THE maturity and mentality of Ryan Porteous have been called into question on myriad occasions throughout the Hibernian centre half’s eventful football career.
The gifted Scot has often let himself down with the rashness of his actions on the park, in games against Rangers in particular, as well as off it.
Porteous has become the No 1 hate figure for fans of the Ibrox club as a result and is certain to be the subject of abuse from the travelling support in the cinch Premiership match at Easter Road tomorrow lunchtime.
Joe Newell, though, has never doubted the professionalism or ability of his team mate despite the red cards he has received and the controversies he has got himself embroiled in over the years.
The midfielder is confident the defender can cope with any flak that is aimed in his direction from the South Stand and perform well when Lee Johnson’s team host Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side.
Not only that, he feels that Porteous will lead by example and help the new arrivals who have not played against the Glasgow giants get through what is frequently a fiery encounter.
“Ryan is mature way beyond his years,” he said. “He’s still very young, but he’s got plenty of experience.
“Yes, there’s been a few flashpoints, but I’m 29 and I got sent off in a semi-final last year (in the Scottish Cup last four tie against Hearts at Hampden in April). It’s always going to happen no matter your age.
“His performances for this club have been unbelievable. I’ve got no worries about him going in to the game.
“I don’t know what he feels about Rangers games, but he just loves playing for this club and he wears his heart on his sleeve. That doesn’t change if it’s Rangers, Kilmarnock or St Mirren, he just wants to win.”
The likes of Momodou Bojan, Nohan Kenneh, Jair Tavares, Elie Youan, Lewis Miller and, if he plays, Marijan Carraja have never been involved in a game against Rangers before.
Newell is hopeful the Edinburgh derby match in Leith a fortnight ago will have prepared Hibs’ summer signings for the meeting with the Glasgow club. Nevertheless, he will stress the importance of maintaining composure to them before kick-off.
“I think the fact we had Hearts the other week gave the new boys a taste of what Easter Road can bring in these big games,” he said.
“They will see things on social media on how the game will be built up and they will know about Rangers. It will be more about telling them to keep a cool head rather than getting them too up for it.
“If you can't get up for this game anyway then you have no chance. I love the games. The bigger the game the better. They have a different feel. It is about going to war and trying as hard as you can to get a result.”
One Hibs player who will not need a pre-match pep talk is returning hero Martin Boyle. The Australian internationalist scored a first-half hat-trick against Rangers in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final at Hampden back in November. Newell believes the forward’s involvement will increase their chances of causing an upset.
“The semi-final was an amazing feeling and one of the best moments I've had in football,” he said. “To be 3-0 up so quickly was incredible. But that is what Boyley can bring when he is on form.
“We performed well as a team. We were strong, resolute and took our chances. That's what you have to do against Rangers. The game plan was to give the ball to Boyley and see what happens!!
“Seriously, though, when you play sides of that calibre every single player has to be on it or you will get punished. You also need to be switched on mentally for 90 minutes.”
Newell added: “Martin will help us massively. You saw the lift the crowd got and we got as players from having him back in the Hearts game. He is a phenomenal player isn’t he? He is only going to help any team he comes back to.
“I hope he has the same impact as he did in the semi-final. I will take being 3-0 up again after half an hour. He is as sharp as he was when he left. He is an unbelievable player and has done amazingly for Hibs in the last few years.
“We definitely missed his directness, his pace, his quality, his finishing when he left in January. So to have him back is brilliant.”
Rangers played PSV Eindhoven at Ibrox on Tuesday night and will take on their Dutch rivals in the second leg of the Champions League play-off in the Netherlands next Wednesday evening.
Newell feels that Van Bronckhorst has enough quality in his squad to field a strong side even if he rests key players.
“We know that they are in the middle of a massive tie for them in terms of the Champions League,” he said. “But we can’t really look into that or try and play on it. We have just got to prepare as normal. We know that in our recent history we have had a good result and probably deserved more than we got. We are going in full of confidence.”
