Hearts, Tynecastle Park – Hopper Tales #70

A Change of Plans

Today we will be venturing to the Scottish capital to watch the crucial game between Hearts and Aberdeen.

This will be our second trip to Tynecastle, the first review is in the link below. It details the game against Motherwell from the 2021/22 league campaign.

With groundhopping, you never quite know if your plans will work out.

Today was another prime example of that. We had initially planned to go to the League Two playoff game between Albion Rovers and The Spartans.

Incredibly, Rovers sold out of tickets within eight minutes and I, not expecting such a rush for tickets, missed out. This meant I was stuck with train tickets to Coatdyke and no match to attend.

No panic, yet!

Alternate Options

I opened my Futbology app and scanned the available fixtures in the area. One jumped out at me immediately; Hearts were playing Aberdeen in the race for third place in the SPL. This has been a back-and-forth between the two all season and it’s going down to the wire.

Why is finishing third important?

Well, apart from the prestige of being the best team outside the big two, there is also European competition at stake. Both teams will clinch a place in the Conference League qualifiers with third place securing a place in the third qualifying round, while the team finishing fourth enters a stage earlier, at the second qualifying round.

Clearly, with this being an important match, I did wonder if tickets would still be available at such short notice. I visited the Hearts ticketing website and was delighted to see tickets available. There were some being resold by season ticket holders who weren’t going and a few in the stand behind the goal, still on general sale.

I selected two of the resale tickets, priced at £27.00 each, in the main stand and opted to collect them at the ticket office.

Panic over!

I posted on social media that we would be attending this game and was surprised to see a little annoyance at my ability to get tickets. It seems Aberdeen had been given a miserly 600 ticket allocation and this was understandably a little annoying that a groundhopper could attend but not a supporter.

All I can say is, the issue lies with the allocation, not me.

Hearts – The Journey

With our advanced train tickets being planned for Coatdyke (near Glasgow), we set off earlier than we would otherwise have needed to. Still, it was the usual time for us and we are used to early starts on a Saturday.

The usual stumble from bed to bus, to catch the 07:05 to Newcastle, followed by breakfast at Greggs. We left there at 08:25 and slowly wandered through the litter-strewn chaos of the night before to Newcastle train station.

Our 08:49 train pulled in and left on time and we were just over an hour and a half away from the Scottish capital. Having passed through Edinburgh Waverley station, we got off at Haymarket, a couple of minutes further down the line, at 10:30.

With the game being a 12:30 kick-off, there were already plenty of Hearts and Aberdeen supporters around.

Gorgie

Heart of Midlothian Football Club is located in the Gorgie district of Edinburgh, to the west of the city centre. Across the train tracks lies Murrayfield Stadium, home to the Scotland rugby team.

Our walk from Haymarket to Tynecastle was along the A70 and through the heart of the Gorgie.

This is a densely populated area of Edinburgh and the residents are fiercely proud of the Gorgie. The Gorgie plays a big part in the support of Hearts and you will see it emblazoned on banners and scarves worn by the boys in maroon. ‘Gorgie Rules’ is also chanted by the fans during matches.

It’s a great place for shopping for foreign cuisine ingredients and shops abound with Arabic, Chinese, Polish, and Chinese foods.

After passing the wonderfully named Coffin Lane, the A70 becomes Gorgie Road at the next junction. Shortly after this, there is a right turn onto McLeod Street and here we get our first glimpse of Tynecastle Park.

Hearts – Tynecastle Park

Normally, I would do a circuit of the stadium and take photographs. Tynecastle isn’t the sort of stadium where you can do that. There is a very open and spacious area in front of the main stand and its glass facade but the rest of the stadium is hemmed in on all sides.

This photograph taken from Google Earth shows the location and the hemmed-in nature of the stadium.

Hearts Club Shop

The ticket office at Hearts is located inside the club shop, which is located to the left of the main stand.

We went inside and collected our tickets without any problem, before exploring the club shop. I have to say, I think Hearts have one of the better club shops in Scotland and there is plenty to see other than the usual fare.

Last time we were here, I picked up a Hearts tartan hip flask which comes in handy for a wee nip of the good stuff on cold days.

Programme

Having already got a pin badge last time around, I contented myself with just a programme.

