Shaun Maloney vows to keep working hard as he tries to shape Hibernian team

Shaun Maloney explained that it is likely to take some time to get his Hibernian side to the level he wants, but he will keep striving to get the team into the top four this term.

Maloney took over from Jack Ross in December when Hibs were seventh in the cinch Premiership and he has since managed to lift them above Aberdeen and Dundee United into fifth place.

However, underwhelming recent form – including home defeats against Livingston and St Mirren – has sparked some negativity among supporters. Maloney pointed out that Hibs, who recently sold talisman Martin Boyle, are in transition and that setbacks along the way are inevitable.

“I think the supporters were reasonably supportive against St Mirren because they could see the performance was good,” he said.

“But I understand the dynamics as well that if we don’t win, they’re not happy. We’re working extremely hard to try to change parts of the performance into wins.

“I said when we took over that there would be wins and losses. I knew where the club was at. There was a reason we were seventh so we’ve got a lot of work to do. We’re still there pushing for fourth and we’re going to push for fourth until the last day, and we’re still in a cup competition.

“I knew what I was taking over but I’m working extremely hard to make sure we’re in a far better position come the end of the season and going into next season.

“It’s not been that settled in terms of having the transfer window and some injuries but my job is to find answers to these things. I think we’re still really early in the process but I also understand that even in the short term we want to win games.

“If we don’t win home games our supporters don’t go home happy so I understand their unhappiness when they leave a