Hibs midfielder takes giant leap on slow road to recovery

Jake Doyle-Hayes has taken an important step on the road to recovery from long-term injury, with Hibs boss Nick Montgomery reporting that the midfielder’s troublesome ankle is now in a “perfect” condition. But the head coach has cautioned against rushing the Irishman back into competitive fixtures.

Doyle-Hayes was dogged by ankle issues last season and, despite forcing his way back into the first team late in the campaign and early this season, he’s been back on the sidelines since August. Following a referral to another specialist and an operation to tidy up the problem area, however, the 24-year-old is finally on the mend.

Montgomery revealed: “It's been a complicated one - I had something similar in my career. I had an irritation in my ankle and for whatever reason, there was no real reason why. It turned out to be a tiny fragment of bone that was irritating inside the ankle joint.

“So I think Jake's had something similar, they've cleaned that out. The structure of everything in his ankle is perfect so hopefully now he's on the road to recovery. “

Looking forward to having another body to help out in the engine room of a Hibs team currently on the bubble in the battle for a top-six spot, Montgomery said: "Jake is still recovering, progressing really well, and he's a player that can add in that midfield area.

“But until he's in full training, it's hard to put a date on. Once he's in full training, he will need match minutes, bounce games.

“We're definitely not going to rush the boys that injured because if you've been on a long-term injury, it's not about rushing, it's about getting them right and being able to compete in the team. That's why we've got good medical staff who work every day to try to push them on.”

Josh Campbell is expected to be fully fit for Sunday’s visit of Aberdeen, meanwhile, after limping out of Saturday’s 2-1 win over Dundee at Dens with a badly bruised toe.