HANLEY SOUGHT ADVICE OF HARD-TO-PLEASE PAL

SCOTLAND defender Grant Hanley revealed how an endorsement from his “miserable” former Newcastle team-mate Dwight Gayle convinced him to join Hibs.

- By Blair Esson

The 33-year-old made his debut in Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Kilmarnock after joining on a two-year deal last week.

Before opting to leave English football for the first time in his professional career, Dumfries-born Hanley sought advice from others, including former Hibs and Scotland keeper David Marshall and ex-Magpies striker Gayle, right, who retired this summer at the end of a fruitful campaign at Easter Road.

“I’ve known lads who have played here over the last year or two so I reached out to them when I knew this could be an option and from their point of view, having this opportunity was a no-brainer,” he said.

“I played with Marsh with Scotland for a number of years and I’ve kept in touch with Dwight since we played together at Newcastle. There were others I spoke to as well.