Are there still any fans that follow both Hibs and Hearts?

[spike220]

I know that there were a few people that followed both in the past. But are there any still today?

[Keith_M]

I seriously doubt it.

[danhibees1875]

I follow hearts scores in the hope that they lose all the time. :dunno:

[G B Young]

Not sure anyone actually 'supported' both clubs in the sense that they liked both equally. Most will have been Hibs or Hearts supporters, but I think it was more the case that travelling to away games was less common and that there was something of a tradition that pals would go together to Easter Road one week and Tynecastle the next.

Based on what my older relatives have told me (and we're talking about games back in the 1950s here) the big difference was that the hatred we have now didn't exist. Rivalry yes but there was no segregation and folk just enjoyed having a game of football to go to. Probably helped that both teams had some terrific players in that era.

As far as I'm aware the venom and fighting didn't come in until the 70s. Hibs utterly dominated the yams in that era mind you so maybe they couldn't hack it...

There was a cartoon which ran for many years in the Evening News called Fitba' Daft which featured a couple of old pals who went to ER one week and Tynecastle the next. It became Boolin' Green in the close season IIRC.

[Glory Lurker]

Not sure anyone actually 'supported' both clubs in the sense that they liked both equally. Most will have been Hibs or Hearts supporters, but I think it was more the case that travelling to away games was less common and that there was something of a tradition that pals would go together to Easter Road one week and Tynecastle the next.

Based on what my older relatives have told me (and we're talking about games back in the 1950s here) the big difference was that the hatred we have now didn't exist. Rivalry yes but there was no segregation and folk just enjoyed having a game of football to go to. Probably helped that both teams had some terrific players in that era.

As far as I'm aware the venom and fighting didn't come in until the 70s. Hibs utterly dominated the yams in that era mind you so maybe they couldn't hack it...

There was a cartoon which ran for many years in the Evening News called Fitba' Daft which featured a couple of old pals who went to ER one week and Tynecastle the next. It became Boolin' Green in the close season IIRC.

All my older male relatives went week about. I wonder what it was that caused this to break down? The aggro that brought segregation in was pretty brutal. Where did it come from?

[hibsbollah]

An old guy who helped out my sons school team still goes ‘week about’. Hes Hibs fan but just likes football in general and doesn’t do away games. Also, I met a few older Newcastle fans also going to see the mackems alternate weeks.

[Antifa Hibs]

Wasn't some of the first recorded violence between Hibs and Hearts in the late 1800's? No doubt those pesky prods starting it* So perhaps not strictly a 1970's thing with regards to paggering.

Regarding the going to ER one week and Tynie the next, older guys i've spoken to say the numbers that did so were quite exaggerated when talked about today.

Also can you be a fan of either club if you're doing that? Going as a football fan - absolutely. Going as either a Hibby or Jambo to Easter Road and Tynie every other week..? If your a fan would you really want to financially contribute to them let alone sit in amongst them?






*I'm an atheist and taking the piss before someone calls me a bigot.

[Peevemor]

All my older male relatives went week about. I wonder what it was that caused this to break down? The aggro that brought segregation in was pretty brutal. Where did it come from?

I think cost would have had an effect too.

At one time people didn't have to think twice about the price of entry to a match - now it's definitely a consideration.

[thorbs]

My father in law says when he was a boy his dad had season tickets at both Hibs & Hearts and took him to see whoever was at home or had the best game every weekend, so he supported both. He identifies as a Jambo now though, poor guy.

[James Stephen]

From what ive read, the 50s seems to have been the exception, and violence and antipathy were around in the decades prior.

I suspect it was all part of the post war boom, that groups of mates who had been through unimaginable horror together didnt put fitba rivalry above friendship and enjoying leisure time together. I suppose still a comradeship type thing.

No idea if this also happened in the 20s post WW1?

Certainly my grandfathers generation all did it apparently, with big groups of extended family. Probably to get away from tiny flats and houses packed full of screaming bairns!

[James Stephen]

Wasn't some of the first recorded violence between Hibs and Hearts in the late 1800's? No doubt those pesky prods starting it* So perhaps not strictly a 1970's thing with regards to paggering.

Regarding the going to ER one week and Tynie the next, older guys i've spoken to say the numbers that did so were quite exaggerated when talked about today.

