Hibernian head coach David Gray spoke to the media ahead of the Scottish Premiership home game with St Johnstone - here's all he had to say

Kieron Bowie - how is he?

“It’s a really frustrating one from our point of view - he’s damaged that hamstring again so it’s looking like he’s going to be out for a significant period.

“It’s really tough to take at this stage, considering how positive a start he’s made. We made a conscious decision at the start of the season to manage his minutes and it’s a difficult one for everyone, especially for him, and we need to make sure he’s okay.”

Is there any grievance from the club’s perspective, that he started both games for Scotland Under-21s?

“Before he went, there was dialogue between us and Scotland to manage his minutes and to look after him. That happened and I think the reality of the situation is that there was a natural progression for him to go and start. He came off the bench a few times for us, so he was due to get a start and we thought it was the right thing for him to do. But you can’t predict what’s going to happen in the future, which is part of the reason it’s so frustrating for everyone.”

What type of hamstring injury is it?

"We need to wait to see the full extent of it but it’s looking like a longer-term thing. It will be months rather than weeks, that’s for sure. He’s gutted, disappointed for obvious reasons.

"He’s worked so hard to get fit from last season, missing a bit of pre-season at the start. We were very conscious of that in managing his minutes.

"The temptation to play him more has certainly been there. Everyone who supports the club has seen how well he’s done coming on and affecting games. This will make it even harder for him, because he’s got that attitude where he just wants to play and press, work every day to be the best he can. It’s really important for us all to rally round him and make sure that he comes back feeling as good and strong as he can, as soon as he can.

Will he need an operation?

"We’ll need to get some more advice on that one because he’s injured his hamstring before. We’ll always do what we think is the best thing for him. And we’ll do everything we possibly can to get the right advice, the right treatment – and get him back as safely and quickly as possible.

Is it especially tough psychologically when he’s come through it twice already?

“Yes. As a player, it’s the last thing you want. I’ve been there when you’re working hard in the gym, trying to get yourself back from a long-term injury, it breaks down or you have a set-back. All these players want to do is play football. They work hard to play games. So it makes it even more frustrating.

“But the one conversation I did have with Kieron, in which he was positive - as much as he can be - was about only worrying about the things you can affect. He knows you can’t worry about the things you can’t affect, so there’s no point trying to second-guess it.

“Hindsight is a wonderful thing. But we need to move his focus forward and get him back as quickly as we can. Do everything we possibly can, make sure he sees the right people, gets the right advice. I’m certain we’ll give him all the treatment all he needs her to come back stronger. And I’m sure he will come back stronger because of his attitude."

Have you got the squad to cope with his absence?

"I do feel the squad is strong enough to cope, you don’t want to lose any player but if everyone is fully fit I’ve got a lot of decisions to make, and difficult ones. There is certainly competition for places across everywhere in the squad now, which is great.

"That is something I am grateful for, the support I’ve had from the club. I am really happy with where we are and where we can take this club this season."

Did Bowie's injury play a part in bringing Dwight Gayle in?

“No, but I can understand why people might think that. Dwight is someone we’ve been monitoring and a move we’ve been looking at for a while now - I actually think it got leaked a wee while ago - but he has quality and experience and I know a few players who’ve played with him who speak so highly of him as well.

“He showed an interest in coming to Scotland and we were delighted to get it done because of what he’s going to add. We’ve seen it already in one training session but also in the way he is around the place, which is a real positive for us.”

Kieron’s injury aside, you must be pretty excited about your forward options?

“Yes, delighted. It’s something we worked really hard on - that strength and depth. I’ve been talking for several weeks now about competition for places and we’ve certainly got that now.

“It’s a good headache for me to have - if everyone is fully fit and flying, when I’m selecting my strongest XI, I have a real problem in knowing who to choose.

“We’ve already seen that in training with players coming back like Junior Hoilett and Élie Youan adding to the quality that’s already there. I’m really looking forward to the weekend.”

Are Élie and Junior both in contention?

“They are both fit and have trained all week. They’re at that stage where their rehab is done and they’ve been back on the grass with us for a couple of weeks now. They’re in contention for sure.”

How’s Lewis Miller?

“Lewis has flown all the way around the world. He picked up a knock during the Kilmarnock game but Millsy being Millsy just soldiered on - he’s always underapproached sstuff at times because he’s desperate to play. He’s just that type of boy, which is great to have - at times.

“Over in Australia his knee went up a little bit. He was obviously on the bench for the second game but he’s come back, he is available for selection, and he got through training fine on Friday. We just have to see if there’s any reaction to the training.”

How’s the rest of the squad looking? 

“I think we’re all good. The boys are doing well. The break came at a good time for some - those who have played a lot of minutes - but for those who needed minutes, we managed to get some work in together and the squad was a little bit at different levels of fitness after pre-season depending on where they had been and how much game time they had had.

“The break was a really good opportunity for us to work together and I’ve really enjoyed working with the boys and watching them playing together for the last week or ten days.”

Does this feel almost like a fresh start?

“I don’t know about fresh start but it’s easy to forget that we’re still very early in the season. The early results haven’t gone the way we would have wanted but there has been improvement in every game for different reasons.

“There are things we know we need to work on, and we’ve worked hard at that, but there are a lot of positives to take from the games so far and the break came at a good time for us to allow players to get stronger and fitter and I’m really looking forward to the games that lie ahead.”

Can Dwight Gayle offer something different?

“Yeah, I think so. When you look at the whole squad, competition for places is everywhere, and they’re all different for different reasons. When you look at the qualities Dwight’s got – a penalty box striker who’s scored goals at the very highest level, and his experience too.

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“You’ve got Kieron and Mykola Kukharevych in that number nine position who are younger, and naturally sometimes being younger there’s a little bit of inconsistency. They can learn off guys like Dwight and him pushing for a start in the team. Again, it adds really healthy competition and a variation in the way we can play, which I’ve touched on loads of times, needing to be flexible and having different ways of working. You need to have a plan A and plan B."

Do you have to be careful with Junior Hoilett and Élie Youan?

"They’ve had minutes in a bounce game last week, which was great. They’ve trained now for a right few weeks and we’ll just see how they go. We’ve been monitoring them all the time but they’re in a really good place at the moment, chomping at the bit and desperate to play.

"It’s more a case of managing that as best we can to make sure they’re as fit and strong as they can be, ready to play when called upon and can perform at the level. They’ll also provide really competition."

Élie has had a lot to deal with - transfer speculation, injury and the racial abuse on social media - have you been looking out for him?

"100 per cent, for all those reasons. Dealing with things off the pitch, the club have made it very clear and aware that it’s unacceptable and we’re always there to support all our players - Élie, especially, going through that difficult period.

"I’ve had numerous chats with him about it, and just life in general because there’s always been that speculation about him maybe moving on as well which he’s had to deal with. From how he played last season, he had a little bit of an injury at the end, trying to focus on what he wants to do and how he wants to get there.

"But he also just loves playing football, so that’s something that I can’t fault. I can’t his effort and desire to be the best he can be. You see that during his rehab, he was back earlier than expected because of how good he is professionally.

"He’s in a good place at the moment, he’s feeling good about himself. He’s enjoying training and is desperate to get back on the pitch. We just need to make sure we’re doing that at the right time."