Rival Premiership boss on what he expects from 'expansive' Hibs and the tactic he won't rely on at Easter Road

Motherwell boss Stuart Kettlewell has lavished praise on Hibs ahead of his side’s trip to Easter Road - and knocked back notions his side will rely on a certain tactic.

David Gray’s side are looking to build on a positive performance at Rangers last weekend with victory over a Fir Park side who have won five of their last six matches in all competitions. Despite the 1-0 loss at Ibrox, the performance was good, with one more game to go pre-international break.

Dan Casey’s red card for Motherwell in their win against St Mirren means one enforced change. Kofi Balmer replaced him in defence and the Northern Irishman comes armed with a gigantic throw-in. Gray has said he’s prepared for aerial threat but Kettlewell insists his team won’t be relying on it as the focal point of their game plan.

He said: “I can’t kick a football that far to be honest! You hear the gasp when everybody sees it. That’s a weapon, a tool you can use in so many different situations. We tried to use it to get up the pitch in stages so it wasn’t even in that final third.

“Something I will be really transparent about is we are not a team that sets up for long throws. We don’t play for long throws. We play to try and create and score chances from open play. We have a way of playing and definitive structure.

“We have a game model, something like a long throw is a small add-on if you feel you have an opportunity to utilise, then of course we will. But I am not playing the game so we can have our centre-back launch balls into the box. Yes play it off, but not what we are playing for.”

Kettlewell added: “Whenever you go to Easter Road, it’s always a test. I feel they are an open, expansive side who try to stretch you. I think they have a lot of pace in their team and have obviously invested heavily in their group to try and build from last season. With David coming in as manager, they will be looking for a better season, probably, than they had last year. It’s going to be a difficult game for us,”