CONGRATULATIONS then to Hearts; as a neutral who admitted to a gut feeling that Hibs' long, long wait for Scottish Cup success was about to end, can I say - I certainly didn't see that coming. A long-standing family commitment meant I have been limited as to what I have seen of the game, but it is clear, Hibs didn't turn-up. Wee Pat Fenlon faces a difficult summer of recruiting and re-energising.
But, what of Hearts? That is the question. 'Mad Vlad' has kept well clear of Scotland's ''Monkey Media'', we haven't a Scooby as to his intentions for next season. Should he stick to his guns and continue to insist that Hearts operate within sensible budget limits, well, this morning's feel-good factor along Gorgie Road is unlikely to hold much past the middle of August.
The likes of Ian Black and Rudi Skacel went out in a blaze of glory on Saturday, how does he replace them? Will Vlad even try? What happens with Paulo Sergio? A cup-winning boss who has done really well in difficult circumstances, with an unpredictable, absentee owner; he deserves to know, soon, what is happening at his club.
Maybe, just maybe - after the Green Gang are exposed as the charlatans I think them to be, and New Rangers get ready to start life, with their 'Apprentice Boys' young first team - Vlad might think Scottish football is worth continuing to invest in. Let's face it, somebody has to step up to the plate or the only thing which will prevent Celtic from winning a treble in 2012-2013 will be boredom and disinterest in the Parkhead Home dressing room.
I must admit, I was intrigued last week by a suggestion that Craig Brown might persuade Sir Alex Ferguson to loan him one or two of the brightest of the Manchester United kids for a season's exposure at Aberdeen. Broonie, Erchie Knox and SAF go back a long way - I have a picture of a Scottish Schools XI from 1957 with Broon and Ferguson among the players.
If there is a single Scottish coach and club combination to which SAF might entrust his fledglings, then that combination is Broon and Aberdeen. Having seen a very young United team play Ayr United off the park last July, I have few doubts other than a fistful of such unpolished diamonds, coached by Broon and Knox and playing for Aberdeen, could immediately turn the Dons once more into title challengers. To me that's a cheaper option than buying low-level foreign imports.
Of course, until we alter the entire mind-set of Scottish football, from top to bottom, we will get nowhere, which is another reason why I feel it would be no bad thing were Rangers to completely melt-down and a new sense of reality bite in the game up here.
The greed is good, top-down model hasn't worked since 1975 - it's time we had a re-think as to how we run and play the game up here.
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