Referee & VAR team for Hibs v Hearts with official who has shown 48 yellow cards this season to take lead

A massive game awaits Edinburgh at the weekend, as two of Scotland’s biggest teams - Hibs and Hearts - prepare to square off in a heated derby game with plenty of implications for both sides.

As things stand, Hearts and Hibs are 11th and 12th in the Scottish Premiership table, respectively. They both have five points on the board thus far, but Hibs have a game in hand over their rivals.

In their last game, Hearts picked up their first league win of the season with an excellent 4-0 victory over St. Mirren. Kenneth Vargas, Daniel Oyegoke, James Wilson and Blair Spittal all got in on the act as the Jam Tarts ran rampant at Tynecastle Park.

Hibs, on the the other hand, fell to a dramatic late defeat against Dundee United. They were leading the scores late on, only for United to turn the tables after Joe Newell’s dismissal. Hibs ‘keeper Joe Bursik parried the ball straight into the path of Luca Stephenson, who found the equaliser - five minutes later, Meshack Obuchioma calmly lofted the ball over Bursik to seal all three points.

After the game, a dejected David Gray said [via BBC Sport]: “When we were seriously asked questions, we failed to come up with the answers. When you're down the bottom or underperforming, results do seem to go against you. It feels that way at the moment.

“We are being punished all the time for individual errors and decision making. I'm responsible for that as the head coach. I take it on the chin and it's up to me to make sure we put this right.”

The last time the two teams met came all the way back in February, when they played out a 1-1 draw at Tynecastle. Emiliano Marcondes struck first for Hibs, before Lawrence Shankland levelled the scores on the stroke of half time. Neither side could find a winning goal in the second half and the spoils were ultimately shared.

Both teams will be looking for a win to give their respective campaigns a shot in the arm - not only are they each among the lowest scorers in the Scottish Premiership this season, they also have proven to be somewhat leaky in the back. A win for either side here could reverse their fortunes.

Who are the matchday officials for Hibs vs Hearts?

The senior referee chosen to preside over Hibs vs Hearts will be Don Robertson, who has dished out 48 yellow cards and a single red card in 12 competitive games this season. He has refereed in both the Scottish Premiership and the Scottish Championship - he also presided over Champions League qualifying game back in July.

He has yet to referee a Hibs game this season, but has led two Hearts games - namely, their defeats against St. Mirren and Dundee earlier in the season.

Robertson’s two assistants will be Frank Connor and David Roome, who have each been chosen to run the lines at Easter Road on Sunday. John Beaton will be the senior VAR official, with David McGeachie acting as VAR assistant.