Heart of Midlothian Football Club, commonly known as Hearts, is a professional football club in Edinburgh, Scotland. The team competes in the, the top division of Scottish football. Hearts, the oldest football club in the Scottish capital,[2] was formed in 1874, its name influenced by Walter Scott's novel The Heart of Midlothian (1818). The club crest is based on the Heart of Midlothian mosaic on the city's Royal Mile; the team's colours are maroon and white. Their local rivals are Hibernian, with whom they contest the Edinburgh derby.
Hearts have played home matches at Tynecastle Park since 1886.[3] After the ground was converted into an all-seater stadium in 1990, it now has a capacity of [1] following the completion of a rebuilt main stand in 2017. They have training facilities at the Oriam, Scotland's national performance centre for sport, where they also run their youth academy.[4]
Hearts have won the Scottish league championship four times, most recently in 1959–60, when they also retained the Scottish League Cup to complete a League and League Cup double – the only club outside of the Old Firm to achieve such a feat.
The club's most successful period was under former player turned manager Tommy Walker from the early 1950s to mid 1960s, during which they won two league titles and five major cups and finished inside the league's top four positions for 11 consecutive seasons. Jimmy Wardhaugh, Willie Bauld and Alfie Conn Sr., known as the Terrible Trio, were forwards at the start of this period with wing half linchpins Dave Mackay and John Cumming. Wardhaugh was part of another notable Hearts attacking trinity in the 1957–58 league winning side: along with Jimmy Murray and Alex Young,[5] they set the record for the number of goals scored in a Scottish top-flight winning campaign (132) and also became the only side to finish a season in the Scottish top tier with a goal difference exceeding 100 (+103).
Hearts have won the Scottish Cup eight times, most recently in 2012 after a 5–1 victory over Hibernian.[6] They have since been beaten finalists in 2019, 2020 and 2022. All four of Hearts' Scottish League Cup triumphs came under Walker, most recently a 1–0 victory against Kilmarnock in 1962. Their most recent League Cup Final appearance was in 2013, where they lost 3–2 to St Mirren.
In 1958, Heart of Midlothian became the third Scottish and fifth British team to compete in European competition. The club reached the quarter-finals of the 1988–89 UEFA Cup, losing to Bayern Munich 2–1 on aggregate.
History
Early years
The club was formed by a group of friends from the Heart of Midlothian Quadrille Assembly Club. The group of friends bought a ball before playing local rules football at the Tron from where they were directed by a local policeman to The Meadows to play. Local rules football was a mix of rugby and association football. In December 1873 a match was held between XIs selected by Mr Thomson from Queen's Park and Mr Gardner from Clydesdale at Raimes Park in Bonnington.[7] This was the first time that association rules had been seen in Edinburgh. Members from the dance club viewed the match and in 1874 decided to adopt the association rules.[8] The new side was Heart of Mid-Lothian Football Club. The exact date of the club's formation was never recorded; however, 1874 is regarded as the year of formation as it was when association rules were taken on, although Tom Purdie claimed the club was formed in 1873.[9] The earliest mention of Heart of Midlothian in a sporting context is a report in The Scotsman
Colours and badge
The original Hearts football strip was all white shirts and trousers with maroon trimmings, and a heart sewn onto the chest. For one season they played in red, white and blue stripes. These were the colours of a club called St. Andrew, who had taken their name and colours from the University of St Andrews, that Hearts had absorbed. Since then the predominant club colours have been maroon and white.[182] The strip typically has a maroon top and a white collar,[182] although the strip was predominantly white in the 2010–11 season.[183] The shorts are normally white, although maroon was used in the 2008–09 season.[182] The socks are normally maroon with some white detail.[182]
Hearts' current home kit is all maroon.[184]
Stadium
Hearts initially played at The Meadows, Powburn and Powderhall before moving to the Gorgie area in 1881. In 1886, they moved to their current site, Tynecastle Park, named for the Tynecastle Tollhouse at the entrance to the grounds of Merchiston.[188] The stadium has hosted nine full Scotland international matches.
