International pursuit of Hibs aces prompts 'ambition' comment as Easter Road boss makes 'expectation' claim
Scotland, Socceroos and beyond - how lure of major finals is motivating national team stars at club level
Ante Suto being pursued by the Socceroos and Owen Elding’s switch of allegiance to the Republic of Ireland may say something about the fluid concept of nationality, an artificial construct at the best of times, as regulated by FIFA and IFAB rules.
But both Hibs strikers inching closer to international football also carries a more relevant message to everyone involved in developing the Easter Road club’s reputation as a hot-house environment for players looking to compete on the global stage.
With Croatian-born Suto earning words of praise from Australia boss Tony Popovic and teenager Elding, born in England but raised in Ireland from the age of seven, simply waiting on the FAI to complete the paperwork needed to qualify for Heimir Hallgrimsson’s squad, that forward line available to David Gray suddenly has a bit of international gloss to it. Not bad for a club who cashed in on Scotland striker Kieron Bowie in the January window, eh?
Kieron Bowie won Scotland call-up before £7 million Serie A move
Gray, asked if the international interest in Suto and Elding proves the value of Hibs as a platform for players with ambitions to go to the World Cup this summer, declared: “It certainly does. And I think you take that a step further, you've got Kieron Bowie who got into the national team. Josh Mulligan, I know he’s not played, but he got into the squad for what he’s been doing with Hibs.
“And even just players that have been more consistent over recent years, Jordan Obita with Uganda, Rocky Bushiri, I know he's been around the (Democratic Republic of Congo) international team for a while, but gets his first caps off the back of playing consistently well for Hibs.
“When you are playing with a club with this expectation and demand, if you can handle that, it definitely stands you in good stead when they next step up with that international. And every player should have the ambition to try and do that if they can.
“Look at even (Australian defender) Jack Iredale, boys like that, you know, the ambition and the opportunity to potentially go to a World Cup. That should be all the motivation these boys need to go and finish the season strongly.”
Plenty of potential international stars in Hibs squad
Gray obviously hopes to harness a bit of World Cup fever over the closing nine games of a Scottish Premiership campaign that might – just might – still end in qualification for European football. He’s not short of players likely to be driven by the possibility of competing in Canada, Mexico and the USA.
Australia have already qualified, which means Boyle and potentially Iredale, who has been in squads without winning a cap, will be busting a gut to get there. Suto, with a dad from Melbourne and a small army of Aussie cousins cheering him on back home, could also be involved.
Grant Hanley, just back from a hamstring injury, was a star in Scotland’s qualifying campaign and Mulligan – who should return from ankle surgery around about the time of the SPFL split – was on the fringes of Steve Clarke’s squad before injury intervened. Bushiri is part of the DRC squad heading to Mexico for the international play-offs later this month.
Jamie McGrath is still angling for a recall to the Republic of Ireland group facing Czechia – and hopefully Denmark or North Macedonia in a final, all being well – in a fortnight’s time. And there is always a chance of a complete bolter making a late charge, just when you least expect it.
Asked if Hibs had heard anything from Soccer Australia about Suto, Gray said: “There's been conversations, I think. All he can do is what he's doing at the minute.”
Hanley played 45 minutes in a bounce game against Raith Rovers last Friday, his first outing since the start of February. But the 34-year-old is eligible for selection against Livingston today and, with Clarke naming his squad for this month’s friendlies tomorrow, he could still be involved.
“He's back training, he played 45 minutes the other day, which is great for him,” said Gray. “And it is now just a case of getting his minutes up, his training minutes up as well, and we'll go from there.
“Clearly he's got a big ambition. He'll be trying to get into that team. He’s done really well for his country, it’s a big motivator for him
“But if you speak to him right now, all he's concentrating on is to try and get back on the pitch at Easter Road. So he knows if he's doing well there, he's got an opportunity.”
Elding already impacting on big games
Addressing Elding’s readiness for international football, meanwhile, Gray said: “I think you can see already how he's affected the Premiership in Scotland. For such a young boy, he's played in big games, he's got that quality.
“There's a lot of improvement to come, I really do feel that, and I think the fact he's already doing it in the Premiership in Scotland for a club like Hibs, we've already shown that when you do that, and play for this football club at a level, that international managers recognise that.
“I think he's certainly going in the right direction. All he can do though is just keep improving, keep his head down, keep working hard, which he's doing. He's someone that's came into the team as a young boy, took his opportunity to score a couple of goals, but hasn't changed at all.
“He's still working hard, he's still doing extra when he can. Because he knows he's still got a way to go, to try and get to the highest possible level he can.”