Top line summary

  • Vented anger at half-time, but thought second-half was better.
  • Less subs than Forfar shows how stretched squad is.
  • Missed out on a defender after player has last-minute change of circumstance.
  • Won't see any of the Josh Doig sell-on money this month.

Nick Montgomery spoke to the media after Hibs' 1-0 Scottish Cup fourth round win at Forfar. Here's everything the manager had to say...

What did you make of the 90 minutes?

“It wasn’t pretty, a typical cup game. These games are not easy. We came here and made it really difficult for ourselves in the first half.  We didn’t deal with set pieces, gave away silly free-kicks – and you know that’s a big part of their game, a big strength, putting balls in the box and getting first contact. We didn’t deal with that.  Then we miss a penalty and give them another lift. So I said to the boys at half-time that we needed to be better at defending, stop making silly decisions, giving free-kicks away. I thought we were much better in the second half and, apart from the goal, had another couple of chances.  Fair play to them, they put up a good fight and these games are never easy. So I’m happy to get through to the next round, get the boys dusted down and get as many of them as we can ready for Rangers on Wednesday. 

Only six subs on bench, which was less than Forfar...

“I think it shows how stretched as we are at the minute. There is no-one else available. Kanayo Megwa came back from loan but is cup-tied. Myziane Maolida will hopefully have his paperwork through, so that gives us another couple of bodies.  But when I look back on the game now, it’s always a risk playing your strongest XI. So I wanted to give a rest to Jordan Obita, Dylan Levitt and Dylan Vente, because right now we are really stretched. 

"We had academy kids starting today, Rudi Molotnikov getting his first start and Rory Whittaker getting another start. These are the games that turn you into men, because it’s not easy to deal with a lot of aerial balls, a lot of direct balls.  We’re still waiting on a couple of boys to come back from injury. We’ve still got guys away on international duty. We can’t control that.  We are looking at bringing players in to give us options on the bench. But having the academy players involved today gives them a great experience.” 

Did Christian Doidge prove what he can bring?

“I’m really happy for Doidgey to get the goal and to get into the next round because you see some of the other results, every country these games a difficult and all the pressure is on us. Doidge is good in the box, we know that. He’s had a tough season with the eye injury then the groin injury but he’s always a threat in the box. He times his jumps well and that was the perfect Doidgey goal from a good ball from Jair. What we didn’t need today was extra time. I think myself and David Gray would have had to pull the boots on because we are really struggling for numbers at the minute! I’m happy to get away with a clean sheet, not a pretty performance. The first half was nowhere near good enough. But the second half we were more than good enough to win.

Were you angry at half-time?

“I’m glad you weren’t standing outside the dressing room at half-time. A couple of weeks off and we did a lot of training but nothing can prepare you for coming here and dealing with those aerial balls. You have to get first contact and too many we didn’t. We made it difficult for ourselves but the boys responded second half and I told them afterwards we have to start better.”

Will you see any of the Josh Doig sell-on money this month?

“I wish it was that simple. Maybe the transfer’s done but there’s still a few weeks left and a lot going on at the club. I knew this window was going to be tight. I don’t think any of that money will be in the budget. We have to be creative like we have done with a player of Myziane’s quality. I’m really happy to get him into the squad, and we’re desperately looking at a few more re-enforcements in, but it’s very, very difficult on the budget that we’re working with.

READ MORE: Hibs instant analysis as Doidge header decides Forfar slog

"I’ve said it many times, I won’t bring in players who aren’t going to have an instant impact. What I need is players to have an instant impact on the team, creating competition for places. If not, they’re just going to sit on the bench and block the path for young players. It’s a balancing act. The first signing is an exciting one. Myself and Brian McDermott are on the phone every single day. We were really close to a defender last week, then all of a sudden his circumstances change at his club and he wasn’t available the next day. It’s a day-by-day thing that we have to monitor. We’ve got a couple of weeks and we’re working really hard to find the right re-enforcements for the second half of the season. We need players.

How frustrating is January as a manager?

“It is frustrating. It’s a difficult time, unless you’re getting a player that’s been out on-loan and been recalled, it’s the only way of getting players who have been playing games. In January, it’s very difficult to bring in players who have been playing. It’s players who haven’t been playing, been injured, or players you have to pay a fee for because they’re out of contract at the end of the season. Look, it’s frustrating but it’s easy for me to say that. I probably wouldn’t be saying it if we didn’t have four boys away on international duty and five long-term injuries still not fit. We’ve got to hope we’ll get a few of them back in the next few weeks. We’ve got to keep going with what we’ve got and do as well as we can.”