NEIL Lennon insists that David Gray has earned a richly-merited rest after the Hibs captain ignored an injury to help out his team.
The 29-year-old has endured a stop-start campaign as he battles a persistent knee complaint, with Lennon conceding that his recent use of the full-back in the absence of Steven Whittaker has been ‘not fair’.
Gray was withdrawn after 65 minutes Hibs’ 2-1 defeat against St Johnstone 12 days ago, while his outing previous to that against Dundee saw him replaced at the interval.
However, Lennon left him out of the squad to face Hamilton at the weekend as Whittaker returned to the fold.
Lennon said: “David has had a problem with his knee for a few weeks now, there’s a degeneration there.
“He’s had a scan so he needs a bit of rest and there’s a lot of inflammation in there. He’s been strapping it up and playing through it, which has not been fair on him.
“But with Steven [Whittaker] back fit it’s probably a good time to give David a bit of a break.
“We’re going on the medical advice, and that suggests it shouldn’t be too long and we’ll get him back on the training ground fresh.”
Meanwhile, Lennon hopes to be able to call upon mercurial playmaker Danny Swanson for the mouth-watering festive fixtures in December, which include encounters against Rangers, Celtic, Aberdeen and Hearts.
The 30-year old has made just one appearance for the Easter Road outfit since September 19 as he battles a persistent medial ligament issue in his knee.
It is an injury Swanson has endured in the past and Lennon is loathe to rush the player back.
Lennon added: “Danny has had a couple of setbacks with his medial ligament and we have not seen much of him during the week on the training ground in terms of rehab. He’s just a little bit ginger on it at the moment.
“I would like him back for the games in December, I’m sure we’ll see him in the next week or so.”
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