Jordan Obita hadn’t heard of Lewis Stevenson before moving to Hibs - but it's taken just a few training sessions to hammer home the task he faces trying to oust a legend.
The former Wycombe and Reading left-back arrived in Edinburgh last month and admits he needed a fresh challenge because the English lower leagues had become too easy. The first of those tests - other than coping with the heat on Hibs’ warm-weather training camp in searing southern Spain - is to try and nick Stevenson’s spot as the veteran goes into his 19th season with the club.
Plenty have tried and failed before him with Croatia U21 international Marijan Cabrija cutting his stay in Leith short to return home to Rijeka after just a year last month. Now it’s Obita who’s set to push the 36-year-old who, at 576 appearances, sits fourth on Hibs’ all-time record list. And the Englishman said: “Lewis is a really good player. You’d never think he was 36! He’s done so well. I will watch him and learn from him as well.
“I wasn’t too aware of Lewis before coming here. But watching him in training he is very, very good for his age. I’ll have to up my game to be fighting for that spot. He’s a leader. Every club has them, I had it at my previous clubs, senior players who have been there for a long time.
“They help keep the philosophy the same but also for young boys coming in to settle. Lewis has done so well for this club and he still will because he’s a fit guy and has quality. Hibs is a new challenge. I know the league’s strong, the team is good and I just felt I’d been in my comfort zone in England and it was getting too easy. I needed a fresh start.
“I expect this to be really tough. Having played in the Championship and League One I can see it can be just as physical as those leagues. I believe there’s probably more quality in the Scottish Premiership than you see in League One. I’m relishing that challenge.”
Obita sounded out former Wycombe team mate Anthony Stewart about the move to Edinburgh. And while Stewart toiled in his first season at Aberdeen the defender was glowing in his praise for the league. European football is another big draw for the 29-year-old who made 191 appearances for his first club Reading before moving to Oxford and Wycombe.
He said: “I spoke to Anthony. He said the league’s good and tough and I should look forward to it. He had a tough time for the first six months. But I want to show I can do well here and have a good time. I want to help get this team to where it wants to be and that’s third place.
“In England it’s so difficult to get into Europe. When I saw Hibs were in the Conference League qualifiers I jumped at the chance. It will be different to what everyone’s used to - the teams we play against and the countries we go to. If we step up our game we can achieve something there.”
Obita may be a new face among the Hibs playing squad but he’s well kent among the Easter Road management team. He was given his big break at Reading by Brian McDermott, now Hibees director of football. And the pacy wide man also spent a month under Lee Johnson’s wing at Oldham a decade ago when the Hibs boss was cutting his teeth in his first job.
Gareth Southgate is another he counts as a mentor after he gained England U21 caps at the 2014 Toulon Tournament. And he said: “Brian was my manager when I broke through into professional football. He had me on his list to come here and so did the manager so that was a massive factor for me - to be wanted.
“Brian got the chance at Reading and did well, getting promoted in his second season. It was great for a young kid to be around that. In the Premier League they were bringing in big names and you can only learn from those guys. Guys like Jason Roberts, Ian Harte, Jobi McAnuff were huge for me.
“I’ve not spoken to Gareth Southgate since Toulon but to play under someone who is now the national team manager is awesome. He did help me on my pathway to becoming a football player and developing so I’ll always be grateful for that.”
READ NEXT