Also can you be a fan of either club if you're doing that? Going as a football fan - absolutely. Going as either a Hibby or Jambo to Easter Road and Tynie every other week..? If your a fan would you really want to financially contribute to them let alone sit in amongst them?






*I'm an atheist and taking the piss before someone calls me a bigot.


Almost from the outset i think, and the Hibs support were certainly willing and able to mix it!

[where'stheslope]

I have to say I was a fan of both teams up till segregation started and you could not stand next to you pals at games.
I also was partial to other teams games Dunfermline, Raith and East Fife in particular when visiting reletives in Leven.
I found the more you diverified who you watched, you would see good play from both sides and not just the green tinted variety.

[AltheHibby]

I sometimes went to Tiny in the 70s and would cheer Hearts from the Gorgie Road end terrace.

Although there was violence before that, it was Mercer that caused the bad blood when he tried the takeover, which when allied to segregation and the tribal feel that brought, has led to the bad blood today.

The internet hasn't helped. Calling us Hubs and them Hertz is fine in my book because they are nicknames. Even Soap Dodge City for Glasgow ( where my daughter was born) is fine, as is Edinbu**ers, which makes me laugh. However, nonsense like "vermin" is too far, and the appalling sectarian rubbish makes me despair.

And yes, I am aware that I said "the stupid is strong with this one" about Kiwidug. However, as that's been said about me many a time, it's just a fun insult . But maybe that's too far for some.

Anyway, lecture over and back on topic. Hibs good, Hearts bad!

[brog]

Not sure anyone actually 'supported' both clubs in the sense that they liked both equally. Most will have been Hibs or Hearts supporters, but I think it was more the case that travelling to away games was less common and that there was something of a tradition that pals would go together to Easter Road one week and Tynecastle the next.

Based on what my older relatives have told me (and we're talking about games back in the 1950s here) the big difference was that the hatred we have now didn't exist. Rivalry yes but there was no segregation and folk just enjoyed having a game of football to go to. Probably helped that both teams had some terrific players in that era.

As far as I'm aware the venom and fighting didn't come in until the 70s. Hibs utterly dominated the yams in that era mind you so maybe they couldn't hack it...

There was a cartoon which ran for many years in the Evening News called Fitba' Daft which featured a couple of old pals who went to ER one week and Tynecastle the next. It became Boolin' Green in the close season IIRC.

Good summary. As others have said it was also very much a social thing at the time. Remember, in the late 40's many young men & women were returning home after being gone for maybe 5 or 6 years. Many didn't return home & so there was very much a feeling that every social outlet should be enjoyed. It's not a coincidence that in that period every team enjoyed a boom in attendances & in the 20 seasons after WW2 we saw the most equal period in Scottish football since the prior century. We won 3 titles, Hearts 2 & Dundee, Aberdeen, Killie & a wee team called Celtc 1 each! My family were 100% Hibs & only ventured to Tiny once a season but more middle class supporters often had a season ticket at both grounds. I was very young but even then my memory was that it was much more likely for a Hearts family to have a 2nd season ticket at ER than the other way around. It was also a bit reflective on one's social standing to have 2 seasons at a time when very few people could actually afford one! The 50's ( & early 60's) were probably the last old fashioned decade with men wearing suits, collar & ties to ER. I think the fighting, which was certainly around in mid 60's was more reflective of overall social changes than anything specific to Hibs & Hearts.

[SideBurns]

My dad and his mates used to get the train from Granton to Dalry in the 50s & 60s when Hibs weren't playing at ER. He was pretty clear that he didn't want Hearts to win, it was just a game to attend at a time when it was rarer to follow your team away from home (presumably for financial reasons, especially for young laddies). However, there wasn't the same animosity between the clubs back then and it would've been much easier to go along to Tynie as a Hibby.

I've posted before my dad's theory that the 7-0 game signalled a change in attitude from the Jambos and a deterioration in the relationship between the two supports; it was a really tough one for them to take. It got worse as the 70s progressed and fitba violence increased, and of course events since then probably mean the hatred is here to stay (sadly, in my view).

[SideBurns]

Not sure anyone actually 'supported' both clubs in the sense that they liked both equally. Most will have been Hibs or Hearts supporters, but I think it was more the case that travelling to away games was less common and that there was something of a tradition that pals would go together to Easter Road one week and Tynecastle the next.

