Nish left fearing the axe for Hibs clash

Colin Nish believes his worst fear is set to be realised in NK Maribor's Stadion Ljudski tonight despite scoring the goals which finally sealed Hibs' Europa League place.

The tall striker notched five goals in the Easter Road outfit's final two SPL games of last season, a hat-trick in that astonishing 6-6 draw at Motherwell and then a glory double to beat Dundee United and claim fourth spot in the table.

But today Nish revealed even that record might not be enough to guarantee him a place in John Hughes' starting line-up in tonight's first leg of the third round qualifying tie against Slovenia's most successful club with the Easter Road boss intent on ensuring his side fly home immediately after the game with a better than even chance of finishing the job off in Edinburgh next week.

Although he disclosed he had all but determined the 11 to start tonight, Hughes has kept his players guessing with hitmen Nish, Derek Riordan and Anthony Stokes all featuring during the four-match tour of Holland which preceded this trip to eastern Europe.

Indeed, Nish, Riordan and Stokes all played in the final game of that programme, the 1-1 draw with Vitesse Arnhem which was watched by Maribor's assistant coach Ante Simundza, the former Dunfermline and Kilmarnock star being replaced by Lee Currie at half-time while the others completed the entire 90 minutes.

Hughes. however, is almost certain to adopt a more cautious approach having stated he'd be happy with a 1-1 draw and that vital away goal to build on at Easter Road and that, Nish feels, could well see him start on the bench.

Admitting he's been fretting for days, he said: "It's nice to think you will be playing but it is a bit like the build-up to a cup final, every player worries that they might be the one to miss out and I'm no exception.

"Everyone is excited at the prospect of playing tonight and, I think, we all have our fingers crossed that we'll be starting the match."

Nish's only previous Euro experience came as Hibs crashed out of the Inter Toto Cup at the hands of Swedish side Elfsborg two years ago, beaten 2-0 home and away, but, he insisted, preparations for tonight's game have been meticulous.

He said: "It seems ages since that game at Tannadice when we finally clinched our place in the Europa League. It seemed to have been eluding us for weeks before we did it on the last day of the season.

"We were all able to breathe a huge sigh of relief but I think we thoroughly deserved it at the end of the day. We've been waiting a long time for this but now it is suddenly upon us. However, I believe we are ready and more than capable of winning but it is a case of doing as well as we can and it will be up to the manager to decide how he wants to approach this game.

"We have to be sensible, if we can't win then we have to make sure the tie is still alive to take back to Easter Road.

"I don't think we were ready for Elfsborg the other year, it came far too early for us but this time we have certainly prepared, we've had a few games against good foreign opposition, we played when it was really hot, so-much-so that the ref stopped the game against NEC Nigmegen last week after 25 minutes to let the players of both sides take on some water.

"We've been told it could be roasting here but I think playing in the heat in Holland will help, it doesn't take you long to get used to it. It makes running about a bit harder but hopefully we can have them doing that a bit more than us.

"It is something of a step into the unknown tonight but I feel the gaffer has every angle covered. Brian Rice was over to watch two matches and built up a detailed dossier which has been put to good use. I also saw the final ten minutes of their 2-0 win over Hungarian side Videoton in the second game of the previous round and, while they look a decent side, it is hard to tell too much from the television as it doesn't show the whole picture of what is going on around the pitch."

Nish conceded that Maribor might hold the upper-hand having played those two Europa League matches against Videoton and two games in their own league while Hibs haven't played a competitive match so far.

But, he insisted, the four games against Eredivisie sides Heracles, NEC, Ado Den Haag and Vitesse, will have gone a long way to ensuring that any advantage won't be too pronounced. He said: "They'll possibly be a wee bit ahead in terms of fitness while it does take a few matches to get into ‘game mode' in your head but we'll be ready.

"It's a great occasion for the club and for me it's terrific to have something like this a bit later in my career although it will be all the better if I play."

If Nish and a few other of his team-mates are novices at this level of football, Repbulic of Ireland internationalist Liam Miller will bring plenty of experience to bear having played in the old European Cup and UEFA Cup with Celtic and then Champions League football at Manchester United.

Having made his Euro debut in a 7-0 demolition of Jeunesse Esch of Luxembourg ten years ago as a teenager, the midfield ace went on to face the likes of Bayern Munich, Lyon, Anderlecht and Barcelona among others in the Hoops and then Dinamo Bucharest, Fenerbahce and Sparta Prague with Sir Alex Ferguson's side.

His last Euro appearance, however, came against Hungarian club Debrecen five years ago, coinciding with Hibs' last foray into the UEFA Cup, the precursor to today's Europa League when they crashed 5-1 to Ukrainian side Dnipro.

Despite that record, however, Miller admitted he was as excited as anyone about tonight's clash. He said: "These are special occasions for anyone and I am sure the young lads will rise to it and it will be a great night.

"I'll enjoy it knowing what is at stake, but at the same time it is different to league football back home."