Stevenson played his 450th league match for Hibs in Saturday’s 1-0 win over St Mirren, moving clear of Arthur Duncan in the charts. It was the 35-year-old’s ninth start in a row – eight of which have been the full 90 minutes – and has helped the team become more resolute in their climb to fifth in the cinch Premiership. However, out-of-contract at the end of the season, the one-club man is far from convinced that he will be kept on for another campaign.

"My contract is up at the end of the season, and I don’t know what’s happening,” said Stevenson. “When you get to 35 it’s a lot harder to get a new one-year deal. But I’m open to anything and I’d love to stay here for as long as possible. But I do get that the club needs to move on and evolve – you might not want to have a 35-year-old playing at left-back. So we’ll see what happens. But if it is not here, I want to play football for as long as possible.”

Stevenson has won both the League and Scottish Cups during his 17-year spell at Hibs and is a true favourite with the fans and while feeling he still has much to offer, he admits that he is not overly fretting about his future.

Lewis Stevenson made his 450th league appearance for Hibs in their 1-0 win over St Mirren in Paisley.

“I’m pretty laid back about things like that,” continued Stevenson. “I wondered about stuff like that five years ago, and I’m still here. So whatever happens, I’ve had an amazing time here and I’m still enjoying my football. Yes [I have another year left in me], but I might not be here. Like I said, I understand that the club needs to move on, and needs to evolve. But I would love to stay here as long as possible.”

Stevenson says no discussions have taken place about a new deal. “No, because there are still three or four months left,” he replied. “I know that there has been a lot more important stuff going on at the club than sorting me out. So we’ll see what happens.”

Stevenson was in a typically bashful mood when discussing his latest milestone at the club. Clutching a shirt with the number 450 given to him by manager Lee Johnson in front of the whole team following the win, he spoke well about his achievements and recalled how a life in politics might have presented itself had then Hibs manager Tony Mowbray not snapped him up.

“I try to stay away from landmarks but it’s always nice to focus on it after a great win,” continued Stevenson. “It would have been hard reading the press if we’d got beaten, so the win makes it a lot easier. I think I’m enjoying it as much as I ever have throughout my career. You think, when you’re getting near the end, you have to try to enjoy it more. Even on wet and windy days like Saturday, I still feel it is an honour to play for a club like Hibs. Hopefully I can continue doing it for a wee bit longer.

Was Stevenson aware of the landmark coming up? “I really don’t go on social media but a few people had mentioned it to me,” he admitted. “I didn’t want to tempt fate – I didn’t even know if I was going to play today – but the gaffer said a few words and gave me a nice presentation in the dressing room.

Joe [Newell] has also been giving me a bit of stick, saying I’ve been ticking off quite a few landmarks recently. He just gave me this strip with 450 on it. He said it was a good achievement. I also had to say a few words myself that probably weren’t very good. I don’t really focus very much on stuff like this just now. But when I hang up my boots I’ll probably look back on days like these fondly.

“I’m really enjoying it, and it helps when the team is playing well and winning games. We’ve been playing a bit more solidly recently, which has probably given the attacking players a bit more freedom to go and do their thing. We’ve conceded one goal in our last three games, which is pretty good, because we were a bit weaker at the start of the season."

What about that potential career in politics? Back in 2005, as a fresh-faced teenager, Stevenson was on the brink of enrolling on a politics course at university. “Back then I wasn’t sure what was going to happen,” he revealed. “I’ve played 565 games – I think – for Hibs but back then my family said, ‘look, you’re not going to play a lot of games’. So I was all set to study politics at Dundee Uni. That summer [2005] I went to Magaluf with my mates and I was at the airport buying loads of cigarettes – when you could do that – to sell them on. The kitman saw me and was going to grass me up to the manager at the time, who was Tony Mowbray, but he didn’t. So I owe it to Tam McCourt for not telling, and the rest is history. I came and joined Hibs.”

The rest is history ...

Lewis Stevenson opens up on Hibs future, shirt presentation and 2005 cigarettes incident