’s a club with (lots of) fans. Big pressure. Pride in the shirt,” Bushiri tells The Athletic. “It is a great club for the city and those derby games (with Hearts) are special. You feel it all across Edinburgh. Sometimes you go for food and can have a joke, like no Hearts players here!

“I went to buy a suit and the girl was a big Hibs fan. She said they only serve Hibs players, so you can tell how people feel about it.”

Not that everything is quite so light-hearted.

“There are crazy fouls here,” Bushiri adds. “I remember after the derby game I posted a picture of my boots. I had a hole in one from a stud. But it was not given as a foul during the game. With VAR next season, people will have to be more careful.

“It was painful when Shaun lost his job. Part of football is being human, a really nice person. When he signed me, I had lots of injuries at Norwich. I was struggling and he put trust in me again. My last game before joining was nine or 10 months ago. So for him believing in me the way he and his staff did, it meant a lot.

“But this is football. People come and go.”

Not that Bushiri is going anywhere. He will be back at Hibs next season hoping to impress their new manager, Lee Johnson. He has already laid down a public challenge to Bushiri.

“Rocky has a lot of attributes to be a successful in his career. He has obvious strengths and it’ll be interesting to see how quickly he can adapt to a new playing style,” said the new Hibs manager on Bushiri’s permanent signing.

As for Bushiri, he is not keen to reveal his ambitions but does mention a few hopes for the future.

“I just want to be constantly playing,” he says, as softly spoken and warm as when we started. “Having seasons again like I did back in Belgium. I have accepted I was out for a long time and then had to come back. That had been a kind of excuse. But now I just want a good pre-season and a good season.”

And so will Hibs.

(Photo: SNS Group)


©2022 The Athletic Media Company.

[EdinMike]

I hope even more now that he sticks it to the keyboard warriors and bangs in a derby winner !

[Libby Hibby]

Rocky 💚

[HendoDelivered]

This season will be where we see the real Rocky

[A Hi-Bee]

As a Hibs man he gets my support, hope he goes on to have a fine season, keeps learning and getting better.

[hibeg]

Hope he has learnt to time his jumps which is a tad important in his position 😃
I would really like him to succeed, but big improvement needed

[gbhibby]

https://youtu.be/btPJPFnesV4
Give the guy a break get right behind him


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[Bobby's Cinema]

Pretty clear that Maloney's side to side building from the back game was not for him, or anyone else for that matter.

Had his good and bad moments but deserves our full support for the new season. I think there's a player in there.

[21.05.2016]

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Social media is the curse of this generation. Too many limp-dicked, mouthy no marks who’d get biscuit @r5ed if they were forced to repeat their bile to his face.
I don’t use twitter, instagram, so can’t send a message of support that way.
On the off chance that he looks on here, I’d want him to know he has my full support and I would love big fellah to kick on and shut those clowns up.
If enough fans post messages of support on here, perhaps one of you who do use instagram could send him the link to this thread to show him there is love and encouragement for the guy.
C’mon big Rocky! 💚

Yep, people acting the big hard man when hiding behind a screen and a lot of the time anonymous accounts (thats for the really REALLY big brave ones!) when as you say, in real life wouldn't say a word to his face.

Gutted he felt like this. Nobody deserves to be made to feel like that. As football fans we often get caught up in the emotion and the heat of it all that sometimes folk forget that your speaking about real human beings with the same feelings as the rest of us. The "Be Kind" stuff went about social media after the Caroline Flack death but why does it have to take a tragedy for folk to realize the impact stuff has.

As absolutely horrible as it is to say and I pray to God i'm wrong but IMO its only a matter of time before a footballer or someone takes their life over this stuff. Leigh Griffiths has already spoken out about how online abuse led him to severe depression and contemplating suicide and I know there are plenty others out there. Football rivalry and banter is one thing but too many folk don't know where the line is. Some of the stuff you see directed at player on social media is abhorrent and deeply disturbing. I can't even imagine how awful it must be to go online and have to read that stuff aimed at you.

People need to think on. If the guy isn't playing well then yea its frustrating as we are all desperate for the team to be successful but give the guy a bit of backing ffs,

[theonlywayisup]

Happy with what I've seen in the last couple of friendlies. Still very young and raw, but I think he could develop into a good player.

[jacomo]

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Happy with what I've seen in the last couple of friendlies. Still very young and raw, but I think he could develop into a good player.