Young Hibs double winners rewarded with new contracts

Lewis Allan is among several youngsters to have signed new contracts with Hibs after impressing during the development team's surge to the league and cup double this season.

Lewis Allan has been handed a new contract

The 21-year-old striker featured fleetingly in the first team under previous manager Alan Stubbs, but a wretched run of fitness issues have hindered his progress and prevented him having any involvement since he appeared as a substitute in the 6-2 Petrofac Cup defeat by Rangers almost three years ago. Allan has spent time on loan at Dunfermline Athletic, Forfar Athletic, Livingston and Edinburgh City, and his recent form in the development league has convinced Hibs management to offer him further time to prove himself.

Callum Crane, however, will leave Hibs after being unable to establish himself in the first team. The 22-year-old left-sided defender has been knocking on the door for several years, but has managed only two first-team appearances, both of which came under Neil Lennon last season. Teenagers Jamie Gullan, Callum Donaldson, Ben Stirling, Kevin Waugh, Paddy Martin and Innes Murray, who featured prominently for the double-winning team, have all signed on at Hibs for next season, while Ryan Shanley and Gregor Woods have signed their first professional contracts with the club.