
Hibs must 'react in positive way' after Dons defeat
Hibernian defender Warren O'Hora says it is "about how we react" after their 17-game unbeaten Premiership run came to an end at Pittodrie.The 1-0 loss against Aberdeen was their first league defeat since the start of December and the result moves the Dons level on points with Hibs, who remain third on goal difference."It is a hard one to take, we knew the stakes going into the game, no doubt about it we are still in a good position but we haven't felt like this in a long time so it is tough," O'Hora told BBC Scotland."We were the first to say it in the dressing room, it is about how we react for next week. We need to react in a positive way, come Monday we will assess what happened and we will go through the positives and negatives and move on."If you look at the start of the season we were in a very bad place, but we go on this amazing run with the same group of players and it is the same staff, so it is definitely in us to have this character and this desire not to lose games."Of course today hurts, look it has to happen in football sometimes but we will never accept losing, as professionals we hate it."After all the praise and plaudits that have been coming Hibs' way over the past few months, O'Hora was asked if what happened at Pittodrie serves as a reminder that there is still plenty of work to do between now and the end of the season."We were humble, we weren't getting ahead of ourselves at all," he responded."If somebody had offered us this at the start of the season, of course we would have taken somebody's hand off."We have got here from sheer hard work and being together as a group, there are amazing characters in that group and the staff have been amazing with us."

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Press and Journal
an hour ago
- Press and Journal
Aberdeen defender Jack Milne could follow £4.75million star's Pittodrie career path, says legend Brian Irvine
Signing Jack Milne on a long-term contract is a masterstroke by Aberdeen as the defender's career rise could mirror Scott McKenna's, says legend Brian Irvine. Aberdeen boss Jimmy Thelin and the Pittodrie hierarchy recently tied centre-back Milne on an extended deal in April until summer 2029. A month-after committing his long term future to the club Milne played a key role in the Scottish Cup final triumph – in only his third start of the season. The 22-year-old delivered a stellar performance at Hampden as the Dons lifted the Scottish Cup for the first time since 1990. Irvine netted the winning penalty in the 1990 cup win and was at the national stadium to watch Milne shine at the heart of a five-man defence. He reckons youth academy graduate Milne's performance proves he has the potential to emulate the Pittodrie career path of Scotland international McKenna. McKenna emerged through the Aberdeen youth system to become a first team star before securing a £3million move to then-English Championship Nottingham Forest in 2020. The figure Aberdeen banked for McKenna rose to £4.75m due to add-ons being achieved when he helped Forest earn promotion to the Premier League in 2022. Irvine said: 'Signing Jack Milne on a long-term contract until 2029 is a great move by Aberdeen. 'He delivered a fantastic performance in the Scottish Cup final that was extremely mature for a young player. 'Milne can take real confidence from how he played at Hampden and will benefit from that going forward. 'It could ultimately be another Scott McKenna situation where Milne gets a big move from Aberdeen in the future. 'McKenna was superb for Aberdeen for a number of seasons then went on to get the big transfer to England. 'At club and international level McKenna has had a fantastic career since coming through at Aberdeen. 'Milne could potentially mirror that.' Aberdeen's Scottish Cup final triumph has secured guaranteed European league action next season and a Uefa cash bonus of around £5million. The Dons will enter the Europa League play-offs with ties played on August 21 and 28. Should they lose the play-off, Aberdeen will parachute into the Conference League. Manager Jimmy Thelin has already began bolstering his squad in a bid to balance European league action with domestic commitments. Australian international striker Kusini Yengi, 26, has signed a pre-contract. Yengi will arrive on a free following the expiration of his contract with Portsmouth. Versatile left-back Emmanuel Gyamfi, 20, was signed from German Bundesliga 2 club FC Schalke 04 on a four-year-deal for an undisclosed fee. Australian winger Nicolas Milanovic was also secured for around £400,000 from A-League club Western Sydney Wanderers. The 23-year-old was recently named the A-League player of the year. Keeper Nick Suman, 25, was also secured and will join the Reds when his contract with Cove Rangers expires later this month. Aberdeen are in advanced talks with multiple transfer targets ahead of the summer transfer window. Irvine is confident the Reds will build on the Scottish Cup triumph. He said: 'All the Aberdeen players should take huge confidence from the cup win. 'Ultimately they lost out on that third-placed Premiership finish. 'But that was overtaken by qualifying for the Europa League play-off anyway by winning the Scottish Cup. 'It has been a great season for all the players and now they should build on that. 'Thelin signed a lot of players in his first season, with many Scandinavians, and it takes a little time to settle. 'They'll have more confidence and experience to take the next step in their Aberdeen career. 'There will be more new signings in the summer window. 'However, most of the players have been under Thelin for a year and we will see the best of them next season.' Pittodrie great Irvine famously scored the winning penalty as the Dons triumphed 9-8 in a spot-kick shoot-out against Celtic in the 1990 Scottish Cup final. Irvine was back at Hampden for further penalty shoot-out drama. Only this time he was watching as one of the 20,000 Aberdeen supporters who cheered the Reds to a 4-3 triumph on penalties. Aberdeen also won the Scottish Cup on Irvine's 60th birthday. He said: 'I was down on a supporters' bus that was arranged by the club, and left from Pittodrie. 'At Hampden, I sat in amongst the supporters – because I am one myself. 'I was there with my daughter's partner. 'It was a slightly different position from 35 years ago… but just as nervy! 'When we won the Scottish Cup for the first time since 1990, it was a very emotional moment. 'I'm delighted for the players, the club and the fans. 'It was extra special because Aberdeen won the cup on my 60th birthday. 'A lot of supporters took selfies with me at Hampden, which I really enjoyed. 'On the journey home the music was pumping out with lots of songs sung. 'We got back to Pittodrie just ahead of the team bus which arrived just after 11. 'The night was probably still young for the youngsters, but 60-year-old me thought I had better go home. 'The unity between the club and city is strong at the moment which is fantastic to see.'