This is a good effort by Hearts. Sixty-eight glossy pages, packed with news and photos and slightly larger than the normal-sized programme. City rivals, Hibernian would do well to learn from this and reintroduce a programme of their own.

Until then, 1-0 to the Maroon half of the city.

With plenty of time until kick-off, we wandered down towards where the Aberdeen fans were entering the stadium. Again, not a lot to see here but I took photos anyway.

There is a huge and impressive-looking building at this end of the stadium. I have no idea what it once was but it is a crying shame to see it run down and deteriorating.

You can see it to the right of Tynecastle in the following photograph.

We sat on the steps outside the club shop for a few minutes, soaking in the spring air. Around 11:45 we approached the turnstiles, which are of the automated, self-scanning variety. We scanned our tickets and entered the stadium.

Hearts – Tynecastle Park Interior

Once inside, we climbed the steps leading into the concourse behind the stand.

After a quick visit to the little boys’ room, we took our seats at the far right-hand side of the stand.

Well, Mrs Hopper did. I went off and took some more photographs of course.

Tynecastle Park is a very aesthetically pleasing stadium to the eye. The four separate, steep stands are close to the pitch, giving supporters a great view of the action.

To the left of the Main Stand is the Gorgie Stand. Opposite is the Wheatfield Stand and to the right, is the Roseburn Stand.

Each of the four stands is very similar in design, giving a neat, uniform look to the place. They are all two-tiered, with a walkway about a third of the way up each stand.

The Main Stand is the one that contains the majority of the hospitality, offices, dressing rooms etc. It is also where the players’ tunnel and technical dugouts are located.

For some strange reason, that bothers my desire for orderliness, the players’ tunnel is slightly off-centre. I’m sure there was a good reason for this when it was designed.

The Roseburn Stand to our right is where the six hundred Aberdeen supporters were located. A line of fabric across seats segregates the home and away support.

The pitch is a state of the art hybrid, which cost the club £1 million. Full story here. The four floodlights are located in each corner of the ground, embedded into the gap between the stands. Again, this is an aesthetically pleasing way of designing it and gives a nod to the traditional floodlight set-up.

Tynecastle Park has a capacity of 19,852 since the ground was revamped and made all-seater. It has been the home of Hearts since 1886.

Hearts – Tynecastle Park Interior Gallery

Hearts – Pre-Game View of Tynecastle Park

Heart of Midlothian v Aberdeen – The Game

Form

Coming into the game, Hearts had won one, drawn one and lost two of their last four games. These results included a 1-0 defeat to city rivals, Hibs and a 6-1 drubbing of relegation-threatened Ross County.

The visitors from the Granite City, meanwhile, had won two, drawn one and lost one of their last four fixtures. This included two games against Rangers; a 2-0 victory at Pittodrie and a 1-0 reverse at Ibrox.

Coming into the game I predicted a 1-2 victory for the Dons.

Kick-Off

The visiting Dons got the match underway and they made a pretty bright start.

In the sixth minute, Bojan Miovski danced past a couple of challenges in the box before finally being crowded off the ball before he could get a shooting opportunity.

At the other end, we had to wait until the 14th minute for Lawrence Shankland to get Hearts’ first effort. He got past a couple of defenders before seeing his low twenty-yarder saved by Kelle Roos in the Dandies’ goal.

Two minutes later, Yutaro Oda got the better of Johnny Hayes and bore down on the Aberdeen goal. His low shot from the angle of the six-yard box was smartly saved at the near post by Roos.

Change of Seats

During all of this action, there was a constant stream of people either coming up or going down the steps beside our seats. It was very distracting and I had been eyeing up the four empty seats on the opposite side of these steps.

After twenty minutes of the first half, I decided nobody was coming to sit in them and we changed our seats.

Good decision! We now had an uninterrupted view of the match.

The game action was back and forth with Hearts and Aberdeen seemingly taking turns to get forward.

Just after the half-hour, Aberdeen won a corner on the left. Leighton Clarkson swung the set piece over to the far post and above the outstretched hands of Zander Clark.

Mattie Pollock rose highest and nodded the Dons into the lead to send the Aberdeen fans into a frenzy in the corner.

0-1 Aberdeen!

