Teenage munchkins & mediocrity

When Hibs fans blethered on about the youthfulness of their squad we tittered in amusement, and we were quite right to do so as for a while, claims of inexperience were their favourite way to excuse mediocrity. But in the aftermath of this weekend's debacle against St Mirren, I've heard plenty of Jambos using much the same reasoning in their defence of what was quite simply a rubbish performance from the boys in maroon. Furthermore, we've also heard Csaba Laszlo complaining about the height of the team that took to the field on Saturday, players so afflicted by vertical challenges that they're probably now down on record as the shortest team fielded by Hearts in the last 5 years.

But does any of this stuff really matter? I'm not convinced. Yes, we have a relatively youthful squad but in those ranks we have a number of younger players who are almost seasoned first teamers these days: Andy Driver, Lee Wallace, Eggert Jonsson. If youth and inexperience are such huge obstacles, then why was Gary Glen probably one of our best players on the day? As for the height issue, would being a few inches taller really have ensured that our players remembered to mark their opposition? It wasn't height advantage that gave Dorman all the room in the world to stick in that equaliser, and I certainly don't remember our defenders being overwhelmed by aerial challenges. In fact, I don't remember our defenders being overwhelmed by St Mirren at all.

I could go into the players-out-of-position argument and while I'm happy to acknowledge that this might have an effect, I don't believe that it had any real impact upon the game this weekend. St Mirren were livelier than we might have expected following their mid-week Cup rumble with Motherwell on Thursday, but they didn't ever really test us. Indeed, we were hardly unleashing wave after wave of attack either but the difference was that I don't remember us ever really looking like we weren't in control of the game - we just didn't have that final ball. It was sloppy, unlucky and frustrating stuff to watch though. It was mediocrity in motion.

It's little consolation to hear that both Aberdeen and Dundee United failed to bring home three points, and even less so when you consider that our two nearest competitors for the coveted 3rd spot were playing each other. Make no bones about it, this was an opportunity lost and there's no amount of excuse mongering that can disguise the fact that this weekend might prove to be memorable for all the wrong reasons. I'm tired of pulling out that old cliche, the one about how being a Hearts supporter is bad for the blood pressure because they never do things the easy way. I'm even more tired of hearing it being used when lady luck had absolutely nothing to do with the problems we're facing. We could have given ourselves a cushion but we failed, it's that simple. There are no excuses, and I hope the players realise that too.

Brown trout

The title of this blog entry may not get us many hits for Hearts related content, but I really couldn't think of anything more appropriate following the events of the weekend. So yes, we went to Easter Road and we won. How tremendous was that? The atmosphere in the Hearts end was just brilliant and having now watched the highlights again on the telly (about 4 zillion times), it was great to hear the Jambos outsinging the Hibbies yet again.

It's easy to be magnanimous when you've just beaten your local rivals in a cup match, and being entirely honest about it I'd have to agree that Fletcher's red card probably was a tad on the unfortunate side, but I have little sympathy for them as a group of supporters at the moment. Yes, they're having a tough time and it's clear to anyone that Mixu just isn't up to the job, but the empty seats at Easter Road on Sunday belied an attitude which deserves nothing other than criticism. They had their team beaten before a ball had even been kicked. How can their team go out on to that pitch with anything approximating self-belief when the fans can't muster up enough faith to get themselves to the game in the first place?

I'd feel sorry for them if it wasn't so wickedly satisfying to take delight in their misfortune. Again. So, it's 108 in a row. They haven't won the big cup since 1902 you know....

But on to Mixu Paatelainen. If he was anyone other than the manager of Hibernian I might actually feel slightly sorry for him. Or at least, I would have done until he saw fit to publicly snipe at our captain. There's no doubt that with the benefit of numerous replays, it's possible to see why the red card might have been considered a harsh call, but similarly, any sensible human being with basic football knowledge can understand why it was given in the first place. For all that Fletcher isn't known as a dirty player, Christophe Berra certainly isn't known for his cheatery either and what Mixu fails to understand is that the chain of events was caused by stupidity on Fletcher's part and not anything more sinister than that. If he wants to take a gamble like that during an important derby, then the consequences of his actions rest with Steven Fletcher and nobody else. A tackle doesn't have to break a leg before it can be considered reckless, and muttering viciously about Berra because he had the audacity to take evasive action won't change the fact that Fletcher screwed up. It's that simple.

The Scotsman reported this morning that Hibs are considering an appeal and forgive me for being a cynic, but I'm not convinced by this move and I seriously doubt whether any of the Hibs fans will be either. Mixu may well be the only man on the planet (other than Pat Nevin) who thinks that they have any grounds for such an appeal and considering that the ref has already reviewed his decision and declared that he was satisfied with the actions he took, who in their right mind would really think they stand a chance of getting anywhere? His coat is on the shoogliest of pegs and desperate attempts to appease the less cerebral of supporters won't change that.

What it will do, however, is make Mixu look like an even bigger fool than he already does.

His lack of intelligence can perhaps be excused as a lack of managerial experience, but there's no way to disguise a lack of class. Mixu's petulant exit from the dugout without pausing to shake hands with Csaba Laszlo on Sunday was every bit as revealing as the 'get it up ye' gesture made by Riordan towards the Hearts fans. Out-witted, out-played, out-thought and most definitely out of their depth.

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Who needs 4-4-2 when you can play 4-6-0?

