'Can dictate play' - Sunderland loanee defender hailed after starting in midfield against Rangers

Nectar Traintis has been praised by Hibs manager Nick Montgomery after impressing in midfield against Rangers.

The Sunderland loanee, who usually plays at centre-back, got the nod in the middle of the park during Hibs' 2-0 loss to Rangers and impressed fans with his performance.

The Australian joined Sunderland from Central Coast Mariners last summer but struggled to nail down a starting spot under Tony Mowbray and then Michael Beale before heading out on loan to Scotland for the remainder of the campaign.

"Look, he's really versatile. He can play centre-back, he can play six and if you are a deep-lying six, a defensive midfielder, it's a similar position,' Montgomery said after Hibs' loss to Rangers.

“He's technically very good on the ball. He's still young and he's had success in his relatively short career. But he went six months, really, without playing after he moved to Sunderland, which is a big move for a young player.

“You could see against Rangers, especially in the second half, that he is a player who can really dictate play, and physically he is very good. I've been really happy with Nectar since he came in - and I know he can be better. But every game and every training session is an opportunity for him to improve.”

Triantis has endured a mixed start to life at Hibs and has featured from the bench in recent weeks.

Asked if he had any worries about putting Triantis in from the start in an unfamiliar position, Montgomery added: "Not really. I have full trust in Nectar. The first game he came in, Paul Hanlon fell sick that morning, so I had no option but to throw him in - we only had Will Fish as a centre-back.

“He came in and a couple of decisions probably went against him, but I know Nectar's character and that doesn't bother him. You can see now that coming into the team, in a game of that magnitude (against Rangers), I thought his performance was really strong. He's getting better every training session and every game and it's good you have players that are versatile - it definitely makes the squad stronger.”