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Greenio
31-07-2018, 02:10 PM
Might have already been posted somewhere so sorry if I missed it, but this was an interesting read and a bit of a rest from the transfer speculation.

Not sure I see what point the guy's trying to make tbh. Don't see any massive efforts to push a Leith-centric story, not one that isn't authentic anyway.

https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/opinion/kevan-christie-hibs-aren-t-just-a-leith-team-and-here-s-why-1-4775764

Keen to hear from some of the older fans on this one.

Since90+2
31-07-2018, 02:14 PM
Hibs probably more so than any other club in the country are synonymous with the area they originate from ie Leith. You always see articles that relate to the "Leith side" , "tonight's game in Leith" ect.

Jambos absolutely hate it as Leith is now seen as the most cosmopolitan area in the country.

Mick O'Rourke
31-07-2018, 02:31 PM
Hibs probably more so than any other club in the country are synonymous with the area they originate from ie Leith. You always see articles that relate to the "Leith side" , "tonight's game in Leith" ect.

Jambos absolutely hate it as Leith is now seen as the most cosmopolitan area in the country.

That would be the Cowgate and St Patrick's Parish
:wink:

SOL :greengrin

Kato
31-07-2018, 02:32 PM
Hibs probably more so than any other club in the country are synonymous with the area they originate from ie Leith. You always see articles that relate to the "Leith side" , "tonight's game in Leith" ect.

Jambos absolutely hate it as Leith is now seen as the most cosmopolitan area in the country.

Except Hibs don't originate from Leith.

SouthMoroccoStu
31-07-2018, 02:33 PM
Hibs probably more so than any other club in the country are synonymous with the area they originate from ie Leith. You always see articles that relate to the "Leith side" , "tonight's game in Leith" ect.

Jambos absolutely hate it as Leith is now seen as the most cosmopolitan area in the country.

And Hearts aren't in Midlothian

We're closer to the city centre and the heart of midlothian

Hibs were founded in the Cowgate (now that is the heart of the city)

Hibs are an Edinburgh team with strong links to the Leith area and community

Mick O'Rourke
31-07-2018, 02:48 PM
And Hearts aren't in Midlothian

We're closer to the city centre and the heart of midlothian

Hibs were founded in the Cowgate (now that is the heart of the city)

Hibs are an Edinburgh team with strong links to the Leith area and community

Hearts were founded in the High Street and adopted their name/badge from the mosaic in the road next to St Giles cathedral.

Alex Trager
31-07-2018, 02:48 PM
Hibs probably more so than any other club in the country are synonymous with the area they originate from ie Leith. You always see articles that relate to the "Leith side" , "tonight's game in Leith" ect.

Jambos absolutely hate it as Leith is now seen as the most cosmopolitan area in the country.
that's because it is!

Mick O'Rourke
31-07-2018, 02:56 PM
Hibs probably more so than any other club in the country are synonymous with the area they originate from ie Leith. You always see articles that relate to the "Leith side" , "tonight's game in Leith" ect.

Jambos absolutely hate it as Leith is now seen as the most cosmopolitan area in the country.

Leith = Cosmopolitan
Gorgie= Compo- politon

Since90+2
31-07-2018, 02:57 PM
Except Hibs don't originate from Leith.

Sorry I didn't mean literally, just that Hibs have played in Leith for most of its existence and the area and club are synonymous together.

Kato
31-07-2018, 03:09 PM
Sorry I didn't mean literally, just that Hibs have played in Leith for most of its existence and the area and club are synonymous together.

Agreed, although the border has changed quite a number of times - so sometimes ER is just within the Leith boundary and sometimes it's in Edinburgh.

Mick O'Rourke
31-07-2018, 03:17 PM
Sorry I didn't mean literally, just that Hibs have played in Leith for most of its existence and the area and club are synonymous together.


I guessed that is what you meant.

And yes,of course we have played most our existence at the present ground.

I don't wish to resurrect the old Edinburgh/Leith debate.
Suffice to say all of our club badges,bar possibly the first one,has Edinburgh written on it.

The first and the current badge are my favourites
It was a long time coming to have the Harp back on the club crest.

I love our anthem.
It is unique and has no peers in football in my view.

There is a song though that finishes with the line .........
"And the Edinburgh Hibee's will be there !!"

heretoday
31-07-2018, 03:19 PM
It's a good piece in the News. There are no doubt more Hibs fans in Leith than Hearts but growing up in the sixties I always felt Hibs were more based in Abbeyhill, Lochend and Restalrig. Leith was a grim dark place I seldom ventured into!
Changed days now and Trainspotting has done it's job. Hibs belong to Leith.

