WHAT whirlwind few days it’s been for Hibs new boy Harry McKirdy.
The 25-year-old joined the Easter Road club in the dying moments of transfer deadline day on Thursday night.
It appeared that the deal with Swindon Town was off, only for the clubs to strike an agreement at the last minute.
Hibs then faced a waiting game to find out whether the colourful striker would gain FIFA approval to be able to feature in their win over Kilmarnock on Saturday.
Thankfully for them it arrived on Friday evening, meaning McKirdy was free to play a role in the match.
He came off the bench to play on the left of the front three. He had a couple of decent chances to get on the scoresheet, as the Hibees looked to put ten-man Killie to bed despite their valiant performance.
And after a hectic three days, McKirdy is now happy to be able to focus on actually playing football again.
He said: “It’s been a long week, so it was nice just to be out there playing.
“The reception I got from the fans was brilliant. They’ve been good with me since it looked like I was signing – and that was the reason I wanted to come here and play. Hopefully I can give them more reasons to cheer than I did in my first game.
“I didn’t really know what was going on, I just hoped it would go through. And it did. So I’m happy to be here, looking forward to a full week of training and settling in.
“It might have crossed my mind, that it could fall through, but I was confident that everyone would agree – because everyone wanted the same thing.
“Hibs wanted me to come in and Swindon wanted to cash in on me, so I felt it would get done.
“Why Hibs? Just look at the reception I got. I’ve only been here a couple of days but the city looks good, everyone I spoke to had only good things to say about it. It just feels like the right step forward in my career.”
A recent disciplinary issue down south involving the referees’ room and a milkshake has been well-documented.
McKirdy is facing a two-game ban for the incident, which looks like coming in Hibs’ next two matches against Dundee United and Aberdeen.
He is keen to put it behind him though, pointing out that everyone makes mistakes. He added: “I understand I crossed a line. That’s in the past now. As long as I learn from it. I’m looking to keep my head down and make headlines for the right reasons now.
“That’s my first ever red card, so no I don’t have disciplinary issues. I don’t want to say anything about it but, if you watch the red card, I’ll let you make your mind up on it. Look, we all make mistakes, everyone.”
Meanwhile, Killie skipper Alan Power insists there are plenty of positives for the Ayrshire side to take from the defeat.
Despite playing nearly all of the game with a man disadvantage, the Rugby Park outfit were well in the game. It was clear Power and the rest of his teammates felt they were unlucky not to take a point.
He said: “We probably should have got something. We were excellent. I’m gutted for the lads in the changing room. I thought we put everything into the game.
“The reaction to going down to ten was brilliant. We were a little bit off it in the second-half, which we’re a bit gutted about.
“The reaction from everyone was pleasing, though. No heads dropped and I think that showed with the way we played.
“We’ll take loads of positives from that game today. Obviously we’ll look at the negatives as well, like getting done with a ball in-behind. We’ll all take responsibility for it.
“The biggest thing from today was how we played after it. I thought the boys showed a lot of courage to get on the ball and create chances.
“Everybody recognised how we were playing. It shows what we have in the dressing room and the togetherness we’ve got.
“We’ve got a lot of numbers, so the competition for places is intense.
“Everybody knows during the week you must be on your game. It’s driving everybody forward. Hopefully that remains the same. Everybody is fighting to get that shirt.”
