Hibs hero 'heartbroken' after late dramatics as Steven Naismith shares his Hearts hunch for Rangers clash

Hibs were beaten on Saturday afternoon 2-1 by St Mirren at Easter Road.

They have won just one of their first 12 league fixtures so far this season. Hearts are back in action on Sunday with an away clash against Rangers. Here is a look at the latest news regarding the Edinburgh pair...

Former player reacts to loss

Former Hibs midfielder Marvin Bartley has said their loss to St Mirren was ‘heartbreaking’. Conor McMenamin bagged twice for the Buddies in the first-half before Nicky Cadden scored what proved to be a late consolation after late dramatics ensued with a leveller chalked off.

Bartley posted on X afterwards: “That was heartbreaking at the end as it looked like we got a point! Football is one cruel game at times.”

He played 124 games during his days at Hibs as a player and also had stints at Bournemouth, Burnley, Leyton Orient and Livingston before retiring. The 38-year-old has since delved into the managerial world and last worked at Queen of the South.

Hibs are back in action after the international break with an away trip to Dundee as they look to turn their fortunes around.

Ex-boss on Hearts

Steven Naismith, who was sacked as head coach by Hearts earlier in this campaign, believes they are heading to Ibrox to take on Rangers at a good time. He was replaced in the dugout by Neil Critchley.

Speaking on The Warm Up podcast, Naismith has said: “I think it will be an interesting game. Rangers are in that period where the demand is high. The feeling is that it is not getting lived up to at the moment. I think it has not helped with it how well Celtic are doing.

“Being at home there will be an expectation to dominate. I think Hearts have got the squad to go and control the game at times and if they do that it will give them a really good chance to get something from it. You could look at the game and where Rangers are at and it is a good time to go to Ibrox to frustrate, to try and control the game a bit which then brings that added pressure from the crowd.”

Hearts are sat in 11th place in the table and are looking to rise up the division over the coming weeks. They won 2-1 away at St Johnstone in their last league outing before their Europa Conference League home loss to Heidenheim last time out.