ALAN STUBBS reckons Hibs are benefitting from Anthony Stokes’ buzz after the Celtic forward returned to his former club.

The Republic of Ireland forward went back to the Easter Road outfit on loan during the window after finding himself frozen out of Ronny Deila’s Parkhead plans.

Already Stokes has shown what he can be capable of despite lacking match fitness. In the two games he has featured in he has scored both times, and his new gaffer, ahead of an Edinburgh derby with rivals Hibs tomorrow in the Scottish Cup, says the rest of his Hibees squad are benefitting from his presence.

He said: “These are the games I acquired the whole squad for.

“It’s not going to be about Stokesy and Jason [Cummings] because that would be disrespectful.

“But… big games, big players. And he’s certainly got that in him.

“I’m pleased the way he has settled. If you look at him in the dressing room, you’d think he’d been here for six months, not three weeks. That’s the type of guy he is.

“The minutes he played during the week will have done him the world of good. We’ll see how he’s feeling and whether we think it’s the right time to throw him in on Sunday.

“Big players bring a buzz with them to the place. He’s certainly brought that, not just to the club but to the dressing room. All the players can see the quality that he’s got.

“Even just his touches in training, you can see that he’s got real quality. We just need to make sure now that he’s ready and raring to go because he is going to have a big say in the run-in. There is no doubt about that.”

Looking forward to the game itself, the former Hoops defender added: “The fact it is live on Sky, they see it as the tie of the round. I think that tells you everything about it.

“We want them to become regular fixtures. Hearts got themselves promoted last season and we want to get promoted this season. We want these games to become regular within the season again.”