Hibernian head coach David Gray believes an Edinburgh derby win can “kickstart” their season after a “tough” start to the campaign.
The Easter Road club sit bottom of the Scottish Premiership and host rivals Hearts on Sunday, having picked up just five points from a possible 24.
Consecutive defeats in their last three games – adding to a second-round League Cup exit – mean it has been a testing start to the campaign for Gray, who was named permanant boss in the summer.
“It’s been tough, of course it has. I’m not going to shy away from that,” Gray told Sky Sports News.
“It’s a challenge that I knew was always going to be there at the start of the season when I took the job.
“I’ve been at the club long enough to understand the pressures, the expectations, the demands.
“Where we find ourselves at the moment is not good enough. Nobody is going to say anything different. We also know we are working hard to rectify that.
“I’m not doubting what we’re doing at the moment, I’m not doubting the players. I know where we need to improve, and the players need to take responsibility for that as well.
“But the attention now changes, it’s a great opportunity at home against our local rivals to go and kickstart our season.”
Do Hibs have a soft centre?
Former Hibernian captain and defender David Gray admits he can’t defend recent mistakes that have cost his team points
The Easter Road side continued a trend of late capitulations on Saturday when they conceded two calamitous goals in stoppage time to surrender a 2-1 lead to Dundee United.
After just eight matches, they have already lost seven points from winning positions and have conceded seven goals inside the final 15 minutes of those games.
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Hibernian conceded two late goals in a dramatic defeat to Dundee Utd on Saturday
“It’s something that has been mentioned ever since I’ve been at this football club,” said Gray, when asked if his side have a soft centre.
“It always rears its head after a defeat, but I can’t stand here and make any excuses for the last two weeks.
“At the end of the day, we have been punished for making mistakes, but there have been a lot of variables in that.
“The reality is that we need to be stronger in these moments, we know that.
“We are a new group, and we need to stick together and work as hard as we can to rectify that.”