Hibernian captain Joe Newell played his 200th game for the club last weekend - but insists he's largely ignoring his milestone to focus on helping drag Hibs up the Scottish Premiership table from their current position propping up the rest of the division. 

A signing under Paul Heckingbottom in the summer of 2019, the former Peterborough United and Rotherham midfielder endured a difficult start to his time in Edinburgh but has turned things around to the extent that he was named club captain by David Gray during the summer. 

"I've not really thought about the 200 games. It's not really a time for me to think about personal milestones and stuff at all," he said, previewing the visit of St Mirren on Saturday. 

"I'm not just saying that; I genuinely haven't thought about it once. I got given a shirt with 200 on the back and it's still in my locker. I've not even taken it home yet. I've not had time to reflect on it yet. I probably will do, hopefully, in the near future, but at the minute it's all about the team and getting out of the situation we're in."

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The 'situation' he speaks of comprises a winless run stretching back to mid-September, a lack of goals scored, and a worrying propensity for conceding late on in games from winning positions. Even improved overall performances have not brought with them a change in results.

"Lots of things contribute and there are lots of different factors," he says thoughtfully, when asked for his take on what's gone wrong. 

"The late goals and the way we're finishing games is at the forefront of our minds. We're not killing games off or scoring enough and then we're conceding late on. That's the biggest problem. We are working really hard on it.

"I think the last couple of games have been an improvement. The Hearts game was obviously a killer for all of us, but then we went away to Ross County and felt we should have got more from the game. We weren't clinical enough, but we didn't concede. Then the game at the weekend was probably the best performance in a while. If it wasn't for, in my opinion, a wrong VAR call, then we might have come out 1-0 winners and could start looking up.

"When things are going against you, you can have that kind of mentality where you think the chips are down, but we've just got to keep doing what we're doing and believe in ourselves, which we do," he adds.

Newell has been at Hibs for long enough to experience numerous ups and downs and while he admits that the unfortunate habit of conceding late goals causes the jitters to set in once the clock ticks past the 80-minute mark, he believes it's only natural because of the situation in which the club finds itself - and he has backed the team to worm their way out of the scenario.

"I'd be lying if I said there wasn't a fear of sorts," he says. "But everyone is so desperate to get out of it. The last couple of games, I think we have dealt with it a lot better, but it's not just as simple as that. We need to be scoring more and we need to be more clinical to ease that pressure if it does come. But, I've got so much faith in the group and the team. I firmly believe that we'll be sitting here in a couple of months' time looking back and thinking, 'Well, that was a terrible start'."

And what of David Gray? Captain and starting right-back when Newell joined, he turned coach, interim manager, and finally permanent head coach. 

"He knew exactly what he was getting into, I think, coming into management. It's not easy. It's his first job and he'll never sit in front of the media and not take all the responsibility himself," Newell explains.

"He will always be honest and, in his mind, truthful and he'll never shy away from it. But as the captain, as a group of players I think we have to do so much more for him. He deserves so much more than what he's getting, in terms of results. We've got a group of players who should be a lot better than where we are and we're not doing enough for him at the minute.

"He sets us up right. The last game, for example: really good performance, tactically really good; probably just not clinical enough in the final third. Bar a late call, we should have had three points. Other instances throughout the season - red cards; he can't do anything about me lunging in with five minutes to go when we're 2-1 up. The red card for Nectar Triantis, last-minute penalties - these are all things out of his control. So of course, I feel for him and we all do. We're all desperate to turn it round for him."

With Newell stepping into the very shoes occupied by Gray not that long ago, he is naturally taking on more of a leadership role in the dressing room - even if that was very much his approach anyway. With a squad comprising seasoned professionals like Dwight Gayle and Junior Hoilett, long-serving Hibees such as Newell himself, Martin Boyle, and Chris Cadden, and a clutch of younger players, it's an eclectic mix - but a good one, according to the skipper. 

"We've got a good blend, we talk a lot. We have meetings; open discussions and stuff about various things. The characters, the desire and enthusiasm to improve, the dedication, that's all there. I've been in dressing rooms before where you can see players have just checked out. That's not this group at all. That's another reason why I'm firmly confident that we'll improve from where we are," he continues. 

"There are probably a lot more conversations, especially with the younger lads who have come through and maybe not experienced something like this before, or the boys who have come up from England. We all had such high expectations coming into the season and we're nowhere near where we want to be.

"It's just about getting around everyone and making sure everyone knows that I'm there for them, if they do want to speak about anything. There's not a lot that needs to change, in my opinion, for us to start picking up points. We believe in what we're doing, we believe in the manager, we believe in the style. We won't drop our standards and we're maintaining that belief and enthusiasm.

"If, for example, I'm telling Chris Cadden that he's got to improve, and then I turn around and Junior's telling me I've got to do something, it means all three of us care. The moment that stops is when it's a worry."