The day before this game Hearts announced Craig Levein has agreed to take on the role of First Team Manager at the club. He will continue to hold a seat on the board and, as such, will retain the overall responsibilities associated with his current role of Director of Football. After all the talk that Craig Levein was too involved in first team matters in his role as Director of Football it was surprising that he had taken managers job when a number of other candidates had also been in the frame. Craig had managed Hearts previously and the team had been quite successful qualifying for European competition in two years. However the standard of football was not great as Craig used to pick big strong players and seemed to be against having those with a higher degree of skill but less physical in the side. These same principles seemed to apply to his sides after he left Hearts and in particular in his roles as manager at Dundee United and also in his tenure as Scotland boss. It will be

Another Saturday and yet again Hearts playing away from home. I had thought about going to Motherwell for the Hearts game but it was announced that tickets for Hearts fans would only be available through the Motherwell ticket office. As Hearts could not monitor who was buying tickets no loyalty points would be awarded for this fixture. Loyalty points allow Hearts fans to buy tickets for games were ticket supply is limited and lack of points plus cost of travelling to Motherwell persuaded me to stay in Edinburgh. I decided to go to see Edinburgh City v Elgin at Ainslie Park and arranged to meet Malcolm at the ground. Malcolm is the partner of Natalie’s good friend Anne and like me is retired. He was previously a janitor but was also involved in coaching with Hutchison Vale and has a good footballing knowledge. He has coached a number of current professionals including present Edinburgh City centre half Gareth Rodger. Gareth is the son of former Hearts player Paul Rodger. Paul wa

I was not intending to go to a game tonight but faced with watching Coronation Street I decided to go to Lowland League match at Peffermill. I walked to Bread Street to catch a 2 bus to Peffermill which took 20 minutes to get through Grassmarket and onto George IV Bridge. Memo to self - never get a bus through the Grassmarket during the Edinburgh Festival. However arrived at Peffermill for 7.00 and a 7.30 kickoff. Admission cost was £6 with programme included in the price.  Edinburgh University (and Stirling University) have played in Lowland League since its formation in 2014 and sides are mainly composed of students. However Edinburgh’s constitution allows them to field a maximum of four non-student outfield players plus a goalkeeper. At the start of the season the University normally struggle until players return to continue their studies in September. This season was no exception with the students having lost four of heir first five matches.  One of the best things about at

Another Spartans match as I look to get value for money for my £35 season ticket. Normal admission is £7 so I need to get to at least six games for purchase to move into profit. As usual I walked to Ainslie Park where surprisingly no programmes were issued. I did however manage to get a team sheet. Met Alex and Jim and we took our seats in the stand. Kelty are an interesting side who last season won the East Region Junior Super League. Along with other ambitious Junior clubs Kelty are keen to move into the SPFL. They therefore quit the Junior leagues at the end of the season and are now members of the East of Scotland League, the Lowland Leagues feeder league. By lower league standards Kelty have spent a lot of money and included in their squad were Kenny Adamson ex-Cowdenbeath, Stephen Husband ex-Hearts and Errol Douglas ex-Spartans.  After even early exchanges Kelty took the lead when Sean O’Neil headed in a free kick. However just before half time Spartans scored two goa

Another Saturday and another game at Ainslie Park. Hearts were playing Rangers at Ibrox and the fans there are just like those at Parkhead and get away with murder from both stewards and police. Last time I was there Hearts fans were held back in the ground in an effort to prevent trouble. This however did not stop Rangers fans throwing coins, spitting and hurling abuse at Hearts fans in the lower half of the stand as they left the ground. Surprise, surprise the stewards did nothing to stop this. Walked down to Ainslie Park and sat in stand to watch Spartans take on Dalbeattie Star. Alex was brought up in Dalbeattie and Star are therefore his hometown team however today is is watching his favourite side, Queen of the South, who are at home to Dumbarton. I have been to Dalbeattie but never seen the Star before. They finished fifth in the Lowland League last season just missing out on a place in the Irn-Bru Cup and beat Spartans in both their league matches last season so it shou

