Hibs attacker relieved to be back on the pitch after featuring in Middlesbrough win

Hibs winger Runar Hauge admits he’s relieved to be back in action after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

The Norwegian attacker started on the right of an attacking midfield trio as the Easter Road side took on a young Middlesbrough XI at the Hibernian Training Centre, and scored the opener from the penalty spot after Josh O’Connor had been fouled – although he might have had a penalty of his own when he was brought down by the visiting goalkeeper as he chased a pass from O’Connor.

Hauge came off the bench as Hibs won the SPFL Reserve League with a thumping win against Queen of the South at Palmerston Park last month but was handed a chance to impress from the start against Boro, playing for around two-thirds of the match before making way for Josh McCulloch, and earning praise from academy chief Steve Kean.

Speaking to the club’s website he said: “It was good to get back out there. It was a tough game against a good team, but we played well and got a deserved win. The more the game went on, the more we grew in confidence in the game and I thought we got better throughout the 90 minutes. This is one of my first games back for the Dev Squad, the lads have been brilliant this year throughout the season and deserve a lot of credit. The most important thing for me was to be back out on the pitch. I have been feeling good recently, I’ve been training well in the gym so it was great to be back playing and to get on the scoresheet.”