DARREN McGREGOR, the Hibernian midfielder, has backed manager Neil Lennon after the Northern Irishman was thrust into the spotlight over the last week.
A touchline rumble with Jim Duffy during Wednesday night's 0-0 draw with Morton sparked furious scenes that saw Lennon and his Cappielow counterpart confront one another as all hell broke loose. The trouble stemmed from a horrible Kudus Oyenuga challenge on Hibs' Jordan Foster that saw McGregor confront the Morton man who then threw himself to the deck as if headbutted, triggering a reaction from both benches.
Both managers were sent to the stand while Oyenuga and McGregor were red carded by referee Nick Walsh, but the Hibs captain has backed his manager's passion and loyalty to the cause as the saga rumbles on.
"Everyone knows what the manager is like," said McGregor, whose red card is being appealed. "He is passionate, he's for the players and he sticks by them. Come the end of the season when we have got it wrapped up hopefully, people will see that his methods do work and they do motivate it. We're right behind him and he's right behind us.
"I'm sure even if he is there in the stand he'll be there with his megaphone anyway shouting at us. It doesn't matter which way it goes to be honest, he can speak for himself.
"I'm just happy to be in with a chance of winning the league with the club I supported as a boy."
That title is inching ever closer despite a disappointing stumble at the weekend in Dunfermline. Hibs took the lead at East End Park through a fine John McGinn strike early on, but the Championship leaders were eventually pegged back in the second period thanks to a Kallum Higginbotham penalty kick.
It means the Easter Road club are now nine points clear of Falkirk with five games left to play.
"It's disappointing because with a few minutes to go we were aware that Morton were getting beat too, so there was a massive incentive for us," added McGregor. "It's really frustrating because of the amount of games we have drawn - that's 12 games now and we need to start turning them into wins. We have a gap but we are well aware that could change, so we should be winning these games. Credit to Dunfermline, they pressed us well.
"We are well aware of the amount of games we have drawn, but actions speak louder than words and it's up to us to go into these games and get the three points as opposed to drawing.
"It's a team game and we are well aware we could be doing better in the goals department. John scored a terrific goal today and Jason [Cummings] has got half our goal tally. There are goals in this team and maybe we never got the rub of the green, but there will no one more disappointed than Brian Graham that he never scored [from three yards out with the goal gaping]. It's something we will need to work on and hopefully it will turn."
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