David Gray says Jack Iredale is ready to start competing for a place in his Hibs XI.

The Australian defender was a deadline day addition from Bolton Wanderers, but despite twice making the matchday squad against Rangers and Motherwell, is yet to feature in green and white. That's left Iredale 'jumping about' for a chance to impress, and Gray expects he'll provide further competition moving forward.

The 28-year-old, formerly of Greenock Morton, Carlisle United and Cambridge United, can operate at left-back and centre-back, bringing a wealth of experience from the English Football League, in particular. Gray says Iredale is a 'real good character' who has added to the group, even if he hasn't yet set foot on the pitch.

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“Yes [he's ready], he was on the bench obviously at the weekend, he's trained fully all last week as well," said the Hibs head coach. "He's getting stronger every day. He’s a real good character in the group as well, which is great. He's jumping about to try and get into the team and that's the focus for him.

“There's competition for places everywhere; him joining the squad now gives us competition everywhere. If I called upon him, he's ready to step in already. I’ve seen that with how he's trained. The priority now is just to try and keep him going and get him as fit as he can be.”