The squad is certainly thinning out, thanks to the large number of loan deals – plus a few contracts – coming to their natural end. But nobody at East Mains is under any illusions over the clear-out still required when it comes to presenting the new Hibs manager with a squad able to fit onto a single training pitch on the first day of pre-season. Which is just over a fortnight away, in case you weren’t keeping track.
Jacob Blainey being allowed to join Crusaders on a permanent deal, as revealed here yesterday, is probably going to be typical of the business done by new sporting director Malky Mackay over the coming weeks. It’s part of the natural process for any club looking to find a home for one-time youth prospects who never quite managed to break into the first team.
At Hibs, though, the situation is most definitely complicated by the presence of senior professionals in possession of long-term contracts, yet very much on the fringes of things. Players recruited by one manager but undervalued by the next man up in the club’s ever-changing line-up of gaffers. Footballers who cost Hibs a fee, in some cases, but now find themselves available for free to a good home.
The following list of 20 – that’s TWENTY – players all fall into the very loose category of players facing a tricky summer, given the need for cuts at a club desperately seeking to upgrade in all departments. Any players born before 2006 – still eligible for the under-18s next season, like Rory Whittaker – have been excluded because, obviously, they’ll get plenty of game time for at least one team in the year ahead. How many from this group do you think will be kicking off the 2024-25 campaign as established members of the first team squad?

1. Harry McKirdy
Signed for an undisclosed fee in 2022, the winger/forward another year to run on his contract. Spent the second half of last season back on loan at former club Swindon, making nine appearances for the League Two side. Time at Hibs obviously complicated by discovery of a heart condition. Now 27, he’s shown few signs of being able to cope with the pace of Scottish Premiership football. | SNS Group

2. Kanayo Megwa
The right back really impressed on loan at Airdrie during the second half of last season. At 20, and with a year left on his contract, he finds his path to the first team blocked by Chris Cadden, Lewis Miller … and possibly even 16-year-old Whittaker. Another loan on the cards? Photo: Ross Parker - SNS Group

3. Allan Delferriere
The 22-year-old midfielder/defender may end up at MFK Vyskov, should they take up the option to buy a player who spent the second half of last season on loan to the Czech club. The fact that Hibs handed him a new THREE-YEAR contract last September suggests that someone at East Mains still values the Belgian, though, right? | SNS Group

4. Murray Aiken
The midfielder/defender still has a year left on his contract and, at 19, is just back from an injury-impaired loan stint at Airdrie. Maybe another loan deal? The new gaffer might want to have a closer look at Aiken. Photo: Paul Devlin - SNS Group