The lead was almost short-lived as Hearts looked to respond immediately. Barrie McKay played an exquisite pass through the Dons defence which Josh Ginnelly raced onto. With an equally inspired touch, he backheeled the ball into the path of Alex Cochrane nine yards out.

With the goal gaping, it seemed certain he would score. However, his first touch let him down and by the time he had it under control, Liam Scales was able to block his shot. The ball bounced up in the air and Shankland got his head to it but Roos was there to save again on the edge of his six-yard box. The loose ball dropped to Cochrane again but this time he turned and put the ball into Row W.

Phew! Take a breather.

As we headed towards halftime, a series of events conspired to make me miss the Hearts equaliser.

First, there were fireworks being let off behind the stand opposite us. Related to this match? Maybe Hibs fans celebrating the fact that the Jambos were losing? Or maybe completely random, I don’t know.

While the fireworks were still going up, a shout went up behind us and hands were waving to the stewards for assistance. Again, I have no idea what was going on above us. I assume someone needed medical assistance but that’s just a guess.

While this was taking place, Ginnelly scored a worldie of a goal, to give Hearts parity.

A simple pass from McKay saw Ginnelly take the ball inside and from twenty-five yards put in a curling effort that went from the left side of the pitch into the top right corner of Roos’ goal.

Take a bow, sir!

1-1 Hearts equaliser

That brought a chaotic end to a good first half of football.

Half-time – Heart of Midlothian 1 v Aberdeen 1

The players went in for a well-deserved halftime breather and we did the same. Some frenetic action, peppered with a few rash challenges, saw three bookings dished out by referee Kevin Clancy.

Names taken were Cammy Devlin for Hearts and Aberdeen’s Marley Watkins and captain Johnny Hayes. Hayes was making his 300^th appearance for the Dons.

Bojan Miovski and Ylber Ramadani would join the captain in the referee’s notebook during the second half.

This game was the third time I have seen these two teams play and I hadn’t seen either of them lose yet. Would this change? Or would the game end in a draw?

With the players back out for the second half, it was time to see who would step up and take the victory.

My 1-2 prediction was still on…

The Second Half

The home side started the second period and they also started to take charge of the game. They were controlling possession and forcing Aberdeen back. Ramadani and Miovski received their yellow cards during this period of pressure as the game threatened to get out of control on a couple of occasions.

The pressure paid off eleven minutes into the half.

Cochrane whipped a first-time cross hard and low into the area and that man Shankland was waiting. Having already scored twenty-six goals this season, it was no surprise to see the net bulge after he reacted quickest to the cross and got to it before Scales.

2-1 Hearts!

With Shankland’s name still being sung by his adoring fans, McKay almost added a third two minutes later. He bent a shot just past the post and Aberdeen were starting to look a little ragged.

With Hearts now in full control, Aberdeen manager Barry Robson attempted to shake things up by making three substitutions. Ryan Duncan, Jack MacKenzie and Shayden Morris replaced Hayes, Angus MacDonald and Connor Barron.

Goalscorer Ginnelly was forced off after hurting his ankle five minutes later.

Right winger, Morris, looked a lively player after coming on but he couldn’t do anything to help his team get back into the game.

Aberdeen did stem the tide a little after the changes but never really threatened an equaliser. In fact, it was Hearts who almost got a third as the game started to wind down.

Devlin passed the ball to him in the Dons box and he put his side-footed shot inches wide of the right post when he probably should have scored. His reaction suggested he thought so too.

A worrying clash of heads between Pollock and Nathaniel Atkinson was the last meaningful action, despite eight extra added minutes. It was a relief to see both men get up and walk away from it after seemingly being out for the count.

The referee blew for full-time amid much celebrating around us.

A more professional Match Report is available here, via the Daily Record website.

Full-time – Heart of Midlothian 2 v Aberdeen 1

Attendance – 18,661

Entrance Fee – £27.00

Programme – £3.50

Hearts v Aberdeen – Match Highlights

Up Next

As the race continues, the Jam Tarts face a tough final two fixtures and need at least one win to clinch third place. They start the finale with a trip to Ibrox, home of runners-up Rangers, on Wednesday 34th of May. This is followed up by what could prove to be an explosive final fixture at home to fierce rivals Hibernian at the weekend…

The Dons meanwhile have to still be considered the favourites to win the race with a two-point advantage in the bag. They still have to face St. Mirren at Pittodrie on Wednesday and a huge game at Celtic Park to follow.

