All Hibs star wants for Christmas is more game time - and a new contract

Play more and stay longer. Two connected wishes held close by Jimmy Jeggo, whose recent role impact sub has left the Australian feeling frustrated at a lack of football – but doubly determined to win a new contract with Hibs.

The midfielder goes straight into the starting XI against St Johnstone tomorrow because Joe Newell is suspended. Beyond that, Nick Montgomery has made no promises to a player he knows very well by dint of their shared A-League history.

If Jeggo has accepted that he’s fallen a place in the centre mid depth chart, with Dylan Levitt impressing since claiming that starting spot alongside Newell, he isn’t expected to be happy with the situation. Yet, with his deal running out at the end of this season, the 31-year-old – used from the bench in the last six games – still wants to remain at a club “heading to a really good place.”

Jeggo, who was an ever-present during Montgomery’s first nine games at the helm, said: “I’m out of contract at the end of the season; I have been in this position many times as a player and I’m not getting any younger. With the manager there are always discussions and I’m really happy here, I absolutely love it here, I really enjoy the club, the city - everything that this place is about.

“My focus really is the team and personally I want to play as much as possible, getting back into the team - but making sure that we go in the direction I feel we’re capable of. Another reason for wanting to stay here is that I think the club is heading to a really good place and you want to be a part of that.

“It’s difficult (being out of the team). It’s always really frustrating as a player. But the team has been winning and that’s a massive positive. You always want to play but, if the team are doing well, it’s important that you’re there to support them, that you’re there to do your job when you come on. 

“I think Paul Hanlon summed it up brilliantly after the Livingston game, when he said no-one has a divine right to play. I think, with this manager, there is a real togetherness in the group. You know there will be periods when someone else is playing in your place – but it’s important that we’re all there for the team, we all want the team to win.

“It’s important in football, there are so many ups and downs, that you hold yourself to a certain standard at all times.  And I think it’s important for us, as senior players, to set those standards. Not just on match days, coming on to help the team, but during the week.

“That’s making sure that, when you’re doing set piece training and you’re not starting, you’re playing as the opposition, you do things right and make sure the boys are prepared for the weekend. That’s part and parcel of being a good professional. 

“We all want this club to be successful. We all think it’s heading in the right direction. It’s our responsibility to make sure we get to that destination as quickly as possible.” 

Jeggo, who only dropped out of the team because of a minor injury, is old enough and wise enough to understand that there’s little point in trying too hard to prove a point or catch the gaffer’s eye when he does get a chance to go on and influence a game, saying: “I don’t think it’s about trying to do anything spectacular. Especially in my situation, I’ve been very often coming on to defend a lead. It’s about coming in, doing your job, maybe adding a little something that the team needs at that point – and making sure the team gets over the line. 

“Because not playing is frustrating but it’s part and parcel of the game. There have been plenty of times in my career like this, other times when I’ve kept someone else. But there is a real togetherness here. 

“Whether you’re on the bench or starting, your focus is not on what I need to do to get in the team. The focus is on what the team needs now, how we’re going to win this game. 

“That’s 100 per cent coming from the manager. I’ve spoken before, even under previous managers, about how good a group this is and how close we are, the types of people we have in the changing room. 

“But definitely, under him, there is a real focus on family, on doing the right things, being together as a team and holding each other to high standards. That’s been the case until now.

“It’s so important for us senior players that we drive that – and we set the example. That could be me right now or Paul over the last couple of weeks. 

“Because players will look at us and think: ‘Right, how are they reacting to not being in the team?’ It’s important for us, as older boys, to drive standards and show, in our attitude when we’re not playing, that the team comes first and we’re all trying to get the club where it needs to be.”