How former Forest keeper jumped from Hibs back-up to No.1 spot - gaffer addresses goalie questions
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Hibs stand-in goalie Jordan Smith has been praised for bringing a sense of “calm” to a crisis position by establishing himself as first-choice keeper during his team’s remarkable turnaround in fortunes. And gaffer David Gray says he’s “not necessarily” looking to break former No. 1 Josef Bursik’s season-long loan agreement halfway through the campaign.
Experienced former Nottingham Forest goalkeeper Smith, kept out of the starting XI as Hibs endured a catastrophic start to the campaign, made his league debut in November’s 3-3 home draw with Aberdeen. Despite blaming himself for at least one of the Dons goals in that game, the 30-year-old has quickly settled – and been a mainstay during a 10-game run when Gray’s men have lost just once, raising themselves from the automatic relegation spot to a place in the top six.
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Hide AdGray, addressing performances that included keeping his head when all about were losing theirs in a Boxing Day win over Hearts at Tynecastle, said: “He's done fantastically well, yeah. Really shown some great qualities.
“He's had to be very patient for his opportunity. And then even when he first got his opportunity against Aberdeen, given the scrutiny that was on that position at the time just because of the outside noise and everything that goes with it, the way the game went, it was tough.
“But ever since, he's done exactly what we always knew he would do. He is very, very steady in everything he does, very clean in everything he does.
“But he's also very calm. He's used all of his experience; you don't play for the teams he's played for if you've not got that calmness.
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Hide Ad“We see it in the way he trains every day as well, the way he is around the group. He's been really, really good, so delighted with the way it's going at the moment. Moving forward we'll just wait and see what happens.”


Hibs are in the market for goalkeepers, with the club scouting for a potential starter – or at least someone to compete with Smith – for next season, as well as looking at more immediate options. Former England Under-21 and Stoke goalkeeper Bursik is on loan from Club Bruges until the end of the season.
Asked if he was looking at making a signing and finding a way to move Bursik on, with the agreement of his parent club, Gray said: “No, not necessarily. I think it's probably just being proactive and see where that one goes.
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Hide Ad“Josef’s been superb as well. He's reacted in a real positive way to being out of the team; he still trains as hard as he can every day.
“He understood the situation, he came out of the team and there's nobody arguing because Smudge has done really well. That's what happens when you're in that department.
“They know that I've got trust in the goalkeepers when I play them. He just needs to keep training as hard as he can and wait for an opportunity. And if he gets his opportunity, he needs to then take it again because the competition's clearly there.”