An extremely popular player with the Hibs supporters during his time at Easter Road, Jones joined the club in the summer of 2006 from Grimsby Town.
After Gary Caldwell had departed to join Celtic, the then 26 year-old was relatively unknown to Scottish football fans when he arrived in Edinburgh to bolster our defensive unit.
The 6’7” centre-back had played semi-professionally in England until his mid-twenties before impressing for the Mariners in the English Football League.
He soon imposed himself as a key player after arriving in Leith and was named captain in January 2007, only two months before the League Cup Final against Kilmarnock.
Speaking exclusively to our club website, he discussed his transfer to Hibs and the impact he made after only a short period in the capital.
“It was a magnificent year,” he told hibernianfc.co.uk, “my first child was born and then we moved to Scotland.
“It was a completely different culture, a different way of life. There’s much more focus on you.
“It was a big change for myself and my family, moving from Grimsby to the middle of Edinburgh.
“At the start of the season we played in Europe, which was brilliant for myself personally and the rest of the season was incredible.
“I had a dominant season, going from a player that nobody had heard of when I first arrived.
“I scored a lot of goals and lifted the League Cup as captain.”
Jones was a stand-out player during our triumphant League Cup campaign that season, scoring in three out of five rounds, including the first goal in the final.
We beat Peterhead and Gretna in the early stages before a home quarter-final tie against rivals Hearts under new manager John Collins, with Tony Mowbray having left for West Bromwich Albion.
Jones scored the only goal in a 1-0 win at Easter Road to set up a semi-final against St Johnstone at Tynecastle.
“The cup run, as a whole, went really according to plan,” Jones explained.
“Obviously, we had some difficult games, including that night game at home against Hearts.
“It’s always nice beating them from over the road.
“Then we went across the city to face St Johnstone for the semi. For my first year as a Hibs player, it went really, really well.”
After goals from David Murphy and Abdessalam Benjelloun in extra-time booked our place in the final, Kilmarnock awaited the team at Hamden Park.
Now written into Hibernian folklore, Jones netted the first goal in an emphatic 5-1 win with a trademark header from a corner.
“The date in 2007, you always remember where you were, what you were doing,” Jones said, “I remember what I had for breakfast and lunch.
“When I led the team out of the tunnel at Hampden, the lump in my throat was something I’d never experienced. It was a proud moment.
“The goal itself, a set-piece. It was a great ball from David Murphy and I think it was Hoggy [Chris Hogg] in front of me, I just smashed him out the way to head it myself!
“The fans made an incredible amount of noise. It’s difficult to put into words, the relationship I had with the supporters during the time I was at Hibs. It was special.
“You only realise that after you’ve retired and you go back. I still get welcomed with open arms, I still get welcomed with the Spandau Ballet song.
“It’s a special club, full of special people and it’s probably the best family atmosphere I’ve experienced during my time in football, to be honest.
“That final was a dream come true: one, to play in a cup final, two, to play in a cup final as captain, and three, to score a goal in a cup final. So, it was a very special day personally but also for the club, it affected a lot more people than we even realised as players.”
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