Hibs boss Gray addresses fan fury - and insists there's one thing punters DON'T want from him after Euro loss
Stunning 2-0 win for Kosovan minnows puts Easter Road side on back foot ahead of second leg
David Gray admits travelling Hibs fans were justified in venting their fury after a European horror show in Pristina. And he insists only actions, not words, will heal the wounds opened by this afternoon’s brutal 2-0 defeat to Kosovan minnows FC Malisheva.
The ‘home’ side – playing at the national stadium because their own tiny ground doesn’t meet UEFA standards – have never competed in the second qualifying round of the Conference League before. But they capitalised on a sloppy Hibs performance to put themselves in a commanding position heading into next week’s second leg at Easter Road.
Hibs fans voiced their displeasure at full-time. And a small group gathered to berate players and staff boarding the team bus outside the front door of the Fadil Vokrri Stadium in the Kosovan capital.
Gray admitted: “One thing they don't want to hear is me sitting there and apologising to the fans. Now, of course, I will apologise to the fans; that performance is unacceptable from our point of view.
“But actions speak a lot louder than words. I've been at the club a long time. The frustration, the noise, the anger, it’s all absolutely justified from fans coming over, spending your money, trying to come to the other side of Europe to try and get here.
“I know how difficult it is for supporters, even just to come to home games, never mind away games. And the feeling of a new season, being on the front foot, that positive expectation and demand for the new season, we've certainly let them all down today. We know that, I know that more than anybody, and it's up to me to fix it.
“I think it's really clear for everyone to see that the level of performance was nowhere near good enough. Over the course of the game, everything that could have went wrong today certainly did.
“It’s not as if I was caught out at all in terms of what we expected from the opposition, everything we thought it would be. I'm not going to sit here either and make excuses.
“The only positive to come out of today for me is the fact that it's happened in the first leg and we've got an opportunity to turn it around. I still firmly believe in the group, I believe we're capable of turning it around, absolutely.
“I know it's a reflection on me and my team that what was produced today was way below the standard acceptable for this football club. We know that, I know that more than most, I've been here a very long time.
“I hear the frustration, the noise, the anger from the fans and rightly so. Because they spend a lot of money to come and support the team. Especially in Europe, away trips. To come over here and deliver that, not nearly the level, it's not good enough.”
‘No excuses’ despite treacherous pitch
Both teams seemed caught out by the decision to water a rock-hard pitch in between warm-up and kick-off, with players slipping and sliding on a treacherous surface.
But Gray stressed: “As I say, I'm not going to get drawn into excuses. I think every player slipped over at key moments in the game.
“I can look at a multitude of things, but the pitch was the same for both sets of players. The surface was the same, the conditions were exactly the same.
“But you find out about people during adversity. When you have so many performing blow expectations, it's very hard to win games of football at any level, never mind in European competition. We certainly got what we deserved today
“I know we will improve from what we delivered today, and there is an opportunity back home at Easter Road to put this right. As I say, I do believe in the group and I think we're good enough to do that.
“There will be a lot of criticism, and rightly so, for what we've produced today. Because there's an expectation and a demand when you join this football club and when you play for this football club.
“The bit that hurts the most for me, right this moment in time, is everything you worked for, all last season, everything you do in pre-season is all about you wanting to start the season as well and as positive as you can. We're starting this season on a real negative note.
“The other side to that is you can only go one way from here. And I firmly believe in the group that we can do that.
“So myself and my staff have got a big job to make sure we get back on that training pitch and rectify this as quickly as we can, because I do believe we can do it.”