David Gray Faces Huge Game as Hibs Take on Ross County

David Gray faces a “huge game” on Saturday as Hibernian head to Ross County in the Premier Sports Cup, according to former Easter Road favourite Scott Allan.

For Allan, there is no dressing this one up.

“There’s no other way to look at it from a Hibs perspective,” he told the BBC Scotland Football Podcast, with his old club just 90 minutes from a semi-final place but under growing scrutiny after a bruising few weeks.

Hibs have stumbled badly. Back-to-back Premiership defeats to Hearts and St Johnstone have checked their early momentum, and the late collapse at home to Gent that dumped them out of the Conference League still lingers over the squad.

That European exit has sharpened the focus on domestic cups.

“There’s a lot riding on the cups, with Hibs having been disappointing in the last two years,” said Allan, who enjoyed three separate spells at Easter Road and knows exactly what expectation feels like in Leith.

The problem for Gray is that Ross County arrive in form and full of belief. County are unbeaten in League One and carry a genuine threat in 38-year-old former Hibs striker Brian Graham, who has already hit nine goals in all competitions.

“It will be difficult against a team that is winning games, with a striker that is scoring goals,” Allan warned. “They have a strong squad for a club in League One.”

The warning is clear, but so is his faith.

“I think it could be tricky, but I still believe Hibs will have enough to get through the tie,” he said. “There is some real quality in the team. Whether they are getting the best out of them at the moment is another question.”

For Gray, that question now meets its answer in Dingwall.