It was a proud day at Easter Road for six rising academy talents, who put pen-to-paper on their first professional contracts at Hibs.

Adam Buckley, Luke Davidson, Lewis Gillie, Josh McDonald, Jamie McMurdo, and Ryan Mallon have all taken the next step in their careers by agreeing full-time deals, the club confirmed on Tuesday afternoon. 

Among them, McDonald has already briefly sampled life in the senior setup, scoring as a Hibs XI beat Raith Rovers in Lewis Vaughan's testimonial at Stark's Park earlier this year. They will now continue their development under the watchful eye of academy director Gareth Evans, head of academy coaching Guillaume Beuzelin, and U18s head coach Darren McGregor.

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Evans says each player has put in the hard work to fully earn their contracts and the chance to continue working towards the Hibs first team.

"Signing your first professional contract is a very proud day for any young footballer and one they will remember for the rest of their lives," he told the club website. "Each of these young lads is thoroughly deserving of their new contracts and we are looking forward to watching them progress for the U18s and Hibs Dev Squad over the course of the new season!"

Last year, we sat down with Evans for an exclusive interview on the work being done at the Hibs academy. Hibs Observer subscribers can click HERE to read in full.