John McGlynn admires 'no fear' playing-style of Hibs ace as Falkirk boss prepares for Raith Rovers reunion
The Falkirk boss has been full of praise for the Hibees ahead of Tuesday night’s Premiership clash
As Hibs prepare to play Falkirk in a competitive game for the first time in three years, John McGlynn has singled out a ‘powerful, strong’ Hibs striker as the danger man.
Hibs look to continue their unbeaten SPFL Premiership run against The Bairns, who haven’t looked out of place themselves in the league since being promoted last season. So far McGlynn’s men have beaten Aberdeen at Pittodrie and drawn with Dundee United, as his young, exciting Falkirk side show they have what it takes to compete at the highest level.
As for David Gray, he’ll be looking to bounce back after the Rangers defeat in what was arguably Hibs’ worst performance of the season. The Leith side were unable to take advantage of the ongoing issues at Ibrox and lost 2-0.
One man who looked sharp however for Hibs against Rangers, was Kieron Bowie. The in-form striker proved to be a real handful for John Souttar and Derek Cornelius at the heart of the Rangers defence. McGlynn, who worked with Bowie during his time at Raith Rovers, thinks the Hibs number nine has came on leaps and bounds since his time in Kirkcaldy.
Bowie ‘puts everything into a game of football’
Speaking about Bowie in his pre-match press conference, McGlynn said: “he's developed into a really good player. He's turned into a beast, when he came through (at Raith) he was a big boy, he was a big boy but he was still a boy, but now you can see the potential in him.
“We gave him opportunities and we threw him in quite early and he relished it, because he's got no fear, he has no fear whatsoever, he just goes out and puts everything into a game of football, and if you're a fan that's the minimum you want, but he's got more to it than that, he'll go and chase things down and he'll work so hard. Look at the goal he gets against Dundee United, most of the strikers wouldn't even attempt to get to that ball, he goes and gets it and he sticks the ball in the back of the net.
“He's now so difficult to mark, because he's so powerful, strong and he's obviously learnt a lot in League 1 and League 2. At Northampton, he won the league when he was there, and he's probably learnt a lot by playing in that type of league that they were in, there's absolutely no doubt, he's developed really, really well.”
Hibs right to stick by Gray despite poor start last season
McGlynn also claimed that the Hibees’ decision to support their manager last season has paid off. He said: “we look forward to playing Hibs tomorrow night. I want to say they’re a very, very good side and had a great second half to last season and David Gray deserves all the plaudits for turning that around.
“He was probably hanging on to his job for a long time and there were probably many pundits in there thinking that he wouldn't survive. There's a trigger-happy approach in management, and if it's not going right, they get the bullet, but Hibs stuck with David Gray, that must give other managers like to you and me the right to say ‘hindsight's a wonderful thing.’
McGlynn also spoke about former Hibs midfielder, Dylan Tait, who has started every league game for The Bairns this season. He said: “He's (Tait) a natural football player, he sees things and he can play things. Obviously, he's naturally right-sided, but he can easily play with his left foot as well. He can play down low, he can play in the middle, he can play high, so that's great. He's got a really, really good football brain on his head. Plus, he can hurt teams and he can score goals”