Personally, I see Aberdeen beating St. Mirren and losing to Celtic. This would leave them five points ahead. This would mean that Hearts will need to win both of their games to secure third place.

Still, this is football and you can never be too sure what will happen.

Thoughts

Tynecastle Park is a great place to come and watch football.

It is a modern stadium that somehow retains a traditional old-school feel. Transport links are good and there are plenty of great pubs in the vicinity. In fact, Edinburgh is littered with fantastic boozers throughout the city.

Tynecastle is clearly the throbbing centre of the Gorgie district of Edinburgh and it shows in the passion of the support. Support that actually owns the club via the Foundation of Hearts. You can read all about how that came about here on their website.

Despite the tense nature of the game, fans happily mingled together, even after the game on the walk back through the Gorgie to Haymarket station.

It’s a real shame that the two Glasgow clubs have such a stranglehold on Scottish football and it somewhat dampens the spirit of other great clubs.

Both Aberdeen and Hearts are among the clubs capable of great things if they could only compete on an even footing financially. They both have superb support and large fanbases. A little success would only enlarge those fanbases.

Maybe one day, a rich investor will see the potential of these sorts of clubs and give the SPL the competition it craves to displace the boring sameness at the top. I have nothing against Celtic or Rangers but the SPL needs to be more competitive for its own good.

How alluring is winning when the competition isn’t on the same footing? If the competition was more even, I genuinely think clubs like Celtic and Rangers could attract bigger players and keep hold of the ones they have. This would help them do better in Europe, too.

Iron sharpens iron, as they say.

Hearts – After the Game

Following the game, we watched a little of the celebrations by the home fans before heading for the exits.

The walk up a crowded Gorgie Road and A70 went relatively quickly, despite the number of people. Aberdeen fans were mingled into the throngs and there was no animosity from anyone.

We reached Haymarket at 14:55 and were soon aboard a train which took us to Waverley.

Bearing in mind our tickets were for a later train from Coatdyke, we tried our luck asking a guard on the 15:30 train if we could get on. She politely refused and we made our way to get a coffee while we waited for the next opportunity.

It was at this point that our day was majorly soured!

A Sour Note to the Day

Mrs Hopper reached for her purse and realised that between Tynecastle and Waverley, it had been taken from her bag. My mind went back to that crowded walk along Gorgie Road…

We lost £50 in cash, our bus tickets home and had to cancel Mrs Hoppers’ bank card. Luckily, we did so before the card had been used. On top of this, was the purse itself, which held sentimental value as it had been a gift from a dear friend of hers.

This isn’t a negative about Hearts because let’s face it, your stuff can get stolen anywhere at any time. I will, however, mention it so that others can be aware that it is a possibility in the vicinity.

So, after cancelling our cards, we managed to get a seat on the 16:00 train to Newcastle. Thank you to the guard that allowed us to do so. I really didn’t enjoy the prospect of sitting in Waverley for three hours with no money.

The journey back to Newcastle was made in the late afternoon sun and I had to take a snap of my favourite spot as we crossed the River Tweed at Berwick.

I couldn’t help but smile despite my silent anger.

Newcastle

Once we arrived in Newcastle, we had no money and no bus tickets. A taxi home would cost us around £40 to £50, so we decided to try explaining our situation to the bus driver.

Mrs Hopper did at least have the transaction on her bank account from the morning’s ticket sale. After explaining what had happened, the driver reluctantly let us get on board and he has our thanks for that!

We arrived back in town at 18:30 and were home five minutes later.

How quickly a good day can turn bad, eh?

Next Up For Hoppers Guide

Our next game is undecided, as of yet. I will be keeping an eye out for fixtures that may suit us but obviously, with the season almost at an end, the fixtures are running out now.

Having said that, I have booked tickets for a game in July.

Manchester United will be playing Olympique Lyonnais at Murrayfield Stadium in a prestige friendly. Chances to tick off the home of Scottish rugby for a football match don’t come around often and I intend to add it to my tick list.

If anything comes up before then, you lovely lot will read all about it first.

Onto the next!

Hopper Tales #69 – Stirling Albion

Hopper Tales #71 – ?