Lee Johnson insists Hibs ’ stirring Edinburgh derby win must be a ‘strong marker’ for future performances.
The Easter Road side defeated rivals Hearts for the first time in 10 meetings thanks to Kevin Nisbet’s second-half strike over the weekend. The 1-0 victory also arrested a run of four straight defeats for the Leith men. And Johnson is adamant their dynamic and determined display must be seen as a standard to be met in the remaining six games of the campaign and into next season.
With Kyle Magennis, Rocky Bushiri, Aiden McGeady and Martin Boyle all sitting out the Hearts success because of long-term injuries, Johnson said: “That is a strong marker in how we move forward. You play forward, you run forward, you stay compact and then your mate has got energy five yards away from you because everybody has battled for every inch. We’ve got quality – how much quality have we got not even available to us?
“And that’s why we’ve done a better job than what sometimes we get credit for. But at the same time we want to be competing consistently up at the top echelons of the division, it’s a great marker for our performance now.”
Currently sixth in the table but only a point ahead of Livingston in seventh, Hibs have still not clinched a top-six finish with a game to go before the split. A victory over St Johnstone on Saturday will definitely be enough but Livingston can pile pressure on with a win away to Dundee United.
Johnson added: “In terms of our goals and ambitions this season, this isn’t done, clearly. We’ve got a game to go and we’ve got to perform and then we’ve got to secure a European place. We must have full focus.”
