Hibs sweating on fitness of Dylan McGeouch

Dylan McGeouch was forced off by a muscle problem at Tynecastle

The midfielder was forced off by a muscle problem in the first half of last Sunday’s Scottish Cup draw away to Hearts.

The injury is not deemed serious but is threatening to rule the 23-year-old out of the Saturday teatime encounter at the Tony Macaroni Arena.

“Dylan’s had a scan and we’re happy with the result,” said head coach Alan Stubbs. “It’s showing a slight muscle injury but it’s nothing too significant. We’ll just have to wait and see how he is. There’s a possibility he could be fit for the weekend, but it just depends how quickly it settles down.”

Hibs had to rely on their depth of squad to get them through last Sunday’s Edinburgh derby, with Marvin Bartley replacing the injured Fraser Fyvie in the starting line-up and Kevin Thomson being handed a debut as a first-half substitute for McGeouch.

Both players performed key roles in helping Hibs secure a 2-2 draw and are in contention to stay in the team for the trip to West Lothian. “That’s the whole idea of us putting together a squad,” said Stubbs. “If something happens to someone, we’ve got other players who are just as good waiting to come in.

“Marvin was very good on Sunday. His performance was as good as anybody else on the pitch. He’s been in and out of the team, but that’s been more down to my choices and not because of his form. We had good performers throughout the team, but Marvin probably was pushing for man of the match.

“Kevin can also be very happy with his contribution. He wouldn’t have been expecting to go on so early but once he got into the flow of the game and got his second breath, he did exactly what we brought him to the club for by bringing a calmness on the ball and an assurance.”

Hibs are hopeful that captain David Gray will be fit enough to feature on Saturday after being forced off by a niggling injury early in the second half at Tynecastle.