Pat Fenlon’s out to bolster his scouting pool

HIBS boss Pat Fenlon is set to beef up his scouting system as he continues his root and branch overhaul of the Easter Road club.

Fenlon recently brought in Dave Henderson as the club’s football development manager although his fellow Irishman has been working on a consultancy basis for the Edinburgh outfit for a number of months and has already been credited with playing a part in the influx of new faces last summer.

Now Fenlon has revealed he’s in the process of recruiting two more scouts who will be tasked with identifying potential signings – both at first-team level and promising youngsters who can be developed through Hibs’ youth system – at home and abroad.

Their introduction will allow many more games to be covered, with Fenlon believing 52-year-old Henderson, who has worked long-term with Aston Villa, will prove to be a key addition to his staff.

Fenlon, who has enjoyed a close and productive relationship with the former goalkeeper for many years, said: “Dave has come in to work with the club officiallly now. He has been with me since I started in management.

“I played with him when he was a goalkeeper with St Pats and Bohemians. He is a great friend and we have a very good working relationship.

“His talent-spotting and his eye for a player is fantastic. He has been responsible with myself for a lot of the players that have come into the club.

“Dave has worked with Aston Villa for a long, long time so his knowledge of the game at that level is fantastic. He also has a lot of other attributes and his work ethic is fantastic.”

Meanwhile Fenlon was today looking beyond this afternoon’s SPL clash with Motherwell, admitting he wants to see an improvement in Hibs’ away form – starting with next Sunday’s visit to Kilmarnock.

Although Hibs went into today’s game boasting the best home record in the league, they haven’t been quite so impressive outwith the Capital, something the manager wants to change.

He said: “We know on the road we have not been good enough. We’ve given goals away too easily whereas at home we’ve been more resilient and defended better. If you can win at home you want to pick up something on the road. If we are not winning games away we have to make sure we are not losng them.”