Exclusive:Hibs boss sets target in 'refreshing' title race as Easter Road side close gap on leaders Hearts, Celtic

Hibs have a spectacular recent track record when it comes to closing gaps and making deficits disappear. Just bear that in mind, as every instinct tells you that it’s impossible – absolutely impossible – for David Gray’s men to bridge the space separating them from the league leaders over the coming months …

If Gray is never going to veer far from his usual mantra of – all together now – “catching the team in front of us”, he does accept that this year’s Scottish Premiership is a long way removed from normality. Even as someone steeped in Easter Road lore, meanwhile, the former club captain is quick to praise old rivals Hearts for sticking around at the top of the table. A lot easier to do when you’ve just won a five-goal thriller against the leaders amid scenes of delirium at Easter Road.

Hibs need to build on feelgood factor of derby

Gray knows that his team have to deliver a home win against Aberdeen tomorrow night to maintain the momentum acquired on derby day. With home games against the Dons, Rangers, Motherwell and Dundee United to come in the next half dozen league fixtures, there is certainly potential for Hibs to whittle the 13-point gap between themselves and the summit down to something much more manageable.

“Yeah, I think it's going to be a really exciting league,” said Gray. “That's us at the halfway point.

“In recent years at this stage, there's maybe been a Celtic already running away with the league, so to speak. Or Rangers and Celtic challenging at the top.

“I think it's really refreshing for Scottish football. Credit to Hearts for what they've done at this point in the season.

“They've been the most consistent team. They've worked extremely hard to get to where they get to.

“And you can see the way they finished the game against us. That belief's there that they're not beat. They want to keep going. And that's something we definitely benefited from last season.

“I think this season we've been a bit stop-start in terms of results. But we need to use that win over Hearts, as I've already said, to really kick on. Because we are in a good position.

“We are now chasing the team in front of us, regardless of who that is all the time. And that has to be our motivation between now and the end of the season.”

There are definite similarities to be drawn from last season’s remarkable turnaround in fortunes, as Hibs climbed from the foot of the table to finish a third with a game to spare. In the wake of their Boxing Day win at Tynecastle last December, Gray’s men were a thumping 26 points behind leaders Celtic – and 13 adrift of the third-placed Dons, who still held a game in hand over ‘rivals’ still sitting seventh in the table.

Scottish Premiership after Boxing Day fixtures last year

It won’t quite take, then, a repeat of the club record unbeaten run to get Hibs into contention for one of the better European rewards, diminished though they might have become, on offer via the league table this season. They’re only four points behind third-placed Rangers, for goodness’ sake.

Current SPFL standings

And beating the leaders definitely helps. If it can’t convince everyone, it does make it easier for coaches to persuade the Hibs players that they deserve to be competing at the business end of Scotland’s elite division.

Hibs finally ‘getting what we deserve’ - boss

“I think the players need to take all the praise,” said Gray, reflecting on the win over Hearts in the wider context of a season boasting plenty of near misses. “The performance levels at times, we haven't always got what we've deserved. I think back to playing Rangers and Celtic here.

“Looking at how those games went, we had very fine margins and not quite got over a line. It was important to get over that line.

“And I think doing it in that manner against Hearts will give the players belief. But we need to make sure that we do use that as motivation to kick on now.

“Because it is the halfway point. I think when I think back to how we played, the level of performance, it has been internally going in the right direction; we just don’t we've quite got what we deserve at this point.

“There's no point in feeling sorry for yourself. There's no point in thinking that it's just going to happen, that it’s just going to change.

“You need to put the effort in. You need to do everything right every single day in training.

“And this is when you get the rewards for it, a special day for everyone. Even it was only three points – a win that we need to build on.”

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