Former Hibs boss Neil Lennon drops 'happiest of my career' claim on Easter Road stint ahead of Cup clash
Dunfermline gaffer reveals bond with David Gray - and plots his downfall at East End Park
Neil Lennon always knew David Gray had leadership qualities in abundance. When the Celtic legend took over as Hibs manager in the wake of that 2016 Scottish Cup victory, handing the captaincy to anyone other than the scorer of the winning goal at Hampden was definitely not part of the new gaffer’s thinking.
Even as he tries to deal a serious blow to his former skipper in Saturday’s Scottish Cup clash, then, the current Dunfermline head coach will retain a degree of genuine warmth for the man in the visitors’ technical area at East End Park. And no one-off result can shake Lennon’s convicting that Gray and Hibs are as close to a perfect fit as football can provide.
Lennon, reflecting on a tumultuous stint as Hibs boss that produced promotion to the top flight, a fourth-placed finish and a frankly baffling departure under confusing circumstances, said: “My two-and-a-half years at Hibs were some of the happiest in my managerial career. Good young team, the club was buoyant and I've got so many fond memories of the place.
“David was a big part of that as well. Delighted with what he's doing. He had a real baptism of fire last year. He came through a really difficult period and I think that stands him in good stead. He's not looked back since.
“I think it's been seamless the way he's handled it. He's very calm, very measured and he's got his team playing really well.”
Did Celtic great see skipper Gray as a future boss?
Asked if he could always see Gray as a future coach, even at a time when the skipper himself hadn’t started thinking about a post-playing career, Lennon said: “Good question. He was a leader - but he's quiet and he did things in his own way. Very professional, very intense.
“It's a difficult one because he was quiet but he led with his actions. You think of the contribution he's made to the club already.
“Obviously everyone talks about the goal (in the cup final). He scored some important goals for me domestically and in Europe as well. He captained the team really well over that period.
“But it's a good fit. He's got good staff around him. I think the guys upstairs, Malky Mackay and Dave Marshall, I think they're a big support for him as well.
“He's come over a really difficult period which I felt stands him in good stead whatever he does now. To come through that and come out the other side speaks volumes for his managerial ability but also his character as well.
“It just shows what can happen if you have a bit of belief and a bit of faith in someone. They had a brilliant season, in the end, and finished third – and they’re going really well again this year.
“I thought they did really well in Europe against really good opposition. Unfortunately, they had to get through one or two of the rounds. So we're under no illusion here at Dunfermline how difficult the game's going to be on Saturday.”
Parallels between Dunfermline now and Hibs in Championship
Insisting that he “loved” his time as Hibs boss, Lennon drew parallels with the squad he’s inherited in Fife, saying: “I had a great time at Hibs, obviously off the back of winning the Cup. The first day of training, I looked at them and thought we've got a really good team here. Then it was just a case of adding bits and pieces to it and a little shift in mentality to get out of the division.
“We did that pretty well. We got the semi-final of the Scottish Cup and then we had a great year in the Premiership, which I felt we would do with the quality of players we had.
“It's similar here with the quality of players that I have. The hard bit for me would be getting out of the division; if we endeavour to do that over the next couple of years then I think we'll have a good run at it.
“So it’s very similar. Different circumstances, we came in and it was only until the end of the season to take it on, have a feel of it and try and keep them in the division, which we did.
“And then look at the strategy going forward and we decided to take it on. So I'm really enjoying it.
“It's a work in progress, we're nowhere near what we want to be yet, but we've made really good incremental steps going forward. So in terms of progression, pretty pleased with what's going on so far.
“I can see sort of parallels with what we're trying to do here. The quality of player that I have here who I think could make the step up into the Premier League. And then there'll be some others bubbling under who could go on and play in the Premier League for sure.”
Relaxed and happy as he chatted in the Jock Stein Lounge at East End Park this afternoon, Lennon – always one of the more intelligent football folk around – gave off the aura of someone happy in his surroundings. Ambitious, yes. But confident in where he’s heading.
Asked how he’d changed as a manager since leaving Hibs in January of 2019, the Northern Irishman said: “Probably more mellow, and a bit more understanding. And then the gap between me and the players, as you get older the gap gets bigger.
“There has to be an understanding of what they're thinking as well, because it's not like when I first took over at Celtic, when I'd just come out of the dressing room for two or three years and then you're back in the hot seat. So it's understanding, they're a sort of, I don't know, different mode of thinking really.
“Obviously we've got players from different parts of the world and you have to understand how they were brought up in the game. It's not all about the way we see the game, you have to try and understand what they're thinking as well.”
The one thing that hasn’t changed, according to Lennon, is his insistence on high standards, the Pars boss explaining: “Yeah, we've tried to raise their professionalism, we've tried to improve them physically and mentally. And we're seeing, you know, there's going to be inconsistencies because of their age, we accept that.
“But we're seeing progress, which is the most important thing. And I'm really enjoying it, good people here and the fans have been terrific.”