Hearts have decided not to challenge the two-match ban handed out by the SFA to Steven Naismith following his challenge on Celtic’s Scott Brown last Sunday. The on-loan Norwich City player’s tackle on Brown was clumsy but was missed by referee Bobby Madden.
Hearts Head Coach Craig Levein had initially indicated the club would challenge any ban, but Hearts have now decided to accept the punishment. With Hearts due to play their final Ladbrokes Premiership match of the season on Sunday at Kilmarnock, Naismith may have played his final match in a maroon jersey. If he has then it was some way to sign off, scoring the winner in Wednesday night’s Edinburgh Derby – his fourth goal in 16 appearances for Hearts.
Meanwhile, Craig Levein was a happy man in the aftermath of Hearts latest victory over their city rivals. He told the official Hearts website:
“I’ve expressed my frustration on numerous occasions this season with the way things have gone. This was our last game at home and sending our fans home was really important and I’m glad we did that tonight,”
“I think you see tonight that there’s not an awful lot between the teams at all.
“Our players did everything they could to try and win the game. To be pegged back so soon into the second half was a real body blow and to then go and win the match after was really pleasing.”
Levein was particularly impressed by another sublime performance from 17-year-old Harry Cochrane.
“He was unbelievable, honestly” purred the Head Coach. “I don’t think he gave the ball away all evening. His touch on a slick pitch was sublime. It’s only really good players who can perform like that on a pitch like that.
“I thought he was the best player in midfield. John McGinn is a fantastic player and rightly gets loads of plaudits, but I thought Harry was better than him tonight.
“I’m really excited about seeing how he develops because I’m sure he’ll be an international in the future.
“He doesn’t shirk any tackles. The best players have got that in them. It was a hot and intimidating atmosphere tonight and he was the coolest head on the pitch.”
Levein also made reference to troubled Hibs manager Neil Lennon’s previous assertion that Hearts were no longer relevant to Hibs.
“Relevant? We put them out the Scottish Cup and stopped them from finishing second in the league. That’s pretty relevant to me,” said Levein.
Despite Hibernian being perceived as dominating recent Edinburgh derbies, their last win at Tynecastle against Hearts came five years ago.
Author of The Team for Me - 50 Years of Following Hearts. Runs Mind Generating Success, a successful therapy practice in Edinburgh. Contact me if you want rid of any unwanted habits. Twitter @Mike1874