The National
2 hours ago
- The National
When are the 2025/26 SPFL fixtures due to be released?
Clubs across the country are preparing for the new campaign, which begins in less than two months. When are the 2025/26 SPFL fixtures released? The SPFL will publish the full list of matches for the new season across the Premiership, Championship, League One and League Two on Friday, June 20, at 9am. In the top flight, only the first 33 of 38 rounds of fixtures will be released, due to the annual split which takes place in the final weeks of the campaign. Read more: The first round of games across all four top divisions in Scotland then takes place on the weekend of Saturday, August 2. Celtic will unfurl the Premiership flag in their first home league match of the new campaign after they were confirmed as champions for the fourth consecutive year in May. Rangers ultimately ended the season 17 points behind their city rivals, although new head coach Russell Martin is now at the helm ahead of 2025/26. Both sides have lengthy pre-seasons to come through before domestic action returns. Celtic must also negotiate a Champions League play-off in August. Their city rivals will have to make it through three rounds of qualifying to make it to European football's premier club competition for the first time in three years.


Daily Record
2 hours ago
- Daily Record
Russell Martin can conjure Rangers winning formula if he's learned one thing from Southampton insists Steven Davis
Davis watched Martin's tenure at his other former club Southampton closely and hopes boss has learned from failed experiement Steven Davis is confident Russell Martin can come up with a winning formula at Ibrox - so long as he learns from his failed Premier League experiment. The former Southampton boss is back for another crack at management six months after being sacked by Saints. The bold passing philosophy that swept the South Coast outfit to promotion to the English top flight was quickly torn apart by their merciless rivals. A savage run of defeats cost Martin his job but ex-Gers skipper Davis is certain the new Ibrox gaffer will have learned his lessons. Davis - a four-time league himself winner at Ibrox - said: "I'm very hopeful Russell will be successful. Ultimately, that's what we all want, a successful Rangers competing for trophies and winning regularly. Hopefully Russel and his staff can bring that to the club. 'He's obviously very straightforward in terms of how he wants to work. 'He's got a philosophy and a culture that he wants to implement. I think that'd be a good thing. 'I've watched quite a few Southampton games when he was manager there. 'They obviously did really well in the Championship, maybe not quite so well in Premier League, but he's learned from those experiences. 'He'll be in a better position going into the job at Ibrox, so I'm very hopeful that he can be successful.' Martin has a huge job overhauling an Ibrox squad that proved to be miles off the Premiership pace last term. The former MK Dons and Swansea manager has insisted his team will put up a better fight than the one which crawled home a massive 17 points behind Brendan Rodgers' swaggering Celtic. He stopped short, however, of making a title declaration as he gave a nod to the scale of the task awaiting him. Davis reckons the Ibrox legions will understand how big a job the new boss faces - but warned that patience will only last so long. He grinned: 'Unfortunately patience isn't a word used in Glasgow! 'I think everybody going into their roles will know the demands that are going to be on the players and the club to try and get that success as soon as possible. 'I think they're capable of doing it. Celtic have been pretty strong in the last few years, but I don't think that the gap should have been what it was anyway. 'Rangers have shown in the Old Firm games last season that they can compete — but it's getting that consistency. 'Hopefully they can start the season well. It's such a big thing, the psychology and the freedom within the group, as soon as you start to get that confidence and belief in the tea then it can take you far. "The expectancy will be for Rangers to dominate the ball in the majority of games in the league. 'But it's what you do with that possession, and that'll be his focus in terms of how he can get into areas where the team can create chances to score - but also with having that balance of the defensive side of things as well. 'All the experiences Russell has gained in his short managerial career will benefit him — you're always better for the experience you have, good or bad. "You learn from it, and you adapt as you go along, and you try to become better.' Davis has tasted the sedate life Martin enjoyed at Southampton during his own six-and-a-half year stint at St Mary's. But that was nothing like the madness he faced during two spells in Glasgow. Martin had a brief taste of that frenzied working atmosphere himself during a four-month stint as a Rangers defender - and Davis reckons that will do him the world of good as he gets his feet under the table. 'The pressures are much more in this city,' he said. 'When you go to Rangers, you have to embrace that side of things. If you don't it can swallow you up. 'But Russell knows what he's stepping into. He's got that short-term experience that he's had at the club, and that'll really benefit him going into the job. 'It's very hard to speak about Rangers and Celtic until you actually experience it yourself. 'Thankfully, Russell's got that experience. He only had it for a short period but he's had that experience and he can bring that knowledge with him, which is positive.' :: Davis was speaking as he helped promote 10 Years On - a celebratory event taking place at Belfast's Ulster Hall on May 2, 2026, marking next year's anniversary of Northern Ireland's Euro 2016 campaign. For tickets go to