LEWIS STEVENSON admits Hibs hit rock bottom in December when Aberdeen turned in the best performance they have faced all season.
And the Easter Road stalwart insists they must turn the tables on the Dons this weekend if they are to have any chance of finishing the season on a high.
Stevenson confesses Neil Lennon’s outfit suffered a ‘doing’ went they went down 4-1 at Pittodrie two months ago, and they also lost 1-0 at home to the Reds back in October.
With a Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to the Pittodrie outfit last season as well, Hibs have come off second best in their recent jousts with the men from the north-east.
Now, currently eight points adrift of the Dons in second, Stevenson acknowledges the vital importance of the latest meeting of the sides on Saturday.
The 30-year-old said: “Aberdeen have beaten us twice this season and at Pittodrie they gave us a bit of a doing.
“That has been our worst performance and, for me, it’s the best performance we’ve come up against as well.
“We need to turn that around on Saturday.
“It’s going the hard but, if we really want to step up and challenge at the top end of the league, it’s teams like Aberdeen we need to be beating and games like this we need to be winning.”
Stevenson was made captain in Hibs’ last outing as he slotted into an unfamiliar centre-half role because of a spate of defensive injuries.
However, despite the absence of Darren McGregor, Paul Hanlon, David Gray and Steven Whittaker, the Easter Road outfit still managed to earn themselves a 2-1 victory over Rangers at Ibrox.
NOTHING TO PROVE
Key to that display was Scott Allan, who returned to the club on loan from Celtic last month.
And Stevenson firmly believes the 26-year-old could be an influential figure as Hibs seek European qualification this term.
He added: “Scott slotted in seamlessly against Rangers. He was really dangerous and looked like he had never been away.
“I’m sure he’s going to be a big player for us this season.
“Ability-wise, he was player of the season the last time he was with us; he was unbelievable.
“He’s got nothing to prove here. The players know how good he is and so do the fans.
“He has started off on the right foot and he showed how much it meant to him, so he’ll be massive for us.”
