Pat Fenlon: I’ve had 100 per cent support

PAT Fenlon has revealed he was always convinced he’d get the full backing of the Hibs board as he began his whirlwind Easter Road revolution.

Over the course of January the new manager has vastly transformed the look of his squad with six players leaving and eight arriving, four of them on transfer deadline day.

First team regulars Matt Thornhill, Victor Palsson, Junior Agogo, Akpo Sodje and Michael Hart all left along with teenager David Crawford, the remainder of their existing contracts having, presumably, been “paid up.”

And what began as a trickle of replacements turned into a torrent, early transfer window signings Eoin Doyle and George Francomb joined by James McPake and Tom Soares before one-time Rangers target Jorge Claros, Pa Kujabi, Roy Donovan and Matt Doherty arrived within hours of each other.

All but Doyle and Kujabi, who signed 18-month contracts, were loan deals, Fenlon candidly admitting the immediate priority was to ensure Hibs’ survival in the SPL before he can focus on building for the longer term.

Although he tried the supporters’ patience in steadfastly insisting he’d only pursue players he felt could make a difference, Fenlon has expressed himself well satisfied with what he has achieved in terms of rebuilding his squad.

And, he insisted, the hectic activity ahead of the window closing was indicative of the backing he’d received from above, adamant that had never been in doubt.

He said: “Since I came here the backing from everyone has been first-class, there’s no complaints about that at all. Everyone has been 100 per cent behind what we are trying to do, that’s been fantastic.

“The important thing for the club at the moment is short term, it’s making sure we stay in the league and then have a bit of time to build things for the future. At the moment, though, we just need to stay focused on what our job is and that’s to try to get us up the table and progress in the cup.

“It’s important we get up the table and then we can look forward to next season.”