Why there is at least one positive in Hearts' relegation battle

Hearts are bottom of the Ladbrokes Premiership but only six points separate four teams

When the full-time whistle went at Tynecastle Park on Saturday afternoon to signal the end of Hearts 1 -1 Motherwell, there were two strands of frustration and irritation for the home side. On one side there were the late chances passed up by Steven Naismith, Liam Boyce and Michael Smith to add two vital points onto the one settled for against the Steelmen.

On the other side, the sheer dismay at the news Hamilton Academical had won again, despite being down to ten men. Marios Ogkmpoe netted a late penalty to seal the win over Kilmarnock, which followed their success over Rangers during the week.

No longer are Accies the team above Hearts in the table. And no longer is the gap at the bottom two points. St Mirren are 11th and three points ahead.

Daniel Stendel will lead Hearts into a a nervy finale. Picture: SNS

There was some good news with Celtic’s thumping win over the Buddies, followed by Sunday afternoon’s Rangers victory in Dingwall over Ross County. It means that with less than a third of the season remaining, six points separate the bottom four.

And therein lies the one positive of the league campaign for Hearts fans. Every game for the remainder of the season is going to be critical, something is going to be riding on it. Not just the games Daniel Stendel’s men are involved in, but also ones involving Hamilton Accies, St Mirren and Ross County.

Excitement and adrenaline

Such is the nature of the Ladbrokes Premiership, the split only inflates the excitement of the relegation battle. Every side still has to play each other at least once. Each week will bring with it a different dynamic.

Hearts fans will have to cope with a raft of emotions. Picture: SNS

Before then, aside from Hearts’ trip to Paisley on Wednesday, the Jam Tarts welcome Ross County to Tynecastle. The Staggies also face Accies next week and St Mirren in the final pre-split fixture.

Between now and the weekend of May 16/17, when the final league fixtures are played, it is going to be tense, nervy, but exciting. Albeit, exciting in a way being chased by a pack of wild dogs is exciting. The adrenaline sky rockets, the desire to reach safety is magnified, the thought of the worst case scenario both fuels and hinders.

That is the position Hearts find themselves in now.

For so long, the team have reached March with little to play for. Whether it was the relegation season where Championship football was inevitable or the Championship-winning season where the team required a telescope to locate the chasing pack.

Even this time last year, Hearts were just six points off third place but the momentum was such that simply trying to stay above Hibs was the more realistic target.

Having to care

Now, every game is labelled ‘must-win’, six pointers enter the lexicon once more.

The football has reached that point which we as fans got into the sport for and became supporters. Going to games that bring tension, evoke feelings, force you to think: ‘Damn, I’ve got to really care now.”

It is a new position for Hearts fans to be in at this stage of the season, especially with the position the team finds itself in.

More than 17,000 turned up at Tynecastle on Saturday for the latest match in the club’s bid for survival, and they boarded the emotional rollercoaster of a team which has its vulnerabilities and foibles, but also the quality to get themselves out of the situation.

Despite the familiar gift of a goal, they saw a team show dig and endeavour to eke out a result. The type of effort and attitude which has been missing for large parts of the season, and one which will be required in the coming days and weeks, starting with St Mirren in midweek. The latest ‘biggest Hearts match since the 2012 Scottish Cup final’.

It is a game which will have Hamilton and Ross County fans refreshing their phones, along with those St Mirren and Hearts supporters unable to make the match. Wednesday night won’t be one for doing anything productive. It will be about pacing about, stressing, agonising, shouting at the phone or the radio.

For those going to the game, it will be about nerves and frustration, trying to give the team support despite the anguish supporters are suffering. But there will also be that ‘if’ feeling. If the team wins…

It would be huge. Delight, relief, exultation.

But it would just be one more step. It wouldn’t be anything definitive. Victory, and six points becomes three points between the quartet.

Defeat does not bear thinking about but it is a prospect which will be at the back of all fans’ minds, mentally preparing themselves for the worst.

That is what the remainder of the league season will be, a mental battle for both the players and fans. Excitement, suffering, pressure. For the players, those who control their emotions best will likely succeed. For the fans, there is no need to. This is what being a supporter is all about.