Hibs boss pledges to cast net far and wide

Hibs boss Pat Fenlon today insisted he won’t be plundering the League of Ireland for fresh talent just because he’s Irish – despite his first potential target being a player from Sligo Rovers.

Fenlon has taken Iarfhlaith Daveron on trial at Easter Road, the 25-year-old having played in a “bounce” match against Celtic along with an un-named goalkeeper as the new manager seeks to strengthen his squad.

However, Fenlon, whose entire playing and managerial career was in Ireland prior to his move to Edinburgh, is adamant he won’t concentrate his search for new players solely on his homeland.

He said: “We’ve brought in a goalkeeper who was due to come in on trial before I came in so we wanted to follow that through. We’ve also brought in Daveron who played for Sligo Rovers in the League of Ireland last year.

“He did well and trained again yesterday.”

Although he obviously knows the Irish scene well, Fenlon revealed he’ll be casting his net far and wide in his search for January signings.

He said: “We’ll look at every league, we won’t just look at the League of Ireland because we’re Irish. We’ve got people looking all over to see what is available and where we can improve the squad.”

Fenlon, however, is close to tying up Scotland Under-21 striker Leigh Griffiths on loan until the end of the season. The Wolves player’s current deal ends on January 7, but Fenlon revealed he’s already approached Molineux boss Mick McCarthy to extend it.

He said: “I spoke to Mick last week and that’s a work in progress at the moment. Hopefully we will be able to tie that one up. We want him to stay and they have said they’d be happy enough for him to stay. It’s just a matter of getting all the paperwork done.”

It looks a straightforward matter should the clubs agree with Griffiths, a lifelong Hibs fan, having already said he’d be happy to stay on at Easter Road.

Meanwhile, Fenlon admitted he’s relishing his first home match being against SPL champions and current leaders Rangers, insisting his players, despite being just one point off bottom place, should be relishing the game just as much as he is.

He said: “It’s a big game, but I’ve been involved in big games before, bigger games even, in the Champions League. The players should enjoy it and use it to reach the levels they are capable of.”