Are Hearts too good to go down?

Last updated : 27 August 2007 By Scott The Jambo
Bookmakers have slashed odds on Hearts to be relegated to 12/1 in light of the recent turmoil which has engulfed the club.

The Jambos were thrashed 5-0 by Celtic on Saturday and currently sit 3rd from bottom of the SPL.

Frail admits he could leave the club
Assistant Coach Stephen Frail cut a lonely figure in the after match press conference, claiming "If me leaving is what is required to get things moving that I am prepared to do that".

That would be an absolute disaster as far as Hearts are concerned.


Since the departure of Steven Pressley, and later on Craig Gordon, Frail has been the man trying his best to hold the club together. He worked hard to try and install some team spirit into the beleagured players.

He even took on the media duties, meaning that, for once, the Hearts fans could understand what was being said in pre and post match interviews.


But the club has gone so far back now that I'm not sure what Romanov, or the fans, expect him to do.

As the club lurches from one crisis to the next, they are still looking for their first win of the season.

Frail himself admitted the club is effectively "managerless". The players are poor in quality, the team is governed by internal politics and agendas. Hearts look like they could play all week and still not score.

And more importantly, there is no team spirit whatsoever.

This is where teams like Gretna and Inverness will have an advantage over Hearts, and I think we saw that last week, when Gretna battled back for a draw at Tynecastle.

Vladimir Romanov at Tynecastle - a rare sight these days
Things are unlikely to change for the better before the transfer windown slams shut on Friday night.

Indeed, they could get worse, as I cannot see Kingston and Berra hanging about too long at a club involved in a relegation dogfight.

Hearts are in big trouble.


If you can't beat Gretna at home, then the alarm bells must start ringing. And I cannot think of one single team in the SPL who I'd fancy us to beat.


Motherwell next up, a team with renewed enthusiasm and the organisation of a new manager, and I reckon we'll be turned over fairly easily there too.

Gretna are obviously still the bookies favourites to go down, but it a sad indication of how far Hearts have fallen that we are speaking in this vain.

I've seen alot of poor Hearts teams over the years, and have to say, taking into account the lack of a manager and non existant team spirit, this is probably the worst I've had the misfortune of seeing.

An inept squad with no manager and all the extra baggage that deflects attention away from what it should all be about - Football.

Yes, people will say "It was worse in the 50s" and so on, however never in all my years have I seen such a self destructive force at work as Vladimir Romanov.

The man has single handedly sabotaged our chances of success on numerous occaisions. He is not here for the good of the club, that much is clear.

Maybe Hearts going down is what is required for him to throw down his toy and leave.