Alan Stubbs, the Hibernian head coach, has responded to Leeann Dempster's plea for patience from the club's more vociferous supporters by insisting that he is big enough to take any criticism heading his way.

Dempster, the Edinburgh club's chief executive, described the "constant criticism" of the team from some supporters as "counter productive and demotivating" as Hibs aim to rebuild following relegation to the SPFL Championship.

Results on the pitch have done little to assuage some fans' discontent, with Hibs toiling in fifth place in the league table after the first round of fixtures, while city rivals Hearts stride clear at the summit. However, Stubbs dismissed the notion that - after two decades working in the game - he would be cowed by denunciation from the stands.

"I can see why Leeann said that and you can't criticise someone for being honest," said the 43-year-old, who expects to hear over the weekend whether or not Paul Quinn will accept the offer of a contract at Hibs. "It is an opinion and you can't criticise someone for having an opinion. We could have won eight games and lost one. There would still be someone saying something about the game we lost, that's the world we are in.

"You can't please everybody, but as long as we believe that what we are doing is right then we are on the right lines. I had 20 years in football at the top level and I got criticised so what's a couple of comments? How's that going to effect me?

"That's the job I'm in and if that means me taking the criticism away from the players then I will do it every minute, every hour, every day of the week; I'm not going to run away from it. I'm not going to run away from anything."

Stubbs has assured supporters that Hibs are on the road to recovery despite trailing a full 14 points behind city rivals Hearts and three adrift of Raith Rovers, who occupy the final play-off position. Hibs visit Livingston tomorrow and will seek to claim their first league win since defeating Rangers at Ibrox on September 29.

"I think we're very very close [to a winning run]," said Stubbs. "I don't know of a club in the world that doesn't encounter difficult situations from time to time, but it's what you do about it. If anything, you can become stronger. That is what I emphasise to the players. People can say what they want about us but we, as a group, will become stronger.

"You cannot affect people's perception about what you are trying to do. They will say what they want to say. But sometimes that is not a fair reflection of what is going on. As long as I have that belief and the players share my enthusiasm, then I know I'm doing the right thing. I know what I want to do, I know what I want to achieve. Absolutely nothing will derail me."

Livingston occupy a much lower position in the league table but have ensured that they are in far higher spirits than Hibs. The West Lothian club have secured a place in the final of the Petrofac Training Cup this season following a dramatic penalty shoot-out victory against Stranraer last weekend, with Calum Fordyce now urging his side to transfer that feel-good factor into their league campaign. The defender is part of a Livingston side which is eighth in the league but he hopes their fortunes will turn around tomorrow.

"We feel we're better than our current position suggests, we've been unlucky in a few games when we've dominated matches but it's been things like last-minute goals," said Fordyce. "We want to take that feel-good factor from the cup final and take it into the league, everyone is buzzing and it's a good changing room."