Exclusive:Hibs assist king reveals emotional response to fan scenes as musical tribute provides first season highlight

It was all a bit much for little Leo Cadden, whose first reaction to being taken on a lap of honour at Easter Road was to start bawling as he cooried into dad Nicky’s shoulder. Still, maybe the wee man – just two – will be more up for a party on one of the glorious European nights destined to have the place absolutely rocking in just a few short months.

To say that Cadden has enjoyed his first season as a Hibs player would be fair enough. Warts and all, this has been a campaign to remember for many a highlight, the best moments made more special by the bleak beginning that cast so much doubt on David Gray’s first steps into management.

From derby wins to beating both Old Firm sides, hearing Sunshine on Leith being sung around Easter Road on THREE separate occasions, culminating in Saturday’s love-in between players and fans as the campaign was capped by a barmy 2-2 home draw with Rangers, it’s been eventful, to say the least. Cadden has been a stand-out, too, the left wingback topping the assist charts with seven in 19 league starts.

The former Barnsley wide man, who joined twin brother Chris at East Mains last summer, has also banged in five goals despite his appearances being limited by injury. Fit enough to start against Rangers at the weekend, season 2024-25 has been pretty much everything he hoped for.

“Yeah, it's been good,” he said, laughing at his own tendency towards understatement. “Obviously the start was a wee bit ropey, and it was tough at the beginning of the season. But once we got to grips with basically winning games and getting the individual error out the way, we started to kick on.

“You can see how much it meant to everyone from the celebrations. Wednesday night in Paisley and then Sunday at home to Rangers, those were special scenes.

“So, yeah, now I can't wait for next year in Europe. Because this is definitely up there with anything I’ve experienced in my career.

“Even beating Hearts and Celtic at home, hearing Sunshine on Leith being sung all around the place, I've never experienced something like that in my life. I've been around the game a long time, I know when something's special - and those were two special days.”

Wide man grew up watching Scottish clubs on big European glory nights

Looking ahead to the prospect of playing either Europa League or Conference League football in season 2025-26, Cadden confessed: “Oh, I’m buzzing. Absolutely buzzing.

“Obviously it's going to be hard. You look at all the teams we might get, and it shows how difficult it could be.

“None of us really want to look too far ahead. We just want to enjoy what we’ve achieved and see what summer brings.

“But all of us grew up watching European football. I’ve spent my life watching Scottish teams playing all the different competitions – and now I’m going to be playing in it, whether it’s the Europa League or Europa Conference League.”

Saturday was a day for families as well as players, as kids of varying sizes joined dads for the traditional post-match show of thanks to supporters. Some of the youngsters coped better with the sensory overload than others.

GET THE LATEST HIBS NEWS DIRECTLY TO YOUR EMAIL INBOX WITH OUR FREE NEWSLETTER SERVICE

“Yeah, my wee boy Leo didn’t like it,” confessed Cadden. “I tried to take him round at the end, he didn't like it. He was just crying on my shoulder. He's just turned two, he’s two and three months or something. He never liked that, so I had to give him back to his grandpa. He went upstairs again.

“But I took him out as a mascot for a moment. That's a moment he’ll cherish when he gets older, hopefully. He'll look back on that, and he'll see he walked out with his dad against Rangers at Easter Road.

“And, aye, maybe he’ll fancy one of the European nights. Probably still a wee bit young for that! Maybe. We’ll see.”

Your next Hibs Exclusive read: Club never more united - as Gayle’s SWPL trophy photo grab demonstrates