Hibs keepers are killing David Gray and it's time for Max Boruc to get his chance - Tam McManus
Jordan Smith fluffed his lines after being brought in for blunder-struck Josef Bursik.
I made my living as a striker. But I know a dodgy goalie when I see one. And unfortunately Hibs right now have two keepers who are killing them. And Killing David Gray at the same time.
The manager’s job is on the line and he needs players he can trust but the two guys in the most important position are about as reliable as a chocolate teapot. This is the biggest call Gray has to make ahead of the trip to face Motherwell at the weekend.
I can guarantee that Stuart Kettlewell will have watched the last few games and will be telling his players to put every corner and free kick right on top of the goalie no matter if it’s Jordan Smith or Josef Bursik. Bursik has made a number of errors since the start of the season and Smith deserved his chance against Aberdeen on Tuesday. But he blew it. He was badly at fault for the Dons’ second goal and I really think he should be saving the third too.
Individual errors are killing Hibs this season and the goalies are chief culprits. It’s a real issue for Gray. Neither of those guys are good enough and it’s another black mark against the Easter Road recruitment team who signed them both in the summer.
Who does Gray go with against Motherwell on Saturday? Maybe third time’s a charm and he could give Max Boruc a chance. He simply can’t do any worse and on the few occasions he played last season he looked the part. Hibs are bottom of the table and they need to stop leaking goals or they’ll stay there.
Back in my day we signed a Danish guy called Morten Hyldegaard as back up goalie to Daniel Andersson. We did shooting practice every Friday with Gerry McCabe who was Bobby Williamson’s assistant. There was myself, Garry O’Connor, Derek Riordan and Stephen Dobbie lining up to batter shots into the new keeper.
We always made it a competition but on Morten’s first week there was no winner because every shot went in! Hyldegaard was a giant - he was about 6 foot 6 and could touch the crossbar when he was on his knees.
But it took about two minutes for us to suss out the big guy could not get down to his left. Every shot we put there would end up in the net. It started as a joke but soon you could see Bobby and Gerry getting angrier and angrier as they realised they’d signed a dud.
No surprise Hyldegaard never played a single game for Hibs. Bobby watched that drill and must have thought ‘I can’t trust this guy’. Unfortunately Gray must be thinking the same about his two keepers.
Listen, I think there’s a lot to be taken from the 3-3 draw with Aberdeen even if it was chaotic at the end. The fight Hibs showed after going 2-1 then 3-2 down deep into injury time shows great character and that the players are fighting for the manager.
They could have just felt sorry for themselves and given up at that point. There was a lot of positive play too. They scored three good goals, hit the bar and the post and really deserved to win the game.
That’s why the cheap goals conceded, which have been a recurring theme, were so disappointing. I was delighted to see Rocky Bushiri come out of it as the hero too. I’ve been critical of the big man. But he played well on Tuesday and it was brilliant to see him score that last gasp equaliser.
Rocky is a fighter. He has a bit of character about him and doesn’t shrink under pressure. That’s exactly what Hibs need right now. He has made mistakes in the past but right now I think he’s one that David Gray can hang his hat on.
If only the same could be said for the keepers behind him.