Hearts boss doesn't want to see Capital Cup return for league matches

Hearts manager Eva Olid wants all league Edinburgh derbies to be as they were on Saturday with no Capital Cup reward.

The standalone competition was conspicuous by its absence this past weekend as Hibs and Hearts played out another 1-1 draw, the third in succession this campaign.

After the previous two matches, the teams then held a penalty shoot out to decide who lifted the Capital Cup trophy with Hibs winning the first contest and Hearts winning the second.

The trophy wasn’t on the line at Easter Road and Olid wants it to remain that way in league play.

"I like the Capital Cup because it is somebody supporting women’s football, but at the same time I don’t think they should have to be in the league games,” she said.

“I think it should be a game in pre-season or something like that where we compete for the Capital Cup. But not for the league games because it’s a little strange.

"If it was the Capital Cup then we would’ve had penalties for the third time this season, it’s crazy.”

The competition was launched in association with investment management company Baillie Gifford, who picked up the bill for each of the last two games being free entry for all spectators.

Hearts head coach Eva Olid on the sidelines at Easter Road during the match against Hibs. Picture: SNS

That wasn’t the case this past weekend with it costing £10 a ticket for adults and the crowd suffered as a result. Just over 800 turned up for a fixture that saw 8,000 attend earlier this campaign, though there were other factors at play with both men’s teams in action earlier in the day and kick-off being 7.45pm on a Saturday evening.

"It’s so hard to ask people to come watch two games in one day, it’s impossible. And it’s so hard to ask them to come at this time as well,” said Olid.

"It was good to have a crowd paying for tickets though because when it’s free tickets people complain, wondering why it’s free. And when it’s free then people get tickets but at the last moment they don’t come. They think ‘OK, it was free, I didn’t pay, and now I have other plans’. So they don’t come to the game.

"It was an OK crowd. I expected more Hearts fans but it was OK.”

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