Split expert Jimmy Jeggo keen to use experience to help Hibs achieve top six and European aims

Now plying his trade in the fifth country of his career, Jimmy Jeggo has experienced a lot: Cup wins, European competition – and league splits.

While one of those isn’t a factor for Hibs in the remaining six matches of the 2022/23 campaign, the 31-year-old will on Saturday hope to help his side into the top six when they take on St Johnstone and, all going to plan, then turn attentions to qualifying for Europe with the Easter Road side.

He picks out a Europa League qualifier against Fenerbahce and the likes of Martin Skrtel and Robin van Persie when he was with Sturm Graz in 2017 as a particularly memorable experience, with the Austrians unlucky not to progress against the Turkish cracks.

“I managed to play in a lot of qualifiers but never got to a group stage. That’s something I want to do, have that campaign in my career,” he said, previewing Saturday’s trip to St Johnstone. “Even the qualifiers give you the chance to go to great places and play different teams. It’s certainly a very different experience as you can be going to places that are roasting hot in the summer and atmospheres are completely different; you come up against different types of teams… it can really challenge you as a player and a team and those are the types of things that help us grow.

Jimmy Jeggo believes Hibs need to put in the same type of performance against St Johnstone as they did against Hearts

"Fenerbahce was unbelievable. One of the best atmospheres I’ve played in and we were really unlucky not to go through. Those are the experiences and occasions European football gives you and that’s why the desire to get there is so high. For this group of players it’s something we are desperate to experience and hopefully we can, it will help us keep moving in the direction we want.”

Jeggo, like everyone in a green and white shirt, very much enjoyed last weekend’s victory over Hearts but knows the club needs to produce more performances and results in the same vein.

“It was unbelievable. The buzz was still there a few days later, just because of how much it meant to win a derby at home – which hadn’t been done in a little while – and to hear Sunshine on Leith was something we were desperate to do for the fans and the club, but also what it meant for our season,” he continued.

“We played with intensity, defending was excellent, we were aggressive with and without the ball – we knew exactly what we needed to do and we executed it perfectly. It was a really good team performance and it’s important that we match that this weekend. We need to bring that intensity and aggressiveness to our game every week.

Jeggo, centre, and team-mates celebrate Kevin Nisbet's winner against Hearts

"Not getting a result would have put us in real trouble, so massive credit to the boys and everyone involved because under difficult circumstances and a lot of pressure we managed to put in the best performance since I’ve been here. We want more moments like that. They are special and the this club can give you them providing you do the business. The first step is getting a result this weekend.”

Hibs need to essentially match Livingston’s result when they play in Perth for the second time this season. Manager Lee Johnson has already stated that Hibs can only worry about themselves and not what other teams are doing and Jeggo hopes his prior experience of tense divisional splits in other countries can help him play a part in dragging Hibs over the finish line and into the top six.

The Austrian-born midfielder twice experienced the split with Austria Wien, Die Veilchen comfortably finishing fourth and qualifying for the Europa League third qualifying round in the first season of the split in the Austria Bundesliga, 2018/19, while the following season, they narrowly missed out on the top six and fell at the final hurdle in their attempts to qualify for Europe.

“The first year we were relatively comfortable but the second year it went to the wire and we missed out on the top six,” he explained. “For clubs expected to qualify for Europe it can really ramp the pressure up earlier in the season than normal but that’s something that’s part and parcel of being at clubs like that. It definitely makes the league more exciting. Austria has a funny system so if you finish in the top two of the bottom six you then play a play-off against each other and the winner of that plays fifth in the top six, and the winner of that qualifies for Europe. They did that to give the bottom six a bit more incentive.”

Jeggo, left, vies for the ball with Alper Potuk of Fenerbahce during Sturm Graz's UEFA Europa League third qualifying round clash in August 2017

Jeggo will hope that come 5pm on Saturday, Hibs have taken a leaf out of Austria Wien’s book from the 2018/19 campaign, and not the 2019/20 edition. But he believes with Hibs’ fate in their own hands, it takes off a bit of the pressure in that everyone knows what they need to do to ensure a top-half finish and, he admits, he relishes situations such as the one Hibs find themselves in.

“We know exactly what we need to do. It’s in our hands which is the best position so we just need to go and get the job done. The top six is where we want to be, it is where a club like this should be. Since I have been here the focus has been top six and then kicking on from there and achieving European football for next season. I love these situations. That’s what is so special about being at a club like Hibs – there are so many big games and expectation which creates that pressure. It’s something I really enjoy as a player. There are so many big clubs in this league, and there are a lot who expect to be in the top six and have that expectation, and that adds to the intensity of it.”