Ivan Sproule (born 18 February 1981) is a Northern Irish retired professional footballer who was most recently manager of NIFL Championship side Dergview. Early in his career, Sproule played in Northern Ireland for Omagh Town and Institute. He became a full-time professional in January 2005, after he signed for Scottish Premier League side Hibernian, just a month before his 24th birthday. He made a significant impact at Hibernian, scoring a hat-trick against Rangers and earning selection by the Northern Ireland national team. Sproule moved to Football League Championship club Bristol City in 2007. After four years with the club, including loan spells at Yeovil Town and Notts County in his final season, Sproule agreed to return to Hibernian in May 2011, where he spent two more seasons. After a year with Ross County, Sproule returned to Northern Ireland. Career Sproule, a winger who was known for his explosive pace, played in the Irish Football League for semi-professional clubs Omagh Town and Institute. He combined playing football with his full-time career as an engineer. Scottish Premier League club Hibernian invited him for a trial in January 2005, after he had been transfer listed by Institute. He impressed manager Tony Mowbray and signed as a full-time professional until the end of the season, which meant that he had to give up his day job as a fabrication engineer. Hibs paid Institute a transfer fee of £5,000. The gamble of signing a player from outside professional football paid off for both Sproule and Hibs. Although he had a slow start with Hibs and it was rumoured that he would return to Northern Ireland, he scored one of the goals in a 3–1 win over Celtic at Celtic Park. Sproule was offered an extended contract which he accepted. Sproule hit the headlines in August 2005 by scoring a hat-trick in a 3–0 defeat of champions Rangers at Ibrox Stadium. His performances caused Sproule to be linked with a £1 million move to Ukrainian club FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk, who had played against Hibs in the 2005–06 UEFA Cup. Sproule caused further damage to Rangers by helping Hibs eliminate them from the 2005–06 Scottish Cup. Sproule scored one goal and assisted with another, as Hibs again won 3–0 at Ibrox. He was part of the team that won the 2007 Scottish League Cup Final. In total, Sproule made 94 appearances in his first spell with Hibs,