DREY WRIGHT insists he needs to look no further than new team-mate Martin Boyle for inspiration in his bid to hit top form for Hibs.
Wright has penned a two-year deal with the Easter Road outfit after knocking back a new contract at St Johnstone.
His time at McDiarmid Park was interrupted by a serious knee injury sustained four months after his arrival in Perth, with the cruciate ligament damage keeping him out of action for nine months.
By the time the coronavirus lockdown kicked in mid-March, the 25-year-old believes he was getting back to his best.
And, having torn his ACL twice now in his career, Wright reckons Boyle’s battle back from two knee operations last year is the perfect example of what can be achieved after long spells on the sidelines.
He said: “I’ve done my cruciate twice but it’s not something I look back on. When I got the second one, I hadn’t had a problem with it for four years.
“I don’t think it was a case of doing it the first time warranted the second one. It was just one of those things.
“There are a lot of players I have played with and watched on the TV that have done the same injuries and still played at a really high level.
“I can take something from those guys and know that it’s not too difficult to get back to that.
MASSIVE
“There is great example right here on my doorstep now. I was at St Johnstone when [Boyle] came back from his second one, and he was a massive player for Hibs again – as he has been for a long time now.
“I have spoken to him a few times about his. We were obviously in a similar boat.”
He added: “When I first started making appearances again last year, I didn’t want to put any pressure on myself.
“Having done it before, I knew that it would take some time to get back to those levels, just in terms of sharpness and match fitness.
“It will take time. You will have bad days and good days.
“From after the winter break, I did feel I was putting in some performances that I know I’m more than capable of doing on a consistent basis.
PUSHING
“That was my strength when I first came up to St Johnstone. I feel like I’m in a good place at the minute. “
Meanwhile, Wright is targeting a top-four finish with Hibs this season after St Johnstone pipped them to sixth in the curtailed campaign last term.
He added: “To improve on last season’s final position is what we’re aiming for.
“When the manager came in here results and the form of the team improved, so now he’s got a full pre-season with the squad we want to carry that on.
“With the squad we have, I think we should be pushing inside the top four.
“Seeing the league positions from last season there is no reason we can’t be in that top three or four.”
