Exclusive: Hibs boss facing risk and reward call on star striker as goal hero pushes for starting place

Hibs substitute Kieron Bowie (20) celebrates after scoring to make it 2-1 over Dundee. (Photo by Simon Wootton / SNS Group) | SNS Group

Hibs boss David Gray admits he’s playing a game of risk with natural-born striker Kieron Bowie, as he weighs up whether to throw the 21-year-old into the starting line-up for Sunday’s trip to Kilmarnock. And the head coach will give himself until later in the week before making a final call on the forward.

Bowie scored his first Hibs goal in Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Dundee at Easter Road, barrelling his way through two opponents before lashing a left-footed shot home from a tight angle. But the former Fulham prospect is yet to make a start since securing a £600,000 move – and signing a four-year contract – earlier this month, coming off the bench as a substitute three times to good effect.

Gray, wary of over-working a prized asset who hadn’t played since April before making his Hibs debut in the home loss to Celtic two-and-a-half weeks ago, admitted: “That’s a difficult one. I haven’t decided this weekend’s team yet. There are two big training sessions before then, we have a couple carrying knocks …

“It’s now about balancing the risk. We’ve got one game before the international break.

“Kieron is coming back from a bad hamstring injury at the back end of last season. So he hasn’t played much football, even though he’s done all his rehab.

“There is always a temptation to play these players, especially when they’re feeling good and wanting to make an impact. That’s what he did at the weekend, come off the bench and impact the game.

“There is still that balance to make sure you’re not taking a risk that we’ll regret a week or two down the line. Especially when we’re very close to getting players to where they need to be.”

Part of Gray’s thinking is definitely influenced by an appreciation of just how good Bowie could be for Hibs, in the long term, with the Scotland Under-21 striker’s contribution at the weekend evidence of a goal scorer’s instinct, the gaffer saying: “He created that himself, just out of sheer determination to get his shot off. He’s got that attribute of making something out of nothing, which you saw against Celtic, as well, when he hit the woodwork.

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“When he gets the ball on that left foot, he’s got quality. But more important is the desire to get on the pitch and score goals.

“I see it every day when I speak to him. He’s hungry and desperate to improve, which is exactly what you want to work with every day.”

Junior Hoilett and Elie Youan have both returned to full training this week, although Gray again sounds a note of caution about the timescale on their respective returns to action, with the Canadian international yet to feature for Hibs since signing as a free agent – and French winger Youan coming back from an impact injury sustained late in last month’s 5-1 Premier Sports Cup win at home to Queen’s Park.

Gray said: “Having them both back in training means the standard goes up immediately, just through competition. Confidence wise, having them both feeling good about themselves has an effect on the group.

“I’d imagine this weekend is too early for Junior, definitely. Elie is a wee bit different because his isn’t a muscle injury, it was just an impact. But we won’t take any risks.

“Elie’s was really unlucky, the last kick of the ball. And Elie is quite a sensible boy, so you wouldn’t expect him to go for that kind of ball with the keeper.

“He must have just thought: ‘I’m going to get this. I’m going to score.’ Because he’d just had a great run and hit the post, an unbelievable run. He was flying, thinking: ‘Give me the ball, I’m going to score here.’

“Even just in training, Junior is bringing quality to the group. We’ve seen that in abundance. His decision making and attitude towards training are excellent.

“Everything we’re doing, he fully understands why we’re doing it. I think that helps, being experienced what we’re aiming for from a coaching point of view.

“So we had a crossing drill today. He could go and do something different if he really wanted to – but he knows why we’re asking him to do something specific. And he goes and does it.

“It’s not about him trying to show off. He just delivers what you need, which is great.

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“Plus, he’s got the quality to pull it off. So he’s been excellent every day, in and around training, bright and bubbly.

“He’s been really good with the younger players. A lot of them see him as someone who has played at such a high level, yet someone who still wants to come here and perform the way he did last season.

“He’s a natural mentor. It’s not as if I’ve had to have that conversation with him at all.

“All the things I learned about him when we were recruiting, they told me what type of player he was, what type of character he was. Any character references were about how good a professional he was, how good he was with younger players – leading by example every single day.

“I think we’re seeing that in training now. He’s fit enough to get back on the grass and contribute, so we can push him on and see how he goes.”