Martin Boyle hoping for Hibs impact in Europa Conference League salvage mission as 'cheerleader' role falls flat

Martin Boyle is ready to help dig Hibs out of a hole in Europe after enjoying his welcome trip to the seaside.

The Easter Road talisman finally made it back on to the pitch in the 3-0 friendly defeat against Blackpool after nine agonising months out. Boyle, 30, suffered a knee injury in October and he eventually needed surgery to repair historic damage to his cruciate ligament.

That kept him out of the World Cup with Australia and the rest of the domestic season. And he was restricted to just a “cheerleader” role from the subs bench on Thursday as Hibs kicked off their Europa Conference League campaign with an embarrassing defeat in Andorra. Boyle thought boss Lee Johnson might have been tempted to throw him into the action late on in the hapless 2-1 loss to minnows Inter Club d’Escaldes. But while it didn’t work out that way, he made a first-half outing at Bloomfield Road and is hoping he finally gets the nod for his competitive comeback in Thursday’s crucial second leg in the capital.

He said: “It felt really good to get the confidence and adrenalin going and just to get that general buzz again. It’s been a long time out but it was nice to play my part and important to get minutes.

“The physios will hate me. I’ve been a bit impatient and, like the gaffer has said, I am champing at the bit to play. But it was just a nice feeling to get minutes at Blackpool. Hopefully I can get more and keep getting stronger and push to get myself back in the team.

“Thursday was difficult. It wasn’t nice to see. The performance wasn’t the best but the goal at the end [from Joe Newell] was crucial.

“We’ve got a second leg to prepare for but when you’re sitting on the bench – in my eyes I was fit to play – and the manager doesn’t want to