Hearts on This Day

Description

Hearts On This Day revisits the most magical and memorable moments from the club's distinguished history, mixing in a maelstrom of anecdotes and characters to produce an irresistible Jambos diary - with an entry for every day of the year. From the club's humble, romantic origins in Edinburgh's Old Town, to coming within a hair's breadth of extinction at the hands of a Russian megalomaniac, to ultimate redemption in a record-toppling Championship campaign. Hearts fans have experienced each and every gamut of emotion in the club's 140-year history. The team were the first in Britain to sign up en masse for the Great War. While cup wins, a never-bettered 132-goal title-winning campaign, memorable European nights against such luminaries as Locomotive Leipzig, Bayern Munich, Austria Vienna, Bordeaux and Basle all feature alongside a raft of Tynecastle legends.

Sujets

• Central Scotland

Informations

• Publié par: Pitch Publishing Ltd
• Date de parution: 01 août 2016
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781785312380
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

First published by Pitch Publishing, 2016
Pitch Publishing
A2 Yeoman Gate
Yeoman Way
Durrington
BN13 3QZ
www.pitchpublishing.co.uk
Steve Weddell, 2016
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the Publisher.
A CIP catalogue record is available for this book from the British Library
Print ISBN 9781785311840 eBook ISBN 9781785312380
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DEDICATION
I dedicate this book to my lovely wife, Janey. Her interest in football may have ended the day Paolo Maldini retired, but she still kept a keen eye on my progress, each day asking in vaguely irritated fashion haven t you finished it yet?
CONTENTS
FOREWORD
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
INTRODUCTION
JANUARY
FEBRUARY
MARCH
APRIL
MAY
JUNE
JULY
AUGUST
SEPTEMBER
OCTOBER
NOVEMBER
DECEMBER
FOREWORD
Donald Ford was signed by the illustrious Tommy Walker from Bo ness United in 1964, making his debut for Hearts aged 19 in a 4-2 win over Celtic later that year. A slight, elegant and prolific marksman, he was Hearts top scorer for eight successive seasons between 1968 and 1975. An impressive record of 188 goals in 436 appearances included an array of stunning landmarks, including two hattricks in three games against Morton, then Aberdeen as well as the rare feat of a hat-trick of penalties, also against Morton. Not only a great goal-scorer, but also a scorer of great goals, Ford is most fondly remembered for his glorious winner, three minutes from time, in a Scottish Cup replay versus Rangers at Tynecastle in March 1968. Despite leaving for Falkirk in 1976, Ford retained his links with the club and was not only instrumental in helping Wallace Mercer assume control when its future appeared horribly bleak but was also a member of the Foundation of Hearts original committee for four years. He was capped three times for the Scotland national team, making his debut against Czechoslovakia in 1973 and was in the squad for the 1974 World Cup in West Germany. Now a professional landscape photographer, running his business from Carnoustie, he remains one of Tynecastle s favourite sons.
It was in 1953 or thereabout when dad took me to Tynecastle for the first time. It was the beginning of the great Fifties team which Tommy Walker put together and, of course, I was hooked. The Conn, Bauld and Wardhaugh combination was just magnificent, individual skills (most of which are now long gone and may never be seen again) in every department of a team were just terrific. My greatest honour - without ANY doubt - was wearing the same number nine shirt which Willie and Alex Young both graced for the club. The word legend is grossly over-used now, but - alongside Dave Mackay - these are three who deserve every letter of the adjective. So to sign for Tommy Walker, a quiet, thoughtful man, to follow in the footsteps and walk the same hallowed corridors of such wonderful talents was a joy.
Down through the years Hearts history has been illuminated by so many iconic figures and stand-out moments and Hearts On This Day seeks to reacquaint us with all of the most memorable, quirky, and above all else unforgettable events of Hearts 140-year history. It visits each and every date in the calendar, allowing you to immerse yourself in the joy and heartache of supporting Edinburgh s big team, either by dipping in or threading through the swathes of history as personalities and drama loom large. The book is highly entertaining, transporting you back to classic encounters, triggering reminiscence and furious debate. And I, for one, feel honoured to have worn the famous maroon shirt with such pride and been part of that glorious history.
Donald Ford
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all I must thank my publishers, Pitch Publishing for entrusting me with the task of writing another book for them. And, as he did with A Tale of Two Seasons , Eric McCowat has come up trumps with another stunning array of photographs so very many thanks for that.
As always my mates took a healthy interest in my progress so cheers to Ross Millar, Grant Young, Carolyn Young, Stephen Shearman, Ian Millar, Jack Millar, Shawn Millar, George Kinnear and Jennifer Gardiner.
I leant heavily on the phenomenally concise London Hearts website so many thanks to all associated with that. I shudder to think how hard this book would ve been to compile without access to such a well-researched resource.
Equally, I started and revisited countless threads on Jambos Kickback in order to inveigle little snippets of information about various matches and characters, so thanks to all who took the time to share their recollections. Especially the unnamed chap who sent me a link to decades worth of archived match reports - totally invaluable!
Big shout out to Ian Colquhoun, co-author of Hibernian FC On This Day for being so supportive and full of good advice.
Finally, thanks to Donald Ford for penning the foreword - an absolute gentleman!
INTRODUCTION
Having the opportunity to put this book together was a true privilege and at the same time hugely daunting. To pick a trail through the triumph and tragedy of Heart of Midlothian s long and illustrious history was immensely enjoyable as it allowed me to engage with a whole host of thrillingly memorable moments. But, then again, I was faced with the predicament of cultivating the right blend of games and eras without causing consternation to the reader with glaring omissions or even odder inclusions.
I d hope the end result captures enough special moments to satisfy everyone. In seeking out game(s) from each and every day of the year I ve noticed one indelible truth. Simply, that for any given date, if you re prepared to burrow deep enough through the archives, it s possible to find an exciting, uplifting outcome - in essence, every day, it appears, is a good day to be a Jambo!
True, titles are snatched away in the dying minutes of seasons, there are relegations and the deepest, most profound tragedy encased in Hearts lengthy history but, equally, redemption and elation lies within these self-same days. There s always another match, another derby, another final, another hero.
And, fundamentally, it s the personalities that light a torch through Hearts history and hopefully also through Hearts On This Day : from Battles to Beattie and Conn to Colquhoun; from Walkers Bobby, Tommy and Jamie to Mackays Dave and Gary; from Wardhaugh to Robbo, Bauld to Busby and Ford to Foster. In this book all the Hearts heroes - past and present - rub shoulders and I really hope you enjoy reading about their exploits as much as I did writing about them.
Steve Weddell

