Exclusive - Hibs legend weighs in on Monty's future and fan frustration

Former skipper says finishing third should be MINIMUM expectation going forward

Jackie McNamara Snr in action for Hibs

Legendary former Hibs captain Jackie McNamara believes Hibs should keep faith with embattled manager Hibs Montgomery. But he fears that, in a business where even legends can be sacked, the current crop of players have put their gaffer under serious pressure.

McNamara is adamant that the Hibs board – and the passionate fans who have supported the club in a horrific season of dashed hopes and basic failures – are right to set high expectations. He believes third place in the Scottish Premiership, currently occupied by Hearts, should be the target at the start of every new campaign.

Failure to finish inside the top six at the split prompted the Hibs board to publicly declare their intent to conduct a review of all football operations, with new billionaire investor Bill Foley’s Black Knight group expected to play a key role in sharing knowledge from their work with Bournemouth and FC Lorient. The appointment of a technical director is being considered as a potentially key ‘signing’ to kick-start changes.

But Montgomery was also put under direct pressure by directors, with last week’s statement branding the current situation as “unacceptable” and warning that “results need to improve.” Many have interpreted that as Monty being given the final five games of the campaign to save his job, with former Hibs favourite Scott Allan even declaring that the manager needs three wins to stand a chance of being in charge at start of next season.

McNamara believes that would be a mistake for a club currently on their fifth manager in as many years, saying: “I don’t know Nick Montgomery. I’ve never met him, so there’s nothing personal in me saying this. But I genuinely believe that you’ve got to give people a chance – and he’s not even had a full season.

“There is no point in hiring and firing all the time. That’s one of the reasons Hibs have ended up in this situation. There’s got to be a bit of continuity.

Montgomery is under pressure to turn results around.

“And I know the manager takes the blame. But honestly, these players have got a lot to answer for.

“Montgomery hasn’t even been there a year, as I say, so we don’t know what he’ll do with a proper transfer window and time to build a team. But we know managers don’t get time. And even Eddie Turnbull got sacked – and he was a great manager.”

McNamara, who has retired to a more enjoyable lifestyle in Spain, still keeps tabs on his old team. And the former skipper, who also served the club as assistant manager, is definitely up to speed with the mood of Hibs supporters back home.

“I understand why the fans are so upset, of course I do,” he said. “They pay their money to go and support the team. I’m lucky, I’m over here watching on Hibs TV – and I still get annoyed!

“So I can understand the anger and disappointment of fans who go and make the effort to follow the team home and away. But it doesn’t help. To get through this and turn the corner, the players need their backing. Having said that, they’re right to demand better.

“The expectations should be to finish in the top three. Minimum. Looking at the size of the club and the support they have, that’s realistic.

“Now, we didn’t always manage to fulfil that in my playing days. And there are no guarantees. But you’ve always got to be aiming for that position – not just the top six.”

WATCH THE LATEST FITBAW TALK HERE

Like everyone else who has watched Hibs stumble from hopeful expectation to hopeless concession of darkly comic goals this season, McNamara – a former defender himself - doesn’t find the current back four easy on the eye, admitting: “I think the defence has been a wee bit suspect this season, obviously. When you look at the goals they lost, some of them have been really painful to watch.

“I can see why people think they’ve been a bit soft, although that’s not the word I would use. But losing late goals, losing set-piece goals, that is never good for a team.

“No matter how much football changes, some things always stay the same. You need a dominant player in there. My old team-mate, big George Stewart, used to tell me: ‘I’ll go for the ball, you pick up the scraps.’

“I think a few players have done OK this season. Wee Martin Boyle always does you a turn and, even when he’s not playing really well, he’ll put in a lot of effort just to annoy the opposition. I like that.

“When you look at some of the players who came in during the January window, a couple of those have made a difference. But I think it says everything that Myziane Maolida is the top scorer in the team now. What has he got, eight goals? A proper striker would be on that by the middle of November, although of course he only arrived in January.

“There’s obviously going to be a lot of change over the summer. And I’ll be interesting to see what the agenda is of the new folk coming in on the board, how much influence they have. But I just really hope they get it sorted out for the sake of the fans – and get Hibs back where they belong, challenging for the top three.”