Oli Shaw reveals reasons behind tough Hibs exit as he prepares for return with Ross County

It was the toughest decision he’s ever had to make, but as he prepares to return to Easter Road for the first time on Wednesday night, Oli Shaw insists he had to quit Hibs for the sake of his career.

Having burst into the first team with a goal against Celtic in the semi-final of the Betfred Cup – a feat he repeated a few weeks later when the Hoops travelled to Edinburgh on league business – a bright future was predicted for the young striker.

Chief executive Leeann Dempster went as far as to describe him as “one of the best young players, certainly for his age group, in Europe”. It was a bold assertion and the Scotland Under-21 cap certainly flourished, a first-team regular under then head coach Neil Lennon.

The arrival of Paul Heckingbottom saw Shaw relegated to the bench, a situation which didn’t change as the Yorkshireman was replaced by Jack Ross and, without a place in the starting line-up, he decided the time had come to end his eight years with the Capital club.

Ross County offered him the way out, Shaw signing for the Staggies and, within hours, making his debut in a 0-0 draw against Hearts in Dingwall.

Hibs head coach Ross admitted he believed the youngster would only be leaving on loan but, insisted Shaw, a clean break was the better option as far as he was concerned.

He said: “It was a tough decision to make having been with Hibs for so long, but it was one I had to make for the sake of my career if I wanted to progress.

“I wanted to be playing games regularly, at the age of 21 I didn’t want to become a bit-part player. Neil Lennon gave me the opportunity to play, I got a run of games which built my confidence and got me going.

“But then there was the change of manager. They all have different ideas, different ways of thinking and it was frustrating to find myself on the bench. I hadn’t started a game since last February and was only getting ten or 15 minutes here and there, usually coming on to help see out a game or when we were chasing a goal.

“As such, there were limited opportunities to grab a goal and strikers are always judged on how many goals they score.

“After not playing for so long, I felt I needed a fresh start. There were loan options and also permanent options for me. I had a brief chat with Jack Ross and he said it was up to me, the decision was mine.”

Hibs and Ross County agreed an undisclosed fee and after speaking to the Staggies’ joint managers Steven Ferguson and Stuart Kettlewell and chairman Roy McGregor, his mind was made up.

He said: “It was a big decision move from Edinburgh, a big city, to the Highlands, away from family and friends, but speaking to them everything was positive, where they are looking to go and where they see me in that picture. It just felt the right option.

“It’s a bit different having co-managers, but they’ve been brilliant. They work well together, they both have the same ideas, there’s no mixed messages. They have the same standards, the same expectations and are so in tune with each other it’s as if there’s only one of them. It’s different, but good.”

County will travel to Edinburgh buoyed by last Wednesday’s victory over Livingston which ended a run of eight matches and with Shaw solely focused on seeing the Staggies continue to be a thorn in Hibs’ side this season.

He said: “It’s good to be going back so soon, I’ll look forward to seeing a few familiar faces, but I’m there to do a job for Ross County.

“We’ll take confidence from the win at the weekend – and the clean sheet. Having gone through a sticky patch, it was a huge win for us, while the boys know they’ve played well against Hibs this season.”