Based on what my older relatives have told me (and we're talking about games back in the 1950s here) the big difference was that the hatred we have now didn't exist. Rivalry yes but there was no segregation and folk just enjoyed having a game of football to go to. Probably helped that both teams had some terrific players in that era.

As far as I'm aware the venom and fighting didn't come in until the 70s. Hibs utterly dominated the yams in that era mind you so maybe they couldn't hack it...

There was a cartoon which ran for many years in the Evening News called Fitba' Daft which featured a couple of old pals who went to ER one week and Tynecastle the next. It became Boolin' Green in the close season IIRC.

Your post pretty much mirrors the one I've just left, sounds a good summary to me.

[IWasThere2016]

I think cost would have had an effect too.

At one time people didn't have to think twice about the price of entry to a match - now it's definitely a consideration.

Stole my thunder - it will have been cost as well as 'entertainment' lacking and trouble.. not a mix conducive to going week in week out.

I visit many away games down here in Englandshire - but nothing would make me go to the Pink Piggery unless Hibs were there

[tamig]

I sometimes went to Tiny in the 70s and would cheer Hearts from the Gorgie Road end terrace.

Although there was violence before that, it was Mercer that caused the bad blood when he tried the takeover, which when allied to segregation and the tribal feel that brought, has led to the bad blood today.

The internet hasn't helped. Calling us Hubs and them Hertz is fine in my book because they are nicknames. Even Soap Dodge City for Glasgow ( where my daughter was born) is fine, as is Edinbu**ers, which makes me laugh. However, nonsense like "vermin" is too far, and the appalling sectarian rubbish makes me despair.

And yes, I am aware that I said "the stupid is strong with this one" about Kiwidug. However, as that's been said about me many a time, it's just a fun insult . But maybe that's too far for some.

Anyway, lecture over and back on topic. Hibs good, Hearts bad!
I think it started with Mercer well before 1990. When they were a yoyo club late 70s early 80s thats when their support really changed. A lot of violence and smashing up of towns when they were in the First Division. But all this big team pish has certainly grown since that time and their generations of fans since the early 80s have been a different breed of arrogant no-marks full of deluded self-entitlement.

[SideBurns]

Good summary. As others have said it was also very much a social thing at the time. Remember, in the late 40's many young men & women were returning home after being gone for maybe 5 or 6 years. Many didn't return home & so there was very much a feeling that every social outlet should be enjoyed. It's not a coincidence that in that period every team enjoyed a boom in attendances & in the 20 seasons after WW2 we saw the most equal period in Scottish football since the prior century. We won 3 titles, Hearts 2 & Dundee, Aberdeen, Killie & a wee team called Celtc 1 each! My family were 100% Hibs & only ventured to Tiny once a season but more middle class supporters often had a season ticket at both grounds. I was very young but even then my memory was that it was much more likely for a Hearts family to have a 2nd season ticket at ER than the other way around. It was also a bit reflective on one's social standing to have 2 seasons at a time when very few people could actually afford one! The 50's ( & early 60's) were probably the last old fashioned decade with men wearing suits, collar & ties to ER. I think the fighting, which was certainly around in mid 60's was more reflective of overall social changes than anything specific to Hibs & Hearts.

Brog, my auld man used to tell me that the fighting in the 60s only really got bad when the Huns came; especially if they tried to 'change ends at half time' and attempted to enter the Cave. The amount of cairry oots (and therefore a ready supply of weapons in the shape of empty beer bottles) could make it a dangerous situation, he would say!

[BILLYHIBS]

I would watch Hearts and HIBS but it was always Hibs never been back to Tiny since 1990

[H18S NX]

I think the "Mercer" incident put paid to that, it would never be the same again after that.

[oldbutdim]

One of my first derby games At Easter Road I travelled with a bunch of Hearts fans in the back of a furniture removal van from the Longstone Hearts Club where my much older brother was a member. All the other travellers were decked out in maroon scarves, whilst I wore my green and white one which I had woven at primary school.
As I remember it, Hearts won that day so I wasn’t thrown out of the back of a moving vehicle on the return journey.

[Liberal Hibby]

Agree with pretty much everything people have said further up - the social changes in the 60s plus also slightly paradoxically an increase in people's incomes didn't lead to more people going week about - the increase in other leisure activities meant other distractions (perhaps more family friendly - the first covered shopping centres are from the same era).