I was intending to go out to Newtongrange today but our Hibs supporting postman mentioned that Hibs U20s were playing in Irn-Bru Cup against SPFL Elgin City at Ainslie Park tonight. I therefore changed my mind and decided to go to Ainslie Park to cheer on Elgin. Two reasons why :   1) As a Hearts fan I could never cheer on Hibs and  2) In my teens I had gone to see Elgin play at Borough Briggs while staying on holiday with my aunt in Elgin. Yet again I walked to Ainslie Park but got a shock when I arrived. Admission price was £12 in line with SPFL League Two but seemed to me to be a bit much to watch an SPFL team against an under 20s side. I paid and in the ground bought a programme for £1. Programme was issued by some Hibs fans and all proceeds would benefit Hibernian Youth Development. SPL teams are allowed to field two over 20s players in Irn-Bru cup and Hibs fielded Deivydas Matulevicius their recently signed Lithuanian centre-forward. After all Hibs fans said about Hea

My first visit to a Spartans home game this season. As weather was good walked the three miles to the ground. Spartans now have turnstiles, gifted by Hearts from the old stand, as I went through I said I wished to purchase a season ticket. No charge for entry and in ground the Spartans chairman went unto the cafe/bar and brought down my ticket. As a Hearts season ticket holder I got ticket half-price, £35, as I will be at Tynecastle a number of times when Spartans are at home. BSC Glasgow, todays opposition, are a team of nomads. The club was formed in 2014 as a senior team associated with Broomhill Sports Club, a multi-sport youth organisation in Glasgow. However BSC do not have their own ground and currently play their home games at the Indrodrill Stadium, the home of Alloa Athletic, some 30 miles from Glasgow. BSC lost to Spartans in last seasons Lowland League Cup final but have strengthened their side by bringing in a number of ex-SPFL players and are considered as champio

I decided for a change to watch a Junior league match and travelled to Penicuik today. Despite having lived for a number of years in Buckstone which is as close to Penicuik as you can be in Edinburgh I had never been to see Penicuik Athletic before. The last time I was in Penicuik was after RBS night out where I fell asleep on the bus home and woke up as bus was going through Penicuik. Showing considerable initiative, despite the alcohol, I got off the bus at the next stop, crossed the road and caught the bus on its return to Edinburgh. Managed to keep awake this time and eventually got home. I did my research and found I could catch an X15 or a 47 bus from Lothian Road to the ground. When I arrived at the stop I managed to get an X15 and after a trip round various parts of the Bush Estate Technology Park arrived in Penicuik. The bus arrived in Penicuik at 18.30 and with a 19.15 kick-off I got off early and walked around a mile or so to the Ground. The ground is set in a public

This week has been ruined somewhat by a statement issued by Hearts chairperson, Ann Budge. The completion date for the new stand was meant to be in time for the Aberdeen match is early September. However this date will not now be met as the club did not process the order for the new seats in time ! The completion date has now been moved to November as as a consequence home fixtures against Aberdeen, St Johnstone and Rangers will now be played at Murrayfield, the home of Scottish Rugby. Patrick Thistle have kindly agreed to ‘flip’ their proposed visit to Tynecastle as as a result Hearts will now travel to Firhill on 24th September. When is a new stand not a stand? When it has no seats!  Hearts have previously played Champions and Europa League matches at Murrayfield but with a capacity of 67,000 the smaller football crowds not not generate that great an atmosphere. However Hearts did play a friendly against Barcelona in 2007 and attracted a crowd of nearly 58,000. I still think that

Yesterday Craig Levein, Hearts’ Director of Football, confirmed that Head Coach Ian Cathro, will leave the Club with immediate effect. Interestingly Austin McPhee, Assistant Head Coach, remains at the club although Under-20s coach Jon Daly will take responsibility for the first team until a new Head Coach is appointed. A number of names are already in the frame including Paul Hartley and Steven Pressley both ex-players with the club. With the first League match coming up on Saturday an early appointment would seem appropriate. Off to see The Spartans for first time this season playing at their near neighbours Civil Service Strollers (CSS) in a Lowland League match. CSS were in the East of Scotland League but moved up to the Lowland League last season and finished mid-table. They play at Christie Gillies Park which is off Marine Drive in North Edinburgh. Last season I went to see CSS play Whitehall Welfare and thought the ground was at the Silverknowes end of Marine Drive near t