Steven MacLean has done Down Under homework ahead of facing Hibs and new manager Nick Montgomery

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Steven MacLean has a strong understanding of how new Hibs manager Nick Montgomery will set his team up on Saturday - helped partly by years of watching Australian football.The St Johnstone boss this week revealed he regularly tunes in for early morning action from Down Under.Montgomery, who took the reins at Easter Road this month, was previously in charge at the Central Coast Mariners.His first game as boss of the capital club was a 2-2 draw with Kilmarnock last weekend.“We have done plenty of work,” MacLean said. “I’ve watched in depth what he has done.“Not just in the Kilmarnock game, but in the past as well.

I’ve gone deeper.“That helps by having a good analyst. He had a lot of stuff ready for me. The players are ready and we know exactly what is coming so there are no excuses there.“He played the same way [in Australia].

I won’t go deep into it, but we know what is coming.“I’m a football geek and I’ve always watched Australian football. I used to always watch it on a Saturday morning.”MacLean, during his time at Sheffield Wednesday, actually played against Montgomery when he battled in the middle of the park for Sheffield United.“He was a hard working midfielder who liked to mix it,” MacLean said. “He will want that from his team as well.“He was in about the middle of the pitch, broke things up and played simple.”Saints head for Easter Road occupying bottom spot in the Premiership but can leapfrog Hibs with victory.MacLean is sure his squad - which has a number of new, young arrivals - will get a spring in their step when the first win arrives.“They need to learn how to win a game, whether they play well or not,” MacLean said.“There are different ways to win a game of football and we need to do it as a team.“We need