David Gray's 'non-negotiables' as Hibs interim boss makes case for job

David Gray believes he has the ability and experience needed to become Hibs manager. And he’s clearly intent on persuading the board of directors to share in that belief.

In laying out his managerial manifesto this afternoon, the Scottish Cup-winning captain talked about the sort of non-negotiables guaranteed to win approval from the core audience. His case for Hibs making an in-house appointment to replace Nick Montgomery has a certain logic to it.

Persuading Ian Gordon and Bill Foley of his merit may, of course, prove tougher than winning over a handful of journalists gathered at East Mains to fire a few tough questions in his general direction. But you get the impression that Gray will have answers to any concerns – specifically over his lack of frontline experience as a gaffer in his own right – raised by the board or, indeed, new sporting director Malky Mackay.

Stopping just short of coming straight out and publicly appealing to be considered for the gig, Gray admitted: “It’s purely the timing of what’s happening at the moment, I’m so respectful. And I don’t think it’s right to talk about me because I’ve worked with previous managers and people who have just lost a job.

“But I do also think there comes a point where the job I’m doing at the moment … I’m not saying I feel comfortable doing it because of the situation. But I’m not shying away from it.

“I believe I can do it. I’ve demonstrated I can. Ultimately, it’s what the club want to do moving forward. If they feel I’m ready to do it and they want me to do it, then that’s a decision they can make. Until that day comes, I will continue to do the best for this club every single day.”

Gray, whose record in FOUR stints as interim adds some weight to his candidacy, with just two defeats in nine league games, takes ‘his’ team to Livingston for the final fixture in a miserable season on Sunday. They have at least been buoyed by the midweek mauling of Motherwell, turned over 3-0 at Easter Road less than 36 hours after Montgomery’s departure. If that was a first audition for the gig, the perennial understudy is definitely getting a call-back.

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Explaining what he’d changed with just one training session and a single team selection, the former right back said: “When you’re coming off the back of a heavy defeat to Aberdeen (4-0 at home last weekend), when you’ve lost four goals at home, the clearest thing is to try to make the team harder to beat. But also to try to put an emphasis on a few non-negotiables that I believe I’d like my teams to have, or at least to see from the players.

“That’s 100% effort and commitment all the time; whether that’s sprinting back or sprinting forwards. And just a collective team performance where everyone is doing everything they possibly can to make sure that you’re harder to beat.

“Because I’ve always known if we can be better defensively and a bit stronger that way, with the players we’ve got in the dressing room and the players we’ve got who are good going forward and able to affect games, the quality we’ve got means we’ll always score goals. That’s never been a concern; I just put a bit more emphasis on making us harder to beat and shutting up shop a bit more.”

Outlining what he’s learned not just from being thrust into the top job so frequently but working alongside a variety of gaffers in his decade at Hibs, Gray admitted: “I think, over the time, I’ve probably had a crash course in coaching. I went straight into working with Jack Ross, which was great, because I went from transitioning from a player to understanding what he wanted his coaching staff to do, and I was still delivering things I’d done before as a player.

“So it was a great introduction for me; it wasn’t as if I went in as a first-team coach under Jack and I had to take training and go on my own straight away and be judged. I was able to find my feet quite slowly and take my time and really learn from Jack and John Potter which was great.

“When Shaun (Maloney) came in, it was a completely different way of working. And every single manager has been completely different in the way they want to work. 

“I’ve tried, on my journey so far, to take things on board that I believe are good, what I maybe don’t agree with - because everybody’s got an opinion - but it’s about forming what I believe is the way I would want to do things. I think I’ve tweaked it along the way because I learn things all the time. But my principles and my identity remain the same.”

Where Gray will definitely score over some outside candidates is in his inside knowledge. Of Hibs, certainly. But also when it comes to understanding the quirks of a Scottish Premiership that often take incoming gaffers by surprise.

Directly addressing the one weak spot on his CV, he said: “I think the word experience gets thrown around a lot. What is experience? Does it need to be 500 games, or does it mean you’ve played 200 games in the league?

“I’m fortunate to have been at this club for the last 10 years through many highs and many lows. So the experience I have gained, I have been put into situations from a coach’s point of view you would very rarely get so early in your coaching career - cup finals, European football, Premiership games.

“So it’s been a lot in such a short period of time. But it’s one I’ve tried to put together the way it should be.

“I definitely helps understanding the league and the players and what it takes to be successful as a player at this club. There’s a pressure that comes with that. It’s a fantastic club but a demanding club and rightly so because the infrastructure and fans. So there’s definitely challenges with not having that level of insight into the league and players.”

There are, of course, Hibs fans who would carry ‘Sir’ David shoulder high into the technical area at Easter Road right now, supported by a back-up crowd strewing rose petals in his path. His status as a living legend definitely counts for something, in the court of public opinion. And some might say that his only submission, should he be asked to pitch for the job, should be playing the interview panel THAT clip of him rising to nod home the winner at Hampden in May of 2016.

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But he’s also acquired a decent reputation in the coaching fraternity. Montgomery, who immediately took him into his backroom staff, liked what he brought to the mix.

Being so close to the departed gaffer does, of course, make what happens next a little awkward. Even if Monty might be urging him to go all-out for the job, it feels a bit like dancing on someone’s footballing grave.

Gray admitted: “It is difficult. It’s always difficult. I’ve unfortunately been in this situation with four different managers, and it never gets any easier. 

“You form a bond with these people, and you feel responsible. I know the manager makes the decisions and whatever they decide to go with you have to back them 100%, which is my job.  My job is to try to make players better so when we’re not getting the right results and there is a bit of adversity, you do feel responsible.”