Yellow card tightrope for Hibs pair

SOL BAMBA and Liam Miller will be walking a suspension tightrope when Hibs face Kilmarnock this weekend as one more yellow card would rule the pair out of the Edinburgh derby at Tynecastle later this month.

Hibs defender Bamba picked up his sixth booking of the campaign against St Johnstone at the weekend and is just one point short of the SFA's 18-point disciplinary threshold.

Midfielder Miller was also booked in the clash with the Perth side, sending him on to the 15-point mark and losing either one of their services for the derby, which will be played on Saturday, 20 March, would be a huge blow to the Easter Road outfit.

Meanwhile, manager John Hughes reckons his goalkeepers are relishing the four-way battle for the gloves this season.

The Easter Road boss has Graham Stack, Graeme Smith, Yves Ma-Kalambay and latest recruit Mark Brown at his disposal.

Stack currently has the jersey, having won back his place in the side from Smith after recovering from a niggling back injury, but Hughes revealed that all four of his charges have raised the bar in match situations and training sessions: "You need to watch these guys training, they're working so well with one another. They are always challenging one another, putting one another to the test – and compliment one another as well.

"Goalies are one of the hardest workers you get at a football club, they're in the gym after training, they're rolling about covered in mud and stopping shots from their team-mates.

"They're all in there fighting because they all want to be playing. It doesn't do them any good to be sitting on the bench or stand.

"I think the competition at the club is as good as you will get anywhere and that is helping to keep them on their toes."