Hibs: Ivan Sproule's back to repay club he loves so much

The flying winger arrived in Edinburgh a total unknown, stepping into the world of professional football for the first time at the age of 23, former boss Tony Mowbray having paid the princely sum of 5000 for his services to Northern Ireland outfit Institute.

Mowbray may have been taking something of a chance, but barely eight months later Sproule's name was on the lips of every football fan in Scotland.

A stunning hat-trick against Rangers - the first Hibs player to do so in more than a century at Ibrox - ensured Sproule's place in the club's folklore in what rapidly became a fairytale for the former engineer.

A first cap for his country coincided with a memorable win over England at Windsor Park while here in Edinburgh Hibs fans rose as one from their seats in anticipation every time he was in possession.

Little more than two years later Sproule was tasting silverware as Mowbray's successor John Collins led Hibs to CIS Insurance Cup glory with a 5-1 hammering of Kilmarnock at Hampden.

Inevitably his rise to fame attracted interest from elsewhere, Hibs' UEFA Cup opponents Dnipro being credited with a 1 million bid, before English Championship club Bristol City moved in, taking Sproule to the West Country in a 500,000 move.

Four years on Sproule is once again a Hibs player, back in Edinburgh but admitting part of him had never left as he seeks to rekindle those halcyon days when he could count the likes of Derek Riordan, Kevin Thomson, Scott Brown, David Murphy, Garry O'Connor and Dean Shiels as team-mates.

Much has changed in the intervening period both on and off the park, a 5 million training centre at East Mains and a new 6400 capacity East Stand now in place although Sproule returns at the end of one of Hibs' most disappointing seasons in almost a decade.

Nevertheless, Sproule, now 30, insists he's ready to play his part as Colin Calderwood sets about restoring the club's fortunes, revealing he's been every bit as impressed by what his new manager has had to say as he's been by East Mains.Recalling how training sessions took place on public parks throughout the Capital, Sproule declared the facilities he will now enjoy on the outskirts of Tranent as "mind-blowing."

However, he's well aware it's taking those training sessions into a Saturday afternoon which concerns the supporters more but believes he returns a "much stronger and wiser player" than that which departed for England.

Adamant he's returned home, Sproule said: "When I left the club I was still only in to my third season at Hibs, professional football was something I was probably only grasping at that time.

"With Bristol we were only one game away from the Premier League play-off and I played virtually every game that year which was a big challenge for me. The second and third years were similar, we just missed out on the play-offs.

"I played regular Championship football, it's a great standard, a great league, and I played against your Newcastle Uniteds, the Middlesbroughs, Leeds Uniteds and Ipswich Towns.

"You have to be on your toes, the squads are so big because there's so much money. You have to have that ability and I am coming back a stronger and wiser player than when I left."

Although he clocked up more than 120 matches for the Ashton Gate outfit, Sproule revealed he always believed he'd return to Hibs one day, and when he learned he was to be released at the end of the season Easter Road was always going to be his first choice.

He said: "I had a few options to stay in England but I told my agent this was a place I wanted to come back to and now there's no-one happier than me at this minute.

"I was a bit of an unknown when Tony Mowbray took a chance on me but the fans were great to me. Even when I was with Bristol City I would get more Hibs fan mail than Bristol so even in these four years away I have kept very much in touch with the club.

"I was disappointed to leave but I did so for the reason - I wanted to give it a shot and try to get in to the Premier League in England. But at the same time part of me stayed back here because I had so many good memories.

"When I left I felt I was leaving a bit early but I was being a bit selfish, I took the decision for myself and my family for the future to give them that bit of stability.

"Now some people have said I am coming back too early but I feel I am coming back to give something to the club and if I can help the next crop of players to push on and achieve some great moments then I will have a clear conscience."

Sproule is well aware he returns to find Hibs very much in a state of flux on the pitch, a tenth place finish the result of a season which disappointed virtually from first match to club's last.

But, he insisted, a brighter future is in store under Calderwood who, he expects, will continue to bring in further new faces in the coming weeks to join not only him but the likes of Victor Palsson, Matt Thornhill, Martin Scott and Akpo Sodje who all arrived at the turn of the year.

He told Hibernian TV: "When I was young I used to be a Spurs fan so I remember the gaffer from then as a centre-half, a committed player, someone who wore his badge with pride.

"He did a great job with Nottingham Forest, he was assistant at Newcastle and you don't get those jobs if you are not someone with a good reputation.

"The first impression I got when I met him mattered a lot because he was honest. He told me where the club stood at the minute and where the club wanted to go. I came away feeling he was an honest man and when I think you are working for honest people you will always be treated well.

"It's great to be the first in but I am sure I will be followed by a few more experienced ones. I've watched Hibs' games and I feel that some which were lost were not so much to do with football but a lack of experience.

"I've had three years in the SPL, four in the Championship, played with some real big characters up here and against some real good talent down there. In any job you learn through experience so if I can help pass on anything to the youngsters I will. Sometimes one or two older heads in the changing room means a lot when it gets tough."