Stuart Bathgate: Why Neil Lennon is an ideal fit for Hibernian

This time round, as they look forward to what they hope is their third and final attempt to escape the second flight, they need to begin preparations as soon as possible.

Read more: Neil Lennon to give Hibs answer on manager's job today

Stubbs’ appointment was announced on 24 June back in 2014, so if Lennon is named as his successor in the next couple of days it will be little more than a fortnight earlier.

That may not seem much of a difference, but, with a Europa League tie in the offing and pre-season training due to resume before long, it could turn out to be crucial.

It would be a gross exaggeration to say that a speedy appointment is in itself more important than the identity of the man appointed, but timing is certainly crucial.

After effectively coming third in a three-horse race two seasons ago - they finished ahead of Rangers in the league but then lost out to the Ibrox club in the play-offs - and then third again in what was initially perceived as a two-horse race in the season just ended, Hibs are out-and-out favourites to be promoted as champions this time round.

Provided they plan meticulously and leave little or nothing to chance, they should be too strong for their rivals.

Falkirk may take umbrage at such a prediction, having both finished above Hibs and knocked them out of the play-offs last month.

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But Lennon should be able to learn from the mistakes made by his predecessor, and as long he does so, Hibs should quickly build up the kind of momentum that will carry them through to the title.

The circumstances are propitious. The Scottish Cup victory, Stubbs’s final, unforgettable act in charge of the Easter Road club, has provided a massive morale boost, one which could well last throughout the coming season and beyond.

It will also produce a much-needed financial boost through the sales of additional season tickets, at least in part counterbalancing the loss of the parachute payment for clubs relegated from the Premiership.

New signings will be needed, but that should be seen as an opportunity for the new manager rather than as any kind of difficulty.

Provided Lennon is given the money to go out and enhance his squad - and the need to get reassurances on that matter is reportedly the reason agreement has yet to be reached between Hibs and the former Celtic manager - he should be able to avoid a repetition of the flaws and inconsistencies that were so costly in the last campaign.

At times last season Hibs were an apparent contradiction. They were a talented team, one widely seen as a top-six Premiership outfit in waiting, and capable of beating clubs who were in the upper half of the top division.

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Yet they were also too often incapable of beating some of the lesser lights in the Championship, dropping points against the likes of Morton and Alloa, particularly in a dire run of results late in the season that cost them second place.

So were they not really as good as they seemed at times? Yes, they were, when up against opponents who would come out and attack them, thus allowing them to play to their creative strengths. But when faced with sides who concentrated on closing them down, their lack of width too often told against them.

Central midfielders can sometimes win you games, but when you cannot achieve total dominance in the middle of the park you need to have other weapons in your armoury. Hibs were not versatile enough, and if their Plan A did not bring about victory, self-doubt too often crept into their play.

Lennon’s experience at Celtic, both as a player and a manager, makes him ideally placed to address that glaring failure. There were more naturally gifted players in Martin O’Neill’s squad in the early years of the century, but few who could match Lennon’s strength of character. Indeed, that squad was a blend of the richly talented and the more mundanely pragmatic - a mixture that Hibs would do well to try and emulate, even if none of their players can claim to be close in ability to the key members of O’Neill’s team.

Some Hibs supporters have traditionally regarded pragmatism as a dirty word, purporting to prefer a purist approach in which fine football is almost held in higher esteem than winning. But again, the contradiction may only be apparent.

You can be physically superior to your opponents -- both in terms of strength and stamina - while also playing better football. And, in a league like the Championship, there will also be times when playing better football is not enough on its own.

There is still time for everything to go wrong at Easter Road, and that cup win, for all the euphoria it engendered, is not enough to iron out every flaw and wrinkle in Hibs’ make-up. But the building blocks are all in place, and Lennon is the ideal candidate to make best use of them.