Steve Kean insists Hibs kids are on verge of top team breakthrough as he plots Euro progress

Steve Kean looks at two players named in Steve Clarke’s Scotland squad yesterday and holds them up as perfect examples for the Hibs youngsters currently under his charge.

Easter Road favourite Ryan Porteous and Norwich City skipper Grant Hanley. The former is the most recent proof that the pathway from Hibs academy to Scotland honours really does exist. And the latter remains the best example he has ever known of what he reckons is the dying art of defending. Hibs Academy Director Kean is in Norway with his U19 side for this afternoon’s first leg of their UEFA Youth League first round clash with Molde.

And he is serious when he says a number of his squad are on the verge of breaking through to Lee Johnson’s first team and taking the next step on a dream career just like Porteous five years ago. Kean said: “You've got Ryan and you've got Josh Campbell who, not too long ago were Hibs academy players.

"Then there's Lewis Stevenson and Paul Hanlon who were academy players a long time ago! Certainly in Ryan and Josh we see two players who were playing in youth tournaments not that long ago so a great example for Jacob Blaney and Kanayo Megwa as centre-backs.

"Then there's Owen Hastie who can look at Josh sometimes playing out of position at full-back. These first-team players who have come through our system are great role models for us pushing the academy players to get up and alongside them in the senior squad."

It was Kean who made Grant Hanley a Premier League player at Blackburn almost 12 years ago, throwing the then raw 19-year-old in for a run of games that saw him become an ever-present at Ewood Park and captain by the age of 23.

And he said: "Grant's had a great career and he's someone I mention whenever I'm