FRIDAY 1st JANUARY 1960
Three points clear at the summit of the league and well on course for their second title in three years, Hearts made their way across town for the traditional New Year s Day derby. A massive 54,000 crowd packed out Easter Road, in eager anticipation of an epic contest. Hibernian, seven points behind Hearts, started brightly but were rocked by Tommy Walker s side scoring from their very first attack. Willie Bauld saw his header hit the post and Alex Young tucked away the rebound. Hibernian s response was instantaneous, first Joe Baker had a goal chalked off and then saw impassioned pleas for a penalty waved away. Play was relentless and in the 17th minute Hibernian defender John Plenderleith bundled a corner into his own net with Young hovering. At 2-0 the next goal was crucial and Hearts claimed it on 53 minutes, Young scoring his second. Bobby Johnstone pulled one back for Hibs on 66 minutes but Hearts were rampant and a minute later they made it 4-1, Young completing his hat-trick with a dazzling run and shot. The final insult for Hibernian was being forced to watch former hero, Gordon Smith, crack an unstoppable volley past Jackie Wren for 5-1.
MONDAY 1st JANUARY 1973
A devastasting display from Turnbull s Tornadoes saw them record a 7-0 victory at a shell-shocked Tynecastle. A painful defeat for all associated with Hearts yet one which the passage of time has done much to soothe. Well, the passage of time along with 17 in a row, 22 in a row, the Hartley 4-0, the Hampden and De Vries 5-1s, the 4-4, the relegation derby and a whole catalogue of other equally memorable triumphs that we ll get to in due course.
WEDNESDAY 1st JANUARY 1997
A baptism of fire for new Hibernian boss Jim Duffy, replacing Jocky Scott, saw him bullishly embrace the visit of Hearts, musing I don t think I could have asked for a better game with which to start my career as Hibernian manager . Jim Jefferies side had other ideas and racked up their biggest Easter Road win since September 1962. John Robertson s 25th derby goal opened the scoring and Andy Millen s red card five minutes later firmly established Hearts in the driving seat. Two goals in two second-half minutes from Jim Hamilton and Colin Cameron had Duffy squirming and Hammy wrapped up matters with his second and Hearts fourth on 87 minutes.
SATURDAY 1st JANUARY 2011
Hearts were in fine fettle as they welcomed city neighbours, Hibernian to Tynecastle. Clear in third, victory here would nudge the Jam Tarts to within two and three, respectively, of Rangers and Celtic. Their 19 goal attempts to Hibernian s five offers only a hint of Hearts crushing dominance but it took until the 86th minute to finally prise open the Hibernian defence. An inspired run and cross from Arvydas Novikovas saw the ball loop enticingly towards Kevin Kyle mak