The Hibs recruitment checklist transfer targets must tick as David Gray sets summer signing rules

The Easter Road gaffer knows exactly what it means to represent the capital club and he's made his views clear for any arrivals

David Gray insists Hibs will only sign players with the talent and mentality to cope with the pressure of pulling on the famous green and white.

The Easter Road gaffer has been blown away by his side’s remarkable rise from Premiership basement boys to third place – a surge that’s included a memorable win over Celtic.

And with the summer window on the horizon, Gray is adamant any new faces must be able to handle the heat as he plots a long-term push for the top.

Gray took interim charge after the sacking of Nick Montgomery and has quickly put his stamp on the squad. A club legend from his playing days – and the man who famously headed home the winner in Hibs’ 2016 Scottish Cup triumph – he knows exactly what it means to represent the Leith side.

He said: “You definitely look for it within your recruitment process. Have they played in big games before? Have they played in derbies before? It might be a young player that’s never experienced any of that, but has he maybe been at a big club previously?

“All these things you have to put into place and consider when you make decisions on bringing players to the club.

“And it’s definitely something you need to think about when you’re bringing players from, for example, down south up to play in Scotland.

“Can you deal with the pressure of playing for Hibs? They come up and sometimes it can take them a while to settle.

“It’s the magnitude of the game, the standard, the level in the stadiums you get to play in, the passion of the fans, everything that goes with it.

“We’ve got a really good product up here in Scotland that I think is improving all the time.

“You’re seeing what such a big club Hibs are at the moment because we’re being successful and everyone’s talking about it in a real positive way. The club’s huge and the potential for the club’s huge as well.”

Gray admits his team have shown they have the mental strength to close in on third after having their character questioned during a woeful start to the campaign.

Gray, whose team host St Johnstone on Saturday, said: “Going into the games with the right frame of mind and the right positive attitude can only be beneficial to the players.

“When you think back to even just a few weeks ago, that one week we played Celtic at home, Dundee United away, and then a massive derby game at home again.

“That full week shows where the group is, and the mentality of the group to be able to turn out big performances and big results.

“And unfortunately, they’re going to have to keep doing it between now and the end of the season because it’s not going to get any easier! The games aren’t going to get any smaller!

“And that’s what you want to do as a player. You want to have something to play for. You want to have the rewards or the potential rewards at the end by giving absolutely everything between now and the end.”