He's very much regarded as the joker in the pack, full of mischief and always up for a laugh. But after a year in which he had little to smile about, Martin Boyle is again looking on the brighter side of life.

It’s fair to say things couldn’t have gone much worse for the Hibs player than they did in 2019, his world crashing down about him as a serious knee injury sustained while on international duty with Australia ruled him out of their defence of the Asian Cup and brought his season to a premature end.

Surgery was required but only three games into his comeback he broke down again, a further operation needed, putting him out of action for another three months.

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But now, as he trains with Jack Ross’s squad on the Costa del Sol, the 26-year-old is looking forward to the coming months, not only with the Easter Road club but on the international front with qualification for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar well underway, followed by this summer’s Copa America which is being jointly hosted by Argentina and Colombia.

Given the potential rewards which lie ahead, there’s little wonder the grin is back on his face although he’s the first to admit the hard work which has seen him evolve from someone who was regarded as purely a “flying machine” to a more rounded player, a versatile individual who is proving his worth both at home and abroad.

“It’s been tough,” was his assessment of the first three days in Spain, where he and his team-mates are undergoing twice-daily training sessions.

“As good as the break was it’s good to be back. We can really reflect on what we have done in the first part of the season, talk about it and see what we can achieve in the second part of the season.

“We have been coming away on these winter breaks for the last few years. It’s good to get away, it’s warm weather but it’s hard work as well. We are not here for a jolly, we are here for hard work and that started when we arrived.”

And although he regards himself as being fully up to speed in terms of his fitness, the former Montrose and Dundee player insisted there’s still plenty for him to work on.

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He said: “As a player you can always go that extra mile and develop but I feel I am back to full fitness. But you can always get better and that’s what I am hoping to do, to get faster, stronger.

“I am still doing my daily rehabs for my knee and other bits and bobs on my body. But the other players are doing the exact same. 

"They are keeping themselves ticking over. It’s about how much you want to progress yourself at the end of the day.

“I have always been one who is up for a laugh but at the same time when I cross that white line it comes down to hard work and how much you really want it.”

Those months spent on the treatment table and undergoing gruelling sessions in the gym undoubtedly gave Boyle plenty of time to ponder his bad luck but, he insisted, he’s never been one spend too much time looking at the downside.

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“Obviously that was a hard one to take,” he said of the initial injury and the timing of it.

Support not only came from within Hibs East Mains training centre but from the other side of the world, Boyle revealing: “They were in touch weekly, physios were flying over to see me as well, and they were also contacting the club to see where I was at so they have been brilliant.

“They have been fantastic in getting me back and out playing."