NAE NOOKIE
31-07-2018, 03:38 PM
He's sort of preaching to the choir here a wee bit IMO ….. The vast majority of Hibs fans know the club wasn't formed in Leith, in fact as others have stated you couldn't get more Edinburgh than where we were formed.

The association with Leith has come about because we have been based there for the vast majority of our existence and though the majority of our support don't come from or live in Leith, if you do hail from there the chances are you will support Hibs if you are into football, so from that perspective we are Leith's team more than any other club.

As for his wee dig at Hibs 'hipster' credentials. He cites St Pauli as an example of the route we have gone down, but there's a big difference. In the case of St Pauli the club and its supporters have made a conscious effort to project the club in a certain way and jealously protect its image from any hint of commercialism or anything other than left of centre politics.

In Hibs case its more been by accident that we are viewed as 'slightly' left of centre and popular with your anti right wing types. Considering the clubs background and where it draws a lot of its support from ( north and east Edinburgh ) its hardly a surprise that its viewed as more working class and a bit more anti establishment than a lot of other clubs and especially Hearts. SOL wasn't written for Hibs, not even as a football song in fact, but it was hardly a surprise when the fans adopted it given our long standing connection to Leith and Irvine Welsh referencing the club in his books isn't much of a surprise either given the edge he was trying to bring to them, it was a good way of connecting his characters to the less affluent side of what is seen by outsiders as a posh middle to upper class city.

As for the difference between what Hibs wear on our shirts and what Hearts wear …. so what, Hearts did that in a shameless effort to drag the clubs image out of the gutter where they had allowed it to be thrown, Hibs are a football club who need to make money and until some 'nameless' person emerges from the shadows to chuck a few hundred thousand at the club to enable us to do the same we'll take any money we can get from any source we can … within reason of course.

Vini1875
31-07-2018, 03:39 PM
When I started going to Hibs games 60s/70s I was told we were an Irish club and an Edinburgh club. I don't remember Hibs being associated with Leith as strongly as we are today, so the guy has a point. hearts always seemed to my memory to have been associated with Gorgie, although anyone I knew from that area were Hibs or celtc supporters.

It does make some sense to have this connection with Leith and Gorgie. I think though Leith's prominence has a bit to do with Irvine Welsh, The Proclaimers and the area's resurgence of the last two or three decades. Maybe it is a good thing for Hibs supporters in Leith to be synonymous, but I have no idea how it plays for fans with no Leith connection. I have no Leith connection and so the area being tied to Hibs means nothing to me, beyond the song.

Greenbeard
31-07-2018, 03:57 PM
Just glad to be a Leither, no' an Edinburger. No offence to the non-Leith Hibees. Anyone who chooses (or has it chosen for them) to support the green and white over that other Edinburgh team is an honorary Leither.

The Harp
31-07-2018, 04:15 PM
I don't have much association with Leith, although went to school there (St. Anthony's) and worked in Leith for a while. Up to the age of 7, in '54, the family home was in Wardlaw Place (within smelling distance of Tynecastle). Since those days I've tried to distance myself from Gorgie, moving to Grove Street, then further away to Jock's Lodge and at present, Mountcastle.
I still regard the area around the old town, Cowgate, St. Mary's Street etc as our spiritual home but I'm also proud of our Leith connection.

TheReg!
31-07-2018, 04:16 PM
Is Albert Street classed as Leith?

CropleyWasGod
31-07-2018, 04:17 PM
Is Albert Street classed as Leith?

Naw :greengrin

The line is at Pilrig church.

blackpoolhibs
31-07-2018, 04:17 PM
As a born and bred Leither, Leith adopted Hibs as their club, and i love that. :top marks

TheReg!
31-07-2018, 04:24 PM
Naw :greengrin

The line is at Pilrig church.

Jeez, it’s like the next street.....Didn’t want to be from Leith anyway 😂

SouthsideHarp_Bhoy
31-07-2018, 04:28 PM
It's an interesting article...

Personally, the half of my own family who were born and bred leithers were hearts fans, a decision based more around ethnicity and religion- perhaps that was a bigger factor back in the first half of 20th century edinburgh, given the popularity of John cormack and protestant action?

Most hibbies I know are more from Southside and South edinburgh, where I think we had a very high concentration of fans.

Equally though, I always felt Leith was 'Hibs country' as I grew up in the 80s and 90s.

