Alex Cochrane breaks silence on Almeria fight after Hearts ace found himself at centre of 40-man brawl

Alex Cochrane wants to draw a line under the Almeria debacle after being at the centre of one of the most bizarre Hearts moments in recent memory.

Only 42 minutes of a winter “friendly” match in the Costa del Sol had been played when it was abandoned after a fight broke out involving just about every member, including both playing and backroom staff, from both clubs.

It began after Cochrane left a little on Alejandro Pozo as things became tense between the pair in a running battle down the wing. Centre-back Rodrigo Ely then came charging over and levied Cochrane with a forearm smash, at which point all hell broke loose.

Cochrane and Ely were each shown straight red cards before head coach Robbie Neilson decided enough was enough and decided to take his team off the park. There was a chance Cochrane could have been suspended for domestic football but in the end no further action was taken as the 22-year-old played his part in Hearts’ victory over Kilmarnock last weekend.

Hearts defender Alex Cochrane talks to the media ahead of Saturday's match with Dundee United at Tannadice. Picture: SNS

“That got out of hand that did, the less said about that the better,” said Cochrane. “It was something out of nothing, I think it all got out of hand really quickly. After the game that was us done and dusted, we knew what happened and we didn’t speak about it again.

“I saw rumours about the possibility that I could be banned, I didn’t really think anything of it. I was surprised when I saw I got a red card but it is what it is.”

After Cochrane was bowled over by Ely there wasn’t a shortage of Hearts team-mates looking to get involved and back up their fallen comrade. This ranged from experienced veterans used to playing with Cochrane, like captain for the day Craig Halkett, to fresh-faced youngsters like teenage defender Arron Darge.

“I know, I said that to them afterwards. I didn’t actually realise how many of them got involved,” he said. “We’ve all got each others’ back in the changing room. Even without that we know we have a really good spirit in the team, it’s a good group. We’ve all got each others’ back throughout.”

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