DON'T CROSS TO THE DARK SLIDE

It's crucial Gray's side now kickstart campaign

- TAM McMANUS

DAVID GRAY has thrown down the gauntlet.

Now it’s time for the players to seize it and get this season really moving.

It’s been a weird start to the campaign, no doubt.

But it's time to put it all aside, reset and start charging forward again to keep momentum building at Easter Road.

It's not easy to unpack the opening couple of months.

The excitement of the European adventure took care of the first month and, without question, there were highs in there.

The away performances in particular, really stood out, and they came so close to reaching the group stages in Warsaw.

I suppose with the tough stretch of games, the juggling of resources and mental and physical ups and downs, you could maybe have expected a slight downturn after the first international break.

However, you cannot deny it was a sore period. Hibs didn't win a game in five and there were hammer blows in there.

Naturally, the derby springs to mind and the manner of the defeat with the loss of a goal in injury time still stings.

Perhaps even more disappointing was the exit from the Premier Sports Cup to Rangers. They were in total turmoil when Gray's boys went to Ibrox and, with Celtic struggling and Hearts already out of the competition, that was a huge chance of silverware.

It wasn't just the defeat. It was a weak display and Hibs couldn't complain about going out.