Just three months ago, David Gray and his Hibernian players left Celtic Park one point adrift at the bottom of the Premiership following a 3-0 defeat at the hands of the champions.
Their departure from the east end of Glasgow, however, was certainly not made with their tails between their legs.
Despite the result that afternoon, Hibs travelled back along with M8 with their heads held high and with a genuine sense of belief that their season was about to take an upward turn.
Just how much better it would become, none of their supporters could have envisaged at that stage — regardless of their admiration for a performance at Parkhead which belied the final scoreline.
Hibs return to the same venue this afternoon protecting an unbeaten run which has had club historians dusting down the record books and has lifted the team into third place in the league table.
When seeking a reference point for the dramatic transformation in their fortunes, the 3-3 draw at home to Aberdeen a couple of weeks earlier is the obvious and understandable landing place.
Having been on the brink, Gray has resurrected his managerial career at Hibs
Victory over Hearts last time out made it 15 matches unbeaten for the Easter Road side
There is certainly no doubt that Rocky Bushiri’s 96th-minute equaliser on that tumultuous evening at Easter Road lit a spark in a team which had lost seven and won just one of their first 14 Premiership fixtures.
Yet it was their display against Celtic that provided the template for how they have compiled a now 15-match undefeated sequence in all competitions since then.
Hibs played with intelligence and enterprise, regularly and expertly picking their moments to find gaps in the Celtic defence.
Their lack of a finishing touch would ultimately prove costly but, in posting 14 attempts at goal — no fewer than nine of which were saved by Kasper Schmeichel — they gave weight to manager Gray’s regularly stated belief that his team would eventually come good.
Had Bushiri not come to the rescue on what felt like a potential tipping point in the game against Aberdeen, we may never know just how close Gray was to becoming the latest victim of the Hibs’ managerial merry-go-round.
The 36-year-old club legend had been given the dreaded vote of confidence two weeks earlier after a 2-1 defeat at home to St Mirren, which saw many fans reluctantly reach the conclusion that their 2016 Scottish Cup-winning idol’s time in the technical area was up.
A painful 4-1 drubbing at Dens Park in the first match after he received the board’s backing hardly suggested Gray was going to justify their faith. Even at those lowest points, though, the manner in which he addressed the situation was impressive.
Gray never shirked his responsibility for the perilous position in which Hibs found themselves. He spoke in measured tones of his confidence in his own ability, and in the ability of his players, to extricate the team from their predicament.
His approach has been spectacularly vindicated, as has the patience shown towards him by the Easter Road powerbrokers during an equally turbulent period off the pitch.
Stability has been in short supply at Hibs in recent years, but there are signs that may be changing.
The departure of Ben Kensell as chief executive in January was generally viewed with approval by The supporters, who had come to regard the former Norwich City man as a major source of the club’s problems.
In less than four years in the job, Kensell oversaw the dismissals of four Hibs managers in Jack Ross, Shaun Maloney, Lee Johnson and Nick Montgomery.
Gray hails Bushiri, with the defender having provided the goal that sparked a turnaround in Hibs’ season
His exit came just two weeks before the club’s latest annual accounts revealed an eye-watering loss of £7.2million, which included the costly severance packages of Johnson and Montgomery.
Executive director Ian Gordon, son of former club owner Ron, who died in 2023, stated at last month’s annual general meeting that his family will absorb the deficit — with Hibs entering a new era mapped out by Bournemouth owner Bill Foley’s Black Knight group, who paid £6m for a 25-per-cent stake last year.
Having previously accused Hibs of ‘not listening’ to Black Knight’s input, it is clear that Foley and his colleagues are now having a far greater say in the club’s strategy.
Garvan Stewart moved from Bournemouth to Easter Road in December to take up the role of head of recruitment, working alongside sporting director Malky Mackay, who has spoken of the need to provide Gray with a more ‘balanced’ playing squad.
It was notable that Hibs restricted their business in the January transfer window to the solitary signing of Gambian midfielder Alasana Manneh from Danish club Odense.
For Gray, it was another illustration of his trust in the players already at his disposal and their potential to prove that the difficulties experienced in the first half of the season were not a true indication of their abilities.
A change in formation has helped underpin their unbeaten run and cut out the basic defensive errors which were so damaging in the initial months of the campaign.
Switching to three at the back has paid dividends, with Bushiri becoming increasingly influential as the central pillar between Warren O’Hora and Jack Iredale.
So, too, has Gray’s decision to replace the erratic Josef Bursik with Jordan Smith, who has looked a much more reliable goalkeeper.
The absence of club captain Joe Newell with a groin injury since December has not been as much of a blow as many would have anticipated. The central midfield role has been admirably filled by Nectarios Triantis. The Australian, on loan from Sunderland, has become one of Gray’s most effective performers.
Hibs have also become more potent in the attacking third of the pitch, drawing a blank only once in those last 15 matches when they drew 0-0 at St Mirren last month.
The Cadden twins, Chris and Nicky, provide pace and width on either flank. Nicky’s form has been especially eye-catching and makes talk surrounding a potential Scotland call-up less than fanciful.
Gray takes training ahead of Hibernian’s visit to Celtic Park in the Scottish Cup quarter-finals
Josh Campbell is thriving in a more advanced role, operating just behind the strikers, as he showed in some style with his double in the superb 2-1 home win over Celtic two weeks ago.
With Kieron Bowie now back in action after being sidelined since September with a hamstring injury, Gray has the opportunity to show why Hibs were prepared to shell out a hefty fee of around £600,000 to sign the 22-year-old from Fulham last summer.
The early signs are that Bowie could form a profitable partnership up front with Martin Boyle, another player who has recaptured his optimum form over the past three months.
Boyle scored his 13th goal of the season in last Sunday’s 2-1 win over Hearts at Easter Road, an occasion and performance which perfectly summed up the positivity Gray has engendered at the club.
The post-match celebrations and emotional rendition of Sunshine On Leith showed a powerful sense of unity between players and fans which was in the starkest possible contrast to the discord and dismay of last autumn.
Logic and the bookies’ odds suggest that Hibs’ unbeaten run will come to an end at Celtic Park as they face the Treble-chasing holders in an intriguing Scottish Cup quarter-final today.
Yet it is to Gray’s great credit that a win for his team would now be regarded as a mild surprise, rather than a major shock.
Regardless of the outcome, the rise of Hibs under Gray has been one of the stand-out stories of the Scottish season.
