English Championship club make Hibs trip for 12 minutes of action as key figure shares six hour trip tale
Middlesbrough have a talent on loan at Hibs and a tale has been told.
An English Championship side’s loan manager has revealed his journey north to watch Hibs vs Celtic - with the star he was due to watch only playing the final 12 minutes.
Tommy Smith is now overseeing talent who are spending time away from Middlesbrough after an experience career south of the border with the Riverside Stadium club plus others like Stoke City and Huddersfield Town. Dan Barlaser is one player he has an eye on, after his season-long loan move to Hibs from Middlesbrough in the summer.
He featured off the bench in last week’s loss to Celtic, in which Smith had made the journey north. The former defender was spared no sympathy as he provided his verdict on the clash and some of the trials and tribulations of his role.
What player did Middlesbrough watch during Hibs 1-2 Celtic?
He told Football Daily: “Being loans manager now for Middlesbrough comes with swings and roundabouts, I supposed. I was actually up in Scotland over a weekend, watching a player who was on loan at Hibs from Middlesbrough. I travelled up there for three hours and he was on the bench.
“He got 12 minutes and I got in my car and I drove home. Six-hour round trip! It was a good game and I enjoyed it. Do you know what is great though? When I text Jobi McAnuff and told him that, I just received multiple crying laughing faces. It was a good 12 minutes! The only problem was I left after two of them to try and beat the traffic, the pros and cons of it! But no, a great game of football it was actually, lovely place Edinburgh, really nice. Great place.”
Smith said of his role recently: “I’m absolutely delighted. When Kieran (head of football, Kieran Scott) offered me the role, I didn’t have to think twice. It’s a fantastic football club and I’ve really felt a part of it since I arrived as a player, so I’m over the moon to be carrying on, albeit in a slightly different role. The club have shown a lot of trust in me to ask me to do this role and it’s something I don’t take lightly. The role is all about getting the best out of the players who are out on loan. I’ll be able to watch them train and play, be in regular contact and ultimately try to give them the best opportunity to come back and make a difference to the football club.”
How did Dan Barlaser do vs Falkirk?
There was plenty of Hibs’ Middlesbrough loanee on Saturday as David Gray’s side beat Falkirk 3-0 at Easter Road. The midfielder played 77 minutes with an 86% pass completion rate, seven passes into the final third and a handful of defensive contributions.
Head coach Gray said: “I’m very pleased. 3-0 at home, clean sheet, and the result gives us a platform to build on going into a run of important fixtures. Our first half performance was excellent; the players started the game exactly how I asked them too. We could’ve been a cleaner in the final third or made better decisions, but like I said, I thought we were dominant first half and deserved to be ahead at the break.
“Credit to Falkirk in the second half, they came and had a real go. We caused a few issues ourselves, but for all their perceived dominance, they didn’t create any clear-cut chances. We scored the third goal at a really good time, which took the sting out of the game, and we were able to see it out comfortably after that. All in all, a good day’s work.”