MORE than half a century ago, when I first got into senior football, Hearts were a team to admire. Under manager Tommy Walker, for a spell of just over a decade they were the team to watch in Scotland. Sure, Rangers won more trophies than any other club in that period, but, aside from that brief two or three year period when Jim Baxter's magic held Scotland in thrall, if you wanted sexy football and goals, you watched Hearts.
The "Terrible Trio" of Alfie Conn Senr., "King" Willie Bauld and the under-rated Jimmy Wardhaugh set the standard, only to be eclipsed by that force of nature called Dave Mackay, but the likes of goalkeeper Gordon Marshall Senr., full back Bobby Kirk, left half John Cumming - who but for the presence alongside him of Mackay would have been judged "exceptional", the youthful Alex Young, Ian Crawford and Jimmy Murray - the scorer of Scotland's first goal in the World Cup finals were superb players in their own right and well-nigh unstoppable as a team.
The 132 goals Hearts scored in winning the league in 1958 tells you all you need to know about the attacking football Walker espoused - Hell, they even "stole" the supernova that was Gordon Smith from rivals Hibs to help them win the league in 1960: mind you, that was a more-defensive team - they only scored 102 goals in that campaign.
But Kilmarnock arrived at Tynecastle one Saturday afternoon in 1965, ground-out the 2-0 win they needed to pip Hearts for the title and with a certain Mr Stein working his magic at Barrowfield, the Hearts flower wilted and was cut back. Sure, there have been brief flourishes in the years since, but in the past 45 years or so, Hearts have mainly been - just another diddy club, living off the Old Firm's left-overs.
Long-suffering Gorgie guys perhaps thought Vladimir Romanov was the answer to their prayers, a mega-rich saviour who would provide the cash to allow them to slug it out with the big two in Scotland and gain a reputation as if not a megaclub such as Real Madrid or Barcelona, the Milan duo, Bayern Munich or England's Big Five, then as an upper class European club, capable of regular appearances in the knock-out stages of the two big club competitions.
Today, these hopes are in tatters - the promise of European successes merely empty words and there is genuine concern for the future of what ought to be, the Number Three club in Scotland at the very least.
Those of us who are Hearts admirers, or who care for Scottish football HAVE to be concerned at recent events around Gorgie. Forward though we canna see - we can only guess and fear. But, I genuinely believe Hearts could soon be history.
Look at the facts, the club's debts are conservatively estimated to be somewhere upwards of £50 million; the average home attendance is somewhere in the region of 12,000 fans; there is no money in Scottish football, very little cash other than gate money; Romanov has alienated a lot of people around Edinburgh who might, for whatever reason, be expected to ride to Hearts' rescue.
The owner has announced that he will no longer underwrite the costs, which way exceed the income. Hearts have lived beyond their means for years and it has to stop. It is difficult, nay impossible, to envisage some other dyed-in-the-wool Hearts-loving multi-millionaire turning up in Kaunus in the near future, waving a sufficiently-large cheque to take over the club; then having the additional cash available to tear down and rebuild the main stand, or to find and fund a new ground more-suited to top-flight football in the 21st century. I don't see a Hearts equivalent of Sir Tom Farmer out there.
Romanov may well close the club and sit on the Tynecastle site until it can be re-developed for housing, or a supermarket or offices. He might, as he has threatened, let the highly-paid players go, suffer the losses and let Hearts continue, with young players and free transfer men, stumbling along at the level of a Dundee, or Falkirk, or Partick Thistle. Who knows, but whatever happens, some long, hard years lie ahead for the Gorgie faithful.
But, just maybe, somebody with the good of Hearts at heart, can put together a plan which will allow fresh management, with a means of, over time, easing Romanov away from the club and see Hearts returned to local management and to a position whereby they can go toe-to-toe with the Old Firm. Football has always offered a place for romantics - who all too often quickly become realists once they understand the madness of the game's economics and politics.
Is there an elder statesman out there, with the contacts and the vision to rescue Hearts? Over to you George Foulkes.
No comments:
Post a Comment