Dumbarton head to manager Ian Murray’s former home on Saturday for a second time this season, with the Sons looking to stretch their unbeaten run to six games.
Former Scotland internationalist Murray had two spells as an Easter Road player, and also captained the capital club, but his only focus is on Dumbarton.
Murray said: “I am pleased with our form going into the game as we are five games undefeated and in fact have not been beaten since losing 3-2 to Hibs in the Scottish League Cup.
“I would have preferred five wins in a row but in the Championship this season it is incredibly hard to win two games in a row, let alone five.
“This league is again incredibly tight despite the introduction of the 'big three' as they are called. If we win at the weekend we are two points off a play-off place, whereas if we lose we remain two points off second bottom.
“You cannot worry too much about ‘what ifs’ but I do know that we are going there with confidence and will look to be positive against Hibs.
“Everyone expects me to say that games against Hibs are different due to the time I spent playing there but you only get the same three points for winning. It is the same for beating any of the big three, even if the games are more high profile. It is no different to playing other teams I do not have a history with as the objectives are the same and that is winning three points.
“It will, however, be a great experience. The League Cup tie had about 5,000 fans there and this one could have seven or eight thousand, which will be great for our players to play in front of.”
The Edinburgh side appeared to get their season going after a stuttering start with a 3-1 win at Ibrox at the end of September but Raith Rovers earned a 1-1 draw at Easter Road last week.
Murray added: “There was a lot of hype about the win at Rangers but no-one at Hibs will have been getting carried away as Rangers were far from their best that night. Raith put in a really strong performance to get a draw and that just shows this is a league where no result can be viewed as a surprise.
“Hibs can be very good on their game and we are preparing to face them on that basis. That approach worked for us against Hearts and we held them to a draw - we are the only team so far to take something from them.
“We played really well in that goalless encounter and had chances towards the end to grab a goal. However, we had to settle for a point and a clean sheet against a strong Hearts side.”
Murray’s side usually guarantee excitement at both ends of the pitch but there appears to be a more cautious air about things this season, with the manager saying: “We have had three clean sheets in our last five games and are starting every game with the intention of not letting the opposition score. We have not scored enough goals at the other end but that will come.”
One of the reasons the Bet Butler side have not been more solid this season is the form of on-loan Aberdeen shot-stopper Danny Rogers.
Murray said: “Danny has been excellent after a tough start where he was getting used to the players around him and every mistake we were making was getting punished with the loss of a goal.
“He has deserved his call up to Ireland's U21 squad and it is nice for him, Aberdeen and Dumbarton to be getting some recognition.”
Murray could hardly have thought about playing Hibs five times in a season when he took the Dumbarton job in November 2012, with the Sons looking all set for relegation to Division 2 and his former employers established in the top flight.
He said: “It is nearly two years in the job and there has been a lot of progress. Our results have generally been good. There have been a couple of disappointments along the way however I feel it has been win-win. Dumbarton have done well and I have done well - two years in any managerial job is good going.”
Craig Stewart
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