Paul Heckingbottom insists the mouth-watering finale to Hibernian’s campaign will be the litmus test for his players after securing top-six football in the Ladbrokes Premiership.
A hard-fought 0-0 stalemate against Kilmarnock extended Hibs’ unbeaten streak in the league since the Englishman’s arrival, racking up five victories and two draws.
And, allied with Saturday’s highly-anticipated Edinburgh derby, Heckingbottom cannot wait to see what his side are made of in the coming weeks.
He said: “I’m delighted to get top six. The players deserve a massive pat on the back. Five wins and two draws is great and we want build on that now – put it in the bank and move forward.
“The games get harder now and that’s what I want. If we had not got top six, then I wouldn’t have found out too much about the players. From a development point and getting better, I wanted to play the top teams again. Then I’ll know more about them.
“We’ve got Hearts twice, then every other game will be against a top side. That’s what I want. Next year, we want to be competing against those sides – so let’s see where we are now. Form suggests we’re right up with them, but let’s see.”
Heckingbottom added: “It was a really good save from Ofir. That was a moment when I feared the worst. And it was a save, it didn’t just hit him – he got a strong hand up and made the block. Those moments get you points.”
“We dominated most of the game and on a different night we would have scored a few goals,” Dyer said.
“Our final ball sometimes let us down but, overall, we’re happy with the draw.”
