Fans reunited: Hibs boss John Hughes hails bid to boost crowds

• Manager John Hughes believes a run of good results will bring fans back to Easter Road

But the manager, who hopes the exciting brand of football his team are playing allied to last weekend's storming performance at Ibrox will add another couple of thousand to the gate for tomorrow's visit by Aberdeen, admitted it would be up to him and his players to keep them coming.

A group of fans from Hibs.net and the Supporters Association have formed Hibees Reunited with the sole target of bringing back those who have drifted away from Easter Road.

A spokesman said: "The football on show just now is fantastic entertainment and we're getting the results to go with it, too. Most of us know someone who has got out of the habit of going to Easter Road and we're encouraging everyone to bring a friend to the game against Falkirk on 28 November.

"We're confident they will like what they see and come back for more.

"It's not just about those that turn up every week bringing someone along, we'd love to see the people who have stopped coming to Easter Road and being part of the Hibernian family."

News of the supporters' initiative was welcomed by Hughes but he insisted the players themselves have to play their part in not allowing the standards which have taken them to third place in the SPL table, hard on the heels of the Old Firm, to slip.

He said: "I think playing in those pre-season matches at Dunfermline and Bolton and seeing so many Hibs fans at the games brought it home to the guys who arrived in the summer how big this club is. I keep telling them they are at something special and, to be honest, the supporters are always being mentioned in the dressing-room, that we owe it to them.

"I totally understand football can get a bit expensive, the economics of the world today and so many unemployed but I'd like to think enjoying watching Hibs win can kick-start the supporters' week."

Hughes is well aware of the pitfalls which face his team in the wake of a thrilling performance against either side of the Old Firm and, he revealed, that's a message he has been hammering home to his players in training this week.

He said: "We've been right in among them telling them what we expect, that we have done nothing yet and to be ready to go again. I'm sure Mark McGhee will set a few traps for us so we have to overcome them and look to win the match."

Tomorrow presents Hibs with the chance to clock up a sixth-successive match without defeat, a sign, Hughes claimed, that his side are, at last beginning to show some consistency although he stressed that they are, as yet, far from the finished article. He said: "We have guys on the pitch who can win games, but to bring the fans back we have to keep producing the goods. I think we are playing our part but we have to keep meeting the standards we have set."