The bus journey from Tynecastle to Easter Road took less than an hour but was all I needed to realise what an Edinburgh derby in enemy territory meant to Hearts.
Before I’d even reached Leith the blood was pumping through my veins on that coach ready to jump off and hit Hibs like an LRT double decker. Thankfully that first taste of the capital collision in the north side of the city ended in a 2-1 victory and nothing in my career comes close to matching those moments.
I’m envious of Elton Kabangu, Michael Steinwender, Sander Kartum and Jamie McCart as they prepare to be driven into the unknown on Sunday. This is the biggest Edinburgh derby for years. It’s the biggest game in Britain this weekend hands down. And they’d better be ready to be blown away. It’s the best thing ever. It starts the morning of the game, when you turn up to Tynecastle or if it’s at the training ground. But when you jump on the bus and you’re driving through the middle of Edinburgh the adrenaline goes from zero to 60.
Honestly, if you could put that emotion in a bottle and sell it you’d be loaded. My experience of it was Billy Brown and Gary Locke playing a video of all the big goals from previous Edinburgh derbies on a loop with Hearts songs over the top. I was sitting up the back thinking, ‘see if I die tomorrow, I’ve lived my dream’.
This fixture is everything that everybody wants to be involved with in football. The fact both are in such good form and battling for third place makes it monumental.
Everybody across the divide will agree: this is the way it should be. Hibs winning most weeks, Hearts winning most weeks and the two of them going head to head to fight out.
Sunday is massive for Hearts and the mentality should be that they need to go and win in Leith. Nothing else. That’s always the case with a derby but especially so with with the chance to pull back to within a point of Hibs.
And especially so after the way the last game went. They were so lacklustre in that Boxing Day showdown at Tynecastle. It wasn’t near good enough. It’s amazing to think they were still second bottom on just 16 points after that day.
The way Neil Critchley’s side have responded with just one defeat in 11 games has been superb. I was at the win over St Mirren on Wednesday and if I was to pick out one player who has typified the resurgence it would be McCart. He was unbelievable.
An old school centre half who heads everything thrown in front of him. That’s exactly what will be needed against Hibs. The confidence that breeds through the team, just knowing you’ve got a guy there who’s willing to tackle his granny. He’s good on the ball as well but he wants to defend first and foremost. I’ve played with big centre halves behind me like Marius Zaliukas and Andy Webster – you just knew when the chips were down and if a ball there to the head, those two were going right through it.
Calem Nieuwenhof could have played himself into the starting XI too. He has been like a new signing coming back in from 10 months on the treatment table. His goal was sensational the other night but on top of that I thought he looked tidy on the ball, a bit slow moving it at times but that will come with games.
It’s such a help to the squad when you see he’s capable of scoring goals like he has since he’s come back in. If you’ve got midfielders that can chip in with five to 10 goals a season, you’re going to have a really good team.
Okay, I’m putting off a prediction here, I realise that. I went for Hearts at Tynecastle last time and ended up with egg on my face. But this is such a difficult one to call. It’s the first time that you could actually say the two of them are absolutely neck and neck so it’s got everything there.
If Hearts turn up and they do what they can do, then they can win. But Hibs are definitely a different animal to the last four years. They’ve got that bit of determination, they’ve got that bit of steel about them. So do Hearts. That’s why this derby isn’t going to be for the feint hearted.