Bottom of the table Hibs welcome Hoops to Easter Road in the early kick-off on Sunday

At times like this teams need leaders – and Jamie McGrath insists Hibs have enough to help dig them out of the mire.

The armband has been a topic of conversation at Easter Road this week after new gaffer Marink Reedijk decided wing-back Felix Passlack would be the on-pitch skipper from now on.

Martin Boyle previously took on that responsibility with club captain Joe Newell mainly being used from the bench. With Hibs bottom of the table, it’s a bold move from Reedijk as he searches for a winning formula after losing his first two games in charge ahead of today’s visit of Celtic.

But McGrath can understand the Dutchman’s thinking. He said: “Felix came in straight away last January and is loved by all the boys. He’s a top fella and a top, top man. He’s very approachable – the heartbeat of the changing room, he’s always up for the crack.

“It looks weird seeing him with the armband but it’s just something that has been chosen. Don’t get me wrong, there’s no bad eggs in the changing room. Everybody’s very together in there.

“Whether it’s Felix wearing it, or Joe wearing it the next day, or Boyle wearing it the day after, it’s just one of those things. We all get behind everybody.”

The lack of an armband will not dampen Boyle’s mood and McGrath is adamant the effervescent Boyle will continue to play his role behind the scenes. After just taking one point from a possible 15 – with David Gray losing his job – Hibs’ confidence is fragile.

But McGrath added: “Boyle’s the best man to put an arm around someone or just lighten the mood at any given time. Boyle’s always there, he’s always positive, always in good spirits. It’s important to have that in the changing room too.

“He’s the master at deflecting pressure in key times. He’s a massive part of the changing room. We have a lot of different characters in the changing room who bring different stuff.

“We all have to take more responsibility in that aspect, telling people if it’s not good enough on the pitch. Little basics, we have to get the basics right and hopefully we can do that against Celtic.”

At the age of 30, McGrath finds himself more inclined to offer encouragement and direction to team-mates. He added: “It’s something I’m always trying to improve as I’m not a natural shouter.

“I’m trying to lead by running hard and working hard and doing it that way. But of course, the older you get, the more experience you build. It’s dawned on me now that I’m no longer the young buck, and I’m going to have to try and bring that experience to help the younger boys as much as I can.”

McGrath has been hampered by a recent calf injury but returned as a sub in last weekend’s 2-1 defeat to Falkirk. After missing the start of Reedijk’s reign, McGrath is getting to understand what is expected from him as the head coach implements a new front-foot approach.

He added: “I’ve had a good few weeks training now. I’m obviously trying to get up to speed as quickly as I can. I have completed most sessions so far since I’ve been back and I’m learning quickly on the job.

“I missed the camp in Spain so I’m just doing a bit of catch-up but looking forward to getting back fit now. I got minutes last week and it felt good so hopefully I can build on that now this weekend and for the season going ahead.

“We’re obviously still learning and we’re working very hard on the training ground. It’s a different style and with that it takes a lot of changes and adaptations.

“So it’s refreshing. There’s a good atmosphere around the place now. Although we wanted to show it at the weekends and obviously we wanted to get results as quickly as possible.”