David Gray on next Hibs manager timeline, Myziane Maolida future and reversing Paul Hanlon decision

What the Hibs interim manager said after the 1-1 draw at Livingston

David Gray has urged Hibs to move quickly to appoint a new manager after finishing his fourth spell as caretaker boss with a 1-1 draw at Livingston.

Gray was placed in interim charge following the sacking of Nick Montgomery last week, collecting four points from the final two league fixtures as Hibs finished seventh in the Premiership table. The 46-year-old is considered among the main contenders to become the next permanent boss and he urged the Easter Road hierarchy to waste no time in filling the vacancy to give the team the best chance of hitting the ground running next season.

“My full focus has been just on a difficult period that we were in and was just to get to the end of the season and I’m sure moving forward we’ll find out exactly what is happening," he said. “I think for the football club, the League Cup starts straight away, so you need to be as quick as you can making sure you come in on day one of pre-season with a clear idea of what needs to be done because Hibs need to be competing for the opportunity of winning trophies and that competition starts very early.”

Hibs interim manager David Gray with Rocky Bushiri after the 1-1 draw at Livingston. (Photo by Mark Scates / SNS Group)

On doing his own cause no harm during his latest interim tenure, Gray added: “Listen, unfortunately, every time I have been in this position it has always been in difficult situations. As I have said many times, it is about trying to get a reaction out of the players, first and foremost. And then from there, very conscious of the fact people have lost their jobs, so it is not always about me at all.

“On reflection, with every time I have been in the position, you always then start to get a little taste for it to find out exactly and assess what you think went well and what didn’t. I think every time I have been in the position, I have learned from the previous experiences, which has definitely helped me.”

Myziane Maolida signed off his Hibs spell with another goal - the Comoros international’s 11th since joining on-loan from Hertha Berlin in January - but Gray was unable to give a definitive answer on the attacker's future.

“That’s not a question for me. I was asked to prepare them as best I could between last week and today," he said. “Moving forward, I’m sure there will be many suitors for him, if he is available. But that’s a question for the next manager and the powers that be at the football club.

“I think if you can get a player with that quality, it can only add to your squad, 100 per cent. You see what he can do. But there is already a lot of quality in that dressing room at the moment, as well. I’ve said that many times.

“It is a good squad. It needs to be added to, because there are a lot of players out of contract, players on loan going back to their clubs. So it gives the new manager an opportunity to bring his own players in – and put his own stamp on the team.”

Gray was also quizzed on Lewis Stevenson's assertion that Hibs are making a “big mistake” in letting Paul Hanlon go, with the 34-year-old defender set to be released upon the expiry of his contract. Asked if that decision - taken under previous manager Montgomery - could be reversed, Gray said: “That’s a question between Paul and the football club.

"Listen, Paul and Lew have had fantastic careers here and they will both keep playing, I am very confident of that. They both showed the other night they are more than capable of playing at this level and I 100 per cent agree with that.

“It’s not just on the pitch, but what they do every single day. It seems for the last week it has been the one thing I have been able to be really positive about and confident about when I am speaking about them because it has been a real difficult time for the club.

‘But those two deserve all the praise they get and, whatever happens moving forward, the new manager and the club will decide what happens and up to the two boys because they are out of contract and it’s up to them to decide what happens.”