For most of the 20th century, Tynecastle was a mostly terraced ground, with a seated main stand that was designed by Archibald Leitch and opened in 1919. The terraced sections were replaced by the Gorgie, Wheatfield and Roseburn Stands in the mid-1990s, making Tynecastle an all-seated stadium. In 2017, the main stand was demolished and replaced by a brand new stand which increased the ground's capacity to 20,099.[1] While this work was undertaken, Hearts played some of their home league matches at the nearby Murrayfield Stadium.[189]
Rivalry
Hearts have a traditional local rivalry in Edinburgh with Hibernian; the Edinburgh derby match between the two clubs is one of the oldest rivalries in world football.[190] Graham Spiers has described it as "one of the jewels of the Scottish game".[191] The clubs first met on Christmas Day 1875, when Hearts won 1–0, in the first match ever contested by Hibs. The two clubs became distinguished in Edinburgh after a five-game struggle for the Edinburgh Football Association Cup in 1878, which Hearts finally won with a 3–2 victory after four successive draws.[192] The clubs have met twice in a Cup Final, in the 1896 Scottish Cup final, which Hearts won 3–1 and the 2012 Scottish Cup final which Hearts won 5–1. The 1896 final is also notable for being the only Scottish Cup Final to be played outside Glasgow.[193]
Hearts have the better record in derbies.[194]
Supporters and culture
Heart of Midlothian are one of two full-time professional football clubs in Edinburgh.[199] Hearts' average attendance during the 2022–23 season was 18,525.[200] Important matches (particularly the Edinburgh derby, European fixtures, and games against the Old Firm) always see Tynecastle at or very close to full capacity.[201]
Songs and chants
"The Hearts Song" was written and performed by Scottish comedian Hector Nicol, a St Mirren fan. A new modernised version of "The Hearts Song", performed by Colin Chisholm and the Glasgow Branch, has been played before matches at Tynecastle in recent seasons, though the original version returned for the 2019–20 season. In the 2020–21 season the modern version once again replaced the old version.
European record
Honours
Major honours
- Scottish Premiership and predecessors (1890–present):
- Champions (4): 1894–95, 1896–97, 1957–58, 1959–60
- Runners–up (14): 1893–94, 1898–99, 1903–04, 1905–06, 1914–15, 1937–38, 1953–54, 1956–57, 1958–59, 1964–65, 1985–86, 1987–88, 1991–92, 2005–06
- Scottish Cup (1874–present):
- Winners (8): 1890–91, 1895–96, 1900–01, 1905–06, 1955–56, 1997–98, 2005–06, 2011–12
- Runners–up (9): 1902–03
Player of the year
Hall of fame
The club established their hall of fame in 2006 to commemorate the "great players whose grit, skill, dedication and professionalism" helped make them a "bedrock" of the club.[227]
Players and managers
Teams
The 1997–98 Scottish Cup winners
Manager: Jim Jefferies
The 2011–12 Scottish Cup winners
Manager: Paulo Sérgio
The Wallace Mercer Lifetime Achievement Award
- John Robertson (2006)
- Willie Bauld (2006)
- Dave Mackay (2006)
- Paul Hartley (2006)
Club records
- Attendance
- Highest home attendance: 53,396 v Rangers, 13 February 1932, Scottish Cup, Tynecastle Park
- Highest average home attendance: 28,195, 1948–49 season (15 games)[228]
- Single game
- Biggest win: 21–0 vs Anchor, EFA Cup, 1880
- Biggest defeat: 1–8 vs Vale of Leven, Scottish Cup, 1888[229]
- Caps and appearances
- Most capped players: Craig Gordon, 83 caps for Scotland (2004–present)[230]
Players
Club staff
Corporate staff
Coaching staff
Hearts Women staff
For more information on Hearts Women staff, see
Managers
Hearts Women
In 2009, Hearts took over Musselburgh Windsor Ladies Football Club, changing their name to Hearts Ladies FC.[266][267] They currently play in the Scottish Women's Premier League under the name Hearts Women.[268]
The team play their home games at The Oriam, Riccarton.[269]
External links
References
- Tynecastle Park Safety Certificate, issued October 2018 31 October 2018^
- Andrew-Henry Bowie. Two miles to Tynecastle Apex, 2011^
- Inglis. 1996^