When the club reported that Juho Makela was injured, I have to admit that I was disappointed but only because I was concerned that it might lessen our chances of shipping him out come January. Rumours of £5k per week and the same again in appearance fees did little to soothe growing concerns that signing him had been one of the biggest mistakes of the last few years, and the brief glimpses of him that we've had since his return from FC Thun have served only to emphasise his lack of goal scoring ability.

However, Csaba Laszlo's startling decision on Saturday to replace a petulant Christian Nade with David Obua rather than benchmate Jamie Mole highlighted the lack of confidence that our manager has in any of the striking options currently available to him.

There's no doubt that after 15 appearances this season alone, Jamie Mole has been given ample opportunity to prove that he could live up to the reputation he had amassed for being a training ground goal scoring guru but while his workrate can't be faulted, he too has failed to impress. While it is wouldn't be completely daft to consider the possibility that it was partly a tactical move, Csaba's decision to leave him on the bench and play over one hour of the match against Dundee United without a recognised striker must surely indicate that an exit from Tynecastle is beckoning for Mole.

Mike Tullberg is still injured and Gary Glen's promotion to the first team appears to have been put on ice for the time being, so with no other real contenders coming through from the reserves or youth ranks it appears that our options are somewhat limited to say the very least. Indeed, the composition of the bench on Saturday might suggest that Glen's return to the first team could be even further away than expected. Financial constraints or not, it's surely inconcievable to think that even Vladimir would believe that we can sustain a challenge for third place without bringing in at least one striker in January?

The mystery of Gary Glen

So here we are, a mere day away from learning which lucky players will be chosen to pit their wits against St Mirren this weekend and as ever, much of the Jambo discussion focuses on the current problem we have in finding the back of the net. Last weekend's Celtic disaster excepted, our midfield has been looking stronger and goal scoring opportunities have been created - the only problem is that very few actually result in actual goals.

Nobody can surely criticise Nade for the considerable improvements in his all-round play, and he has done remarkably well in the lone striker role, but even he has been guilty of the occasional cock up in front of goal. Jamie Mole's workrate also cannot be faulted but his first touch is frustratingly clumsy and despite claims from those at Riccarton that he has an excellent finish, his eye for goal hasn't been obvious to those who sit in the stands. Juho Makela may have scored against the mighty Barcelona but since his return from a loan period at FC Thun, he also appears to be finding it difficult to make any impact in the reserves league and looks an unlikely prospect for the first team at any point in the near future and Mike Tullberg remains an unknown quantity thanks to the injury which has kept him largely on the sidelines since his arrival in Gorgie.

And so, we arrive at Gary Glen. Much has been made of the talents of this youngster and until fairly recently, the Hearts faithful were often regaled of his exciting exploits in the reserve and under 19s. Every cloud has a silver lining as they say, and last season's slump into the bottom half of the SPL saw us trying out some of the youth players, with Glen getting a run of 6 appearances in which he scored against ICT and St Mirren before finishing off his season as a first team player with a red card in Gretna. However, since Csaba Laszlo's arrival at Tynecastle last summer, there has been no sign of Gary in any of our SPL encounters.

With our ongoing goal problem in mind, some Hearts fans are screaming for his reinstatement and demanding his inclusion in first team affairs for the simple reason that he surely 'has to be better than what we currently have'. Me? I'm not so sure. There's no doubting that the youngster has talent and going by what has been seen of him, he's certainly not awestruck by the step up to the first team and the encounters which that brings. However, combining reports that his recent performances in the reserves have been rather lacklustre and the comments made by Csaba Laszlo about Glen at a fans Q&A suggesting that his attitude might not yet be of an ideal standard,I'm tempted to think that he may not yet be the goal scoring Messiah that we're looking for. Not right now, anyway.

We all saw what happened to Callum Elliot and while some might think that he has simply found his level at Livingston, I'd hazard a guess that the lack of pressure from the stands in West Lothian has undoubtedly contributed to his recent improvement in form. Like any young player, progress will be characterised by a period of performance peaks and troughs and unfortunately the weight of expectation can sometimes take its toll, and often to the detriment of their continued improvement as a player. Current circumstances at the club coupled with an antsy group of supporters would suggest that the burden upon Glen may be too much and I'd hate to watch the slow and methodical destruction of another youngster's confidence.

Of course, there's every chance that I make far too many assumptions about this young man, and should he appear in maroon this weekend or at any point in the coming weeks, I wish him nothing but the very best of luck. If he fails to score or to impress the onlookers, I only hope that any criticism is given in a considered and weighted fashion and that his desire to feature in the first team isn't affected. Csaba Laszlo's desire to protect younger players is evident,but this doesn't appear to affect his decision making and Lee Wallace, Eggert Jonsson et al continue to improve on a weekly basis under his tutelage - so perhaps it's fair to assume that the same would happen for Gary if and when he is given the chance.

Alternatively, if he does play and he also scores, once I've been scraped back down from the ceiling I'd be inclined to try and remember that he probably isn't going to do that every week and that our expectations should be tempered with the knowledge that his development is ongoing; he's in no way the finished article. Wonder kids coming along so rarely that it's unfair to burden him with the expectations of a group of supporters whose mood has the tendency to swing from utter despair to a euphoria borne of relief within the space of a few seconds. If we need reinforcements in any position, it's up front and while we can only hope that Vlad buys us a shiny new striker for Christmas, focus should really be on the collective improvement of the current crop and not on one sole youngster.

However, should he turn out to be the new Robbo...I'll be more than happy to say that I was wrong...