David Gray Prepares for Hibs' Cup Challenge Against Ross County

David Gray is not wasting energy on the noise swirling around Hibernian’s stuttering start. He has something far more tangible in front of him: a first semi-final as head coach.

Beat Ross County in Dingwall on Saturday and Hibs are in the last four of the Premier Sports Cup. It would be a badly needed step forward in a season that has already veered off course.

Two straight Premiership defeats to Heart of Midlothian and St Johnstone have sharpened the glare on Gray. So did the failure to take what he knows was a golden chance to reach the Conference League. Third season in the job, expectations higher, patience thinner. The scrutiny has arrived early.

Gray, though, sounds unmoved.

"That's the life of a football manager," he said. "You're judged on results and that doesn't change. If I'd won three or four games in a row, I'd still put pressure on myself to be better every day.

"If you think you've completed it and stand still, football has a way of changing very quickly, both in a positive way and a negative way."

He has lived that swing before. At the start of his managerial career, the Easter Road board stood by him despite just one win in his first 15 league games. That period, he is quick to stress, came in a very different landscape.

"Malky [Mackay, sporting director] was also just in the door in terms of the structure and the transitional period that the club was in at that time," Gray said.

Now the club is more settled. The structure is in place, the recruitment lines are clearer, and with that comes a harsher spotlight.

"Would I have expected [criticism] to come on quicker now because we're a bit more settled and we've had time to do things? Naturally. I'm not averse to criticism, I'm not shying away from it.

"I'm certainly not put off by it in terms of feeling sorry for myself. If anything, it's the opposite."

The challenge in front of him is framed in simple terms. Hibs have not reached a semi-final since November 2023, when they lost to Aberdeen in this same competition and Gray was still part of Nick Montgomery’s backroom staff. Now the responsibility is his.

"When we spoke about challenges and objectives at the start of the season, getting to Hampden was right at the very top of the list," he said.

So the external debate – about style, about progress, about whether this Hibs team is moving anywhere fast – gets parked for one afternoon.

"If I allow the noise to affect what we're doing or distract me in any way then you just go under in that situation.

"I've been through adversity before and the focus is simply that we need to make sure we win.

"The form and everything else doesn't matter this weekend. It's about making sure everyone knows the job in hand, which is a real chance to get to Hampden."

Standing in the way is a Ross County side that might be in League 1 but are behaving nothing like a lower-league soft touch. They are unbeaten, they have stayed full-time and they have kept a strong core of their squad together. Veteran striker Brian Graham already has nine goals this season, one of them in a home draw with Dundee in the group stage of this competition.

Gray knows exactly what that combination can produce.

"They've stayed full-time and kept their core together," he said of the Highland club, relegated from the Championship. "It wouldn't surprise me if they found themselves back in the Premiership again with the infrastructure, players and management team they've got.

"They've started the season really well, they're used to winning games and they'll be playing with confidence. That adds to the challenge we've got."

A manager under pressure. A club desperate for a cup run. An opponent on a high and nothing to lose.

For Gray and Hibs, Hampden is close enough to see. Now they have to prove they can still find the road.