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Thu, Mar

Liana Hinds started her career off in the USA. Credit: Malcolm Mackenzie.
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The 27-year-old full-back may only joined the club in the summer but has already made her name known throughout the capital. Priding herself on her attacking threat, she picked up two assists on her full debut for the club against Dundee United earlier this season. Her journey to the club is a different one, the Trinidad and Tobago international picking up game time for Sundsvalls DFF in Sweden and for ÍBV in Iceland before arriving in Scotland.

“When you are starting out you need to look for the best opportunity for you to grow your career”, she told the Edinburgh Evening News. “Where you are going to get playing time and advance your career going forward. That’s what I was looking for, I couldn’t be too picky in terms of location. Both countries were a little too cold for me, but I was looking for an opportunity and I took the ones that came for me. I ended up going to two places I probably never would have gone to and ended up enjoying them a lot. I am happy I did it.”

Now one of the more experienced players at Hibs, she is currently the most capped senior player at the club at international level having made more than 35 appearances for her country. Former Trinidad and Tobago legend Kenwyne Jones is now also the head coach of the women’s team, which Hinds believes helped create more support for the side.

“I am always happy when I can go back and play for my national team to be in the warm weather,” she says. “But since I have played in Sweden and Iceland I am used to the cold weather. Scotland compared to the other two places is a little warmer so it’s not too bad for me at all.

“It is a very good experience having Jones as the manager and having him brought a lot of publicity and awareness to the team. That created a lot of support we didn’t normally get. Having him brought a lot of positives to our environment.”

As women’s football continues to grow, Hinds is loving the support her and the team are receiving each game as crowds continue to grow. Aiming to be an “inspiration” for the next generation, she hopes Hibs can rise up the table in 2023 and reach another cup final.

“We love the crowds that come out here”, she said. “It’s always good to have fans and people who come out to support you. It’s always good for the younger ones to come out and see us play. We want to be an inspiration to the younger generation especially, the younger female players.

“We are hoping to gain a lot of points that we missed in the first half of the season so hopefully coming in at third or fourth and getting to the cup final like we did in the first half of the season. Then just execute our game plans each game and achieve our individual and team goals for the rest of the season.”


SOURCE: Edinburgh Evening News