Ross Chisholm, the Hibernian midfielder, hopes his side's long-awaited victory against Motherwell last weekend will finally spark the club's season into life.
Ross Chisholm, the Hibernian midfielder, hopes his side's long-awaited victory against Motherwell last weekend will finally spark the club's season into life.
The 20-year-old has returned to favour under Mixu Paatelainen in recent weeks, starting the last three games and playing his part in last Saturday's impressive 4-1 defeat of Motherwell.
While Hibs ended a six-match winless run at Fir Park, it was the manner of the triumph that most pleased Chisholm as they finally turned good play into goals.
Basic errors, especially at the back, have been costly for Hibs, but they now sit in fifth place in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League ahead of today's visit to Falkirk.
Chisholm is now keen to spoil Russell Latapy Day' with another away win.
He said: "Everything is great inside the club. We spoke with the management about our performances and everyone said don't let our heads go down, because the performances had been good.
"The manager has told us to believe in what we're doing, as everything we're doing is right. So we believed as a team a performance like that at Motherwell could happen, it was just a case of when.
"We knew it was there, within the squad. Hopefully now we can take it into another game and get a wee run of victories."
Chisholm has never scored for Hibs but was at least pleased to see his fellow midfielders, John Rankin and Dean Shiels, netting at Motherwell.
Paatelainen wants more goals from all over the park and Chisholm expects success at Falkirk if the team continue to carve out chances like they did to dismantle Mark McGhee's side.
He added: "The manager spoke in the lead-up to the Motherwell game about midfielders getting goals as well.
"But the goals are always there. Rankin is probably one of the best finishers at the club, Deano Shiels as well gets in there. It takes pressure off the strikers if they score.
"We've been creating chances, we just hadn't been taking them. As long as we keep creating opportunities then we've got strikers and midfielders who will score.
John Hughes, the Falkirk manager, has instructed his players to stifle Hibs' attacking threat.
The Westfield side are set to commemorate Latapy's five years at the club by inducting the 40-year-old into their hall of fame this afternoon, but Hughes is well aware their in-form visitors could ruin the party atmosphere.
Instead, he wants his team to prove they are just as good as their opponents by working hard to prevent Steven Fletcher and Derek Riordan from getting the chances in front of goal on which they thrive.
He said: "Hibs had a great result last week at Motherwell, where you don't often get away teams scoring four goals. That shows the sort of quality they have up front, in Riordan and Fletcher especially.
"But these players are only dangerous if they get the ball and I want us to close Hibs down quickly all over the park and stop the supply. I have every respect for Mixu and what he's achieved at Hibs. They have some very good players.
"But, as I've said before, take away Rangers and Celtic and there's very little between the teams in the SPL.
"We've had some great tussles with Hibs in the past and this game should be the same. We'll have to be at our best but we're the home team and we'll be looking to win the game."
Latapy will receive a guard of honour and a special presentation from the club but, with only four appearances this season, it remains to be seen whether he will play against his old club.
Hughes, though, a former team-mate of Latapy's in his early days in Scottish football with Hibernian, believes his friend merits a special day in his honour.
The former Celtic defender added: "Anything he gets he deserves, he's an absolute legend. I can't say enough about the guy and it's not just about his football, it's the kind of guys he is. He's a wonderful, wonderful guy."
