Jack Ross lauds Hibs for showing grittier side after victory over Dundee United

Hibs boss Jack Ross oversaw a 1-0 win over Dundee United.

Hibs head coach Jack Ross hailed the resolute nature of his Hibs team after they defeated Dundee United 1-0 at Tannadice and notched up three opening top-flight league wins to the season for the first time since 1974.

Christian Doidge’s strike on 64 minutes sealed the win for the Hibees in a highly competitive match that lacked real quality, but the Hibs boss could not have been happier with the way his team saw out the match as United pressed for an equaliser.

The victory means Hibs will be joint-top regardless of results in Wednesday’s remaining fixtures and Ross was delighted with the way his team dug out the win in comparison to the class they showed when defeating Livingston 4-1 last weekend.

"I would have preferred it to have been more like Saturday, because I could have been more relaxed late in the game,” said Ross.

“But we knew it would be a tough one. Sometimes on the back of a win like Saturday, you get that.

“We had to dig it out and there wasn’t much in the game. We defended really, really well. And we took the opportunity because we have players who can do that.

“They’ve been terrific defensively over the course of the three games.

“We haven’t conceded from open play yet. Chris Burke’s free-kick on the opening day of the season was remarkable, and then it was a penalty on Saturday against Livingston.

“So in open play we’ve yet to concede and limited teams to few opportunities.

“That is brilliant for us because we got a lot of criticism for our defending last year.

“It’s still early but a lot of the work we’ve done is bearing fruit. They can take a lot of confidence from that.”

While Hibs were excellent in keeping United out, they still needed the all-important winning goal, with Doidge netting his 20th in a Hibs shirt with what turned out to be the clincher.

“He’s a massive asset for me,” added Ross. “He’s a brilliant boy, really, really humble and down to earth. If anything, he probably sometimes doesn’t appreciate how good he is and what he has done in terms of the goals he has scored.

"We are trying to grow that in him. He is so unselfish in his work and he has scored goals consistently for me since I came to the club in November. He’s made a massive impact in my time here. He’s a big asset.”

Ross, meanwhile, also had his say on the crisis engulfing Scottish football after Celtic defender Boli Bolingoli broke coronavirus quarantine rules following a trip to Spain.

"Undoubtedly some individuals have made really poor judgments,” said Ross.

"But a heck of a lot of people have done things properly. As is often the case, they get overlooked. We’ll continue to do things properly. We’ve got to make sure that we are not desperately looking for the next person to do something out with what they are supposed to be doing.

"Hopefully we can stay focused on the positive side of it and continue to enjoy seeing football because it has been enjoyable being back. The game I’ve been involved in I’ve loved. And I love watching games. We as a club have been respectful. We continually remind the players of the need to do that. I trust them to do that.”