Hughes laps up attitude of Hibs fight club

HIBS manager John Hughes revealed today that he was left in no doubt about the passion and commitment his players have for the club when he caught them fighting amongst themselves during the win over Montrose.

The Easter Road might have been two goals to the good but Hughes and his assistant Brian Rice walked into the dressing room to find the squad airing their grievances and pointing fingers at one another at half-time.

Despite the fact that they were winning against the Third Division side in the Scottish Cup fifth round, the Hibs players still felt that they weren't playing to their usual standards – and that was music to Hughes' ears.

He knows that expectation levels are on the rise among players and supporters alike and, he too is demanding consistently high levels of performance.

He said: "Expectation levels maybe are higher at the club now and among the fans, but we have got to live with that and I want Hibs to be about win, win, win.

"The players are starting to get into one another as well and that's great for me to see because it shows just how much they want this. We were two goals up at half time on Saturday but in the dressing room one or two of them were starting to have a go at each other."

Hughes knows that victory tonight over the Dons could see Hibs move into second spot in the league table, if Celtic lose to Hearts at Parkhead. He insists, however, that the Dons will provide a stiff test for his side. "I saw Aberdeen play last week and I have got great respect for Mark McGhee and what he is doing up there. Aberdeen have got one or two right good players at the club, although they are going through a bit of a transitional period having let guys like Lee Miller go. I think he will be a big miss for them."

Meanwhile, a goal from Matty Welch gave Hibs' Under-19 side a 1-0 win over Aberdeen.