Rumour Mill: Hibs v Rangers | James Forrest new deal

Paul Hanlon wheels away after powering a header past Wes Foderingham to hand Hibs victory over Rangers. Picture: Ian Georgeson

Hibernian 2 Rangers 1: Cummings and Hanlon give Hibs victory over title rivals

A STUNNING goal from Jason Cummings and a header from Paul Hanlon came either side of a deflected Lee Wallace goal to give Hibs victory over Rangers in the top-of-the-table clash in the Scottish Championship

Hibs targeting title prize after downing Gers

HIBS star Jason Cummings believes the Easter Road side have what it takes to beat Rangers to the Championship title and automatic promotion.

The youngster, who scored his fifth goal in as many matches with a stunning strike to open the scoring in yesterday’s top-of-the-table clash described the five-point gap between Hibs and Rangers as ‘nothing’.

Cummings added: “The belief is there and we can definitely win the title. We have a great set of lads and a great manager and coaching staff. Our confidence is through the roof now. Hopefully [the 2-1 win] rattles [Rangers] a wee bit and we keep on winning.” (Various)

Warburton: Defeat will help us

STUNNED Rangers boss Mark Warburton has insisted that his raging Ibrox stars will be encouraged to step up their game, after admitting his side were furious after defeat to Hibs.

Warburton said: “We’re angry but that will do us some good. We gave a good performance second half. There was one team in it and we didn’t get our rewards. We dominated possession and created chance after chance in the second half. How we haven’t won the game of football, respectfully, I don’t know.

“Do I anticipate we’ll use that anger positively? Absolutely.” (Scottish Sun)

Brighton remain UK’s only unbeaten team

AFTER Hibernian’s 2-1 win, Brighton & Hove Albion remain the only unbeaten team in the UK.

The Seagulls - who can count former Hoops midfielder Beram Kayal, Scotland international Gordon Greer and ex-Motherwell winger Jamie Murphy in their ranks - haven’t lost a league match since a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Watford in April.

Their only defeat this year has been a 2-1 loss to Walsall in the League Cup.

Hibs v Rangers - the stats

DESPITE a whopping 59% - 41% possession split, Rangers were unable to maintain their 100% record at Easter Road on Sunday.

Both teams managed 11 efforts on goal, with Hibernian getting five on target to Rangers’ two.

The result also means that in the last nine matches, Hibs have won eight, drawn one, scored 19 and conceded just five goals.

And in their last 47 league matches, Rangers have lost just seven matches - four of them to Hibs.

Forrest eyes new deal at Hoops

JAMES Forrest has revealed he has held talks with Celtic and is keen to pledge his long-term future to the club by signing a bumper new deal.

The 24-year-old has been hampered by injuries this season but scored in Celtic’s 3-1 win over title rivals Aberdeen, and said: “I want to stay at Celtic. Everything you do every day is enjoyable and I want to stay here. A lot of the boys feel the same because it’s such a big club.

“I think I have a year and two months left and I am pretty confident it can be sorted. As I say, it’s a big club and you don’t get much better than the European nights here.” (Daily Mail)

O’Connor named Selkirk boss

FORMER Hibs and Birmingham striker Garry O’Connor has been named manager of Selkirk on a permanent basis - despite a crushing 5-1 defeat in his first match in charge.

O’Connor took charge of the Borderers for their match against Gretna 2008, but saw the Lowland League side fall to a heavy defeat.

But Selkirk bosses have pointed to O’Connor’s wealth of experience in the game and appointed him as manager. O’Connor is expected to perform in a player/manager type role. (The Scotsman)

Szromnik grateful to Mixu for chance

DUNDEE United ‘keeper Michal Szromnik has paid tribute to Mixu Paatelainen, after the Polish goalie helped the Terrors to victory over Ross County for the Finn’s first win in charge at Tannadice.

Preferred to German goalie Luis Zwick, Szromnik tipped an Alex Schalk effort over the bar after Billy Mckay had scored a penalty, preserving United’s lead and helping them to victory.

And the Pole said: “The last gaffer didn’t give me a chance. I was delighted when Mixu did. It’s a hard situation for the club but the gaffer has given us a lot of support since he came here.

“He’s put in a lot of tactical things and we’ve worked very hard. We were a different team compared to the Celtic game.” (The Scotsman)

United eye Japan ‘keeper

DESPITE Szromnik’s match-winning save, Dundee United are reportedly keen on Japan goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima.

The 32-year-old is a free agent after leaving Standard Liege in the summer, and has 72 international caps under his belt.

He also had spells with Lierse, the Fujitsu-owned Kawasaki Frontale; Nagoya Grampus, owned by Toyota, and J-League Division 2 side Omiya Ardija. (Scottish Sun)

Djoum loving life at Hearts

BELGIAN midfielder Arnaud Djoum is hopeful his performances for Hearts can lead to a longer deal in Edinburgh, and a chance to erase the misery of benchwarming in Turkey and Poland.

Djoum signed a short-term deal at Tynecastle, and revealed his mind is ‘just on playing football’.

He added: “Last year, I didn’t play many games. I’m happy to hear the coach say that he wants to extend the agreement and we will see what happens in the next days.

“I don’t search for money. For me, the most important thing is to have stability, to play football and to show what I can do.” (The Scotsman)

Glentoran want Shiels

GLENTORAN are set to make former Kilmarnock and Morton boss Kenny Shiels their new manager, with the 59-year-old due to hold talks at the Oval this week.

The Northern Irishman, who led Killie to Scottish League Cup glory against Celtic, has previously managed Ballymena United and Coleraine in his homeland, and attended Glens’ 1-1 draw with Coleraine at the weekend.

Shiels has been picked as the frontrunner to replace ousted boss Eddie Patterson. (BBC)

Rumour Mill: Hibs v Rangers | James Forrest new deal | Garry O’Connor