I've always seen Hibs as coming from the Cowgate, and being adopted by Leith.

hibee-boys
31-07-2018, 04:55 PM
I respect the fact that many hibs fans take great pride in the clubs heritage and the links to Leith as an area. Maybe it's because I've lived most of my life outside the city but I don't feel anymore drawn to Leith just because we play there. It's the club, the stadium that I feel connected to, how, where and why we were formed is of interest but little more.

superfurryhibby
31-07-2018, 05:15 PM
When I started going to Hibs games 60s/70s I was told we were an Irish club and an Edinburgh club. I don't remember Hibs being associated with Leith as strongly as we are today, so the guy has a point. hearts always seemed to my memory to have been associated with Gorgie, although anyone I knew from that area were Hibs or celtc supporters.

It does make some sense to have this connection with Leith and Gorgie. I think though Leith's prominence has a bit to do with Irvine Welsh, The Proclaimers and the area's resurgence of the last two or three decades. Maybe it is a good thing for Hibs supporters in Leith to be synonymous, but I have no idea how it plays for fans with no Leith connection. I have no Leith connection and so the area being tied to Hibs means nothing to me, beyond the song.

Moved to Leith in 1972 and no question, the place was Hibs daft. Every laddie I knew supported the Hibees. I had moved from Fountainbridge and it was the reverse, full of Jambos. Natural geographical order.

BILLYHIBS
31-07-2018, 07:12 PM
After 21/5/2016 PERSEVERE should be our club motto!

Aalborg Hibs
31-07-2018, 07:23 PM
I always thought Hertz were named after a dance hall, not the mosaic on the High Street.

Chorley Hibee
31-07-2018, 07:52 PM
Despite being born in England, and having never lived or even worked in Leith, I always feel like I've returned home once I arrive there.

Barman Stanton
31-07-2018, 08:01 PM
I always thought Hertz were named after a dance hall, not the mosaic on the High Street.

Yup, they are named the dance hall which was named after the book.

Brizo
31-07-2018, 08:06 PM
My understanding is that when Leith was a working port there was a class difference between who Leithers supported. Those employed in the dock offices and in management roles Hertz while shop floor Hibs. That had all changed by the time I was growing up and most guys I knew from Leith were Hibs but also some OF and quite a few Jambos.That's all changed again with gentrification, more recent immigrant groups and Leith becoming much more diverse.

Having grown up in the Southside and the Inch Id say that back in the 70s they were more Hibs areas than Leith, although the Southside will be English students supporting EPL teams now :greengrin

For me Leith is Hibs emotional home, the Cowgate is Hibs spiritual home and Edinburgh is Hibs geographical home.

Diclonius
31-07-2018, 08:16 PM
I'm from Longstone (originally, moved out of the city at a very young age) - Hibs have always been an Edinburgh club to me, but I appreciate the Leith ties.

Pretty Boy
31-07-2018, 08:20 PM
My understanding is that when Leith was a working port there was a class difference between who Leithers supported. Those employed in the dock offices and in management roles Hertz while shop floor Hibs. That had all changed by the time I was growing up and most guys I knew from Leith were Hibs but also some OF and quite a few Jambos.That's all changed again with gentrification, more recent immigrant groups and Leith becoming much more diverse.

Having grown up in the Southside and the Inch Id say that back in the 70s they were more Hibs areas than Leith, although the Southside will be English students supporting EPL teams now :greengrin

For me Leith is Hibs emotional home, the Cowgate is Hibs spiritual home and Edinburgh is Hibs geographical home.

Your last paragraph sums it up perfectly for me.

Mick O'Rourke
31-07-2018, 08:41 PM
I always thought Hertz were named after a dance hall, not the mosaic on the High Street.

They are a bunch of "ballroom dancers" right enough.
If not the club name, their badge/crest was certainly inspired by the mosaic.

Nakedmanoncrack
31-07-2018, 09:02 PM
An interesting article, with some validity, but one that seems to come to a sudden end without completing the story.

Pagan Hibernia
31-07-2018, 09:45 PM
An interesting article, with some validity, but one that seems to come to a sudden end without completing the story.

