James McDonaugh admits he is expecting Hibernian under-20s to experience a tough final pre-season friendly at Vale of Leithen tonight (kick off 7pm).

The young team in green were held to a 1-1 draw at Selkirk earlier on in the week and Head of Academy Coaching McDonaugh expects a similarly difficult match this evening.

McDonaugh said: "We're expecting another tough game against East of Scotland opposition, which have proved to be good value and beneficial.

"This will be our final pre-season friendly from the nine we've played this summer and we will be aiming to finish positively."

The new under-20 league season fixtures have now been announced on the SPL website (click here for full details) and we will confirm full details concerning venue and kick-off times in due course.

Hibernian under-20s will kick off the campaign with a long trip north to face Ross County on Tuesday, kick off 2pm (7 August).