I thought it was my iphone that had packed up halfway through the article

Austinho
01-08-2018, 04:46 AM
I’m not from Edinburgh, but always felt a real sense of being at home every weekend before and after Hibs games. It’s Scotland’s capital - I’ve always felt proud and patriotic every time I visit, and I strongly connect Hibs to that feeling. Walking to the ground with the castle looming in the background, magnificent clear views of Easter Road from Carlton Hill and Arthur’s Seat - it’s impossible to escape the notion of Hibs being deeply rooted in the heart of the city. ER is a mile closer to the city centre than Tynecastle or Murrayfield. And we even wear the castle and the name ‘Edinburgh’ on our chests.

No amount of association with Leith will change that. But despite having no personal connection to Leith, it’s still something I’m proud of. Let’s face it, there’s more romanticism with Leith than there is a Gorgie, Parkhead or Govan. Leith is part of the Hibs story, and nowadays rightly celebrated in equal measures on the club badge with the castle and harp. I view it in a similar way to Barcelona and the Catalan connection. It’s a unique thing we can be proud of.

The Irish connection means very little to me at all personally. I’m not Irish and I don’t really care about Ireland. But that’s the beauty of Hibs though - it means so many things to so many people of different walks of life. I can respect the importance of it, without buying into it.

As for the sponsorship, it’s a portion of fans who buy into the anti-establishment thing, not the club itself. Absolutely no problem with Marathon Bet as the cash allows us to compete on a football pitch. And despite all the romantic connections - that’s what we ultimately are - a football club. Does the author think Hearts wouldn’t have a similar sponsor if it wasn’t for the backhanded payments they get for displaying a charity on their shirt? It wasn’t that long ago where they had Wonga on their kits and we had a connection with a historic Leith company in Crabbie’s. Doesn’t mean a jot.

HUTCHYHIBBY
01-08-2018, 07:52 AM
Is Albert Street classed as Leith?

Make that two of us!

Liberal Hibby
01-08-2018, 08:00 AM
Surely the original Leith team was Leith Athletic? Their folding in the 1940s would have left a gap that Hibs filled as the next nearest option?

CropleyWasGod
01-08-2018, 08:23 AM
Surely the original Leith team was Leith Athletic? Their folding in the 1940s would have left a gap that Hibs filled as the next nearest option?

IIRC, Hibs were playing in Leith before Leith Athletic were formed.

Moulin Yarns
01-08-2018, 08:26 AM
IIRC, Hibs were playing in Leith before Leith Athletic were formed.

Another one with a long memory :wink:

BullsCloseHibs
01-08-2018, 02:13 PM
When I started going to Hibs games 60s/70s I was told we were an Irish club and an Edinburgh club. I don't remember Hibs being associated with Leith as strongly as we are today, so the guy has a point. hearts always seemed to my memory to have been associated with Gorgie, although anyone I knew from that area were Hibs or celtc supporters.

It does make some sense to have this connection with Leith and Gorgie. I think though Leith's prominence has a bit to do with Irvine Welsh, The Proclaimers and the area's resurgence of the last two or three decades. Maybe it is a good thing for Hibs supporters in Leith to be synonymous, but I have no idea how it plays for fans with no Leith connection. I have no Leith connection and so the area being tied to Hibs means nothing to me, beyond the song.

The Irish Voice Newspaper (available in the Hibs shop) always refers to Hibs as the Edinburgh Irish team. No problem with that at all either. Good reads on Celtic and Dundee Utd too. Our very own Ian Colquhoun is the writer for Hibs.

Liberal Hibby
01-08-2018, 02:21 PM
IIRC, Hibs were playing in Leith before Leith Athletic were formed.

Thanks - but Easter Road isn't strictly in the historic Burgh of Leith...

TheReg!
01-08-2018, 02:25 PM
Thanks - but Easter Road isn't strictly in the historic Burgh of Leith...

From the boundarie line I’ve seen the stadium is within Leith before 1920

CropleyWasGod
01-08-2018, 02:58 PM
Thanks - but Easter Road isn't strictly in the historic Burgh of Leith...I think the old stadium, the so-called Holy Ground, was. Happy to be corrected though.



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HIBERNIAN-0762
01-08-2018, 03:02 PM
Leith God's country
Gorgie absolute ****hole

SirDavidsNapper
01-08-2018, 03:14 PM
I always refer to Hibs as an Edinburgh club not Leith club. Probably because i class Leith as Edinburgh (i know some don't so i'm sorry lol). In saying that i don't think there's a club more deep rooted in its community as Hibs are with Leith. Leith is proud of Hibs and Hibs are proud of Leith. It's a very strong bond and i can't think of another one that's similar.

blackpoolhibs
01-08-2018, 03:24 PM
If anyone asks me where i'm from, i always say Leith.