Also before 1975 league gates were shared 50:50 between both teams (like cup games still are) - that meant after then any Hibbee going to Tynecastle was simply putting money in their coffers. Mercer of course 14 years later hammered the final nail in the coffin of 'neutral' Hibs fans attending Tynecastle.

[G B Young]

Brog, my auld man used to tell me that the fighting in the 60s only really got bad when the Huns came; especially if they tried to 'change ends at half time' and attempted to enter the Cave. The amount of cairry oots (and therefore a ready supply of weapons in the shape of empty beer bottles) could make it a dangerous situation, he would say!

Yes, I meant to add that to my earlier post. My dad and uncle always said it was Rangers who were seen as the big rivals back in the 50s, not Hearts. Celtic were a bit of an also-ran back then as they were going to through a very lean period by their standards. Rangers (like all teams I guess) were terrified of Gordon Smith and my dad recalls going to watch Hibs at Ibrox where Smith would get an especially vitriolic welcome. Apparently he just stood there in the warm-up playing keepie-uppie in front of the Rangers fans, cool as you like.

[Ray_]

My dad and his mates used to get the train from Granton to Dalry in the 50s & 60s when Hibs weren't playing at ER. He was pretty clear that he didn't want Hearts to win, it was just a game to attend at a time when it was rarer to follow your team away from home (presumably for financial reasons, especially for young laddies). However, there wasn't the same animosity between the clubs back then and it would've been much easier to go along to Tynie as a Hibby.

I've posted before my dad's theory that the 7-0 game signalled a change in attitude from the Jambos and a deterioration in the relationship between the two supports; it was a really tough one for them to take. It got worse as the 70s progressed and fitba violence increased, and of course events since then probably mean the hatred is here to stay (sadly, in my view).

I recently posted about losing my hearts daft pal who I'd known for fifty odd years. We'd go to home and away to see our own team and go to any Hampden Internationals, be it Scottish League, U23 & full internationals, but if none of that was on, we'd go with each other to see the other Edinburgh team play.

Our motive was simply both played good football and it was territorial, with Edinburgh being our home city, we'd want both the teams to do well.

We didn't go to the 7-0 game together, when I saw him for the first time after the game, it was the holiday period and it was the Sunday, I hadn't said anything simply because Hibs had played the infamous East Fife game the day before, so the implications of that game [losing John Brownlie, Pat Stanton & Alex Edwards for different reasons] was uppermost in my mind, not a game played almost a week earlier. It was my pal who brought the game up by saying, "bloody hell, that was our biggest ever defeat" and that was it, forgotten there and then.

The game at the time was not what it went on to become, up to that point in the season, Hibs had beaten the current Cup Winners Cup holders, rangers, 3-0, which was part of beating them in three semi's out of three, putting six past sporting, seven past Besa and five past celtic and beating celtic in the drybrough & league cup final's, scoring six against Airdrie & Dundee Utd, seven past St Johnstone and eight past Ayr and we were regularly beating hearts, so it wasn't the big deal it became and the result certainly wasn't the major shift where hatred became part of the Edinburgh derby.

I moved south in July 73 but was frequently home, especially in the early years and the first time I noticed the major change was in the mid-eighties and now of course the keyboard worriers have taken it to new levels.

[AndyM_1875]

My late Dad was of the generation that went to Easter Road one week and Tynecastle the next. He wasn't what I'd call tribal about football the way I am.
The reason he did it was because he like many people in the 40s and 50s worked on a Saturday morning and didn't finish till 12.30 so it was easier to go to
a game at one of the Edinburgh grounds. He wasn't religious in the slightest so the whole Proddy/Kafflik thing bemused him as it does me but he had a lifelong dislike of Rangers
and loved it if the Forces of Darkness were beaten by either Hibs or Hearts.

[Billy Whizz]

I take 2 young lads, both were Hibs and Hearts season ticket holders at the same time. Initially were Hearts due to family connections
For the last 3 years they have only been Hibs season ticket holders only, and both have renewed

[G B Young]

All my older male relatives went week about. I wonder what it was that caused this to break down? The aggro that brought segregation in was pretty brutal. Where did it come from?

Did the 'cairry-oot' start to become more of a thing post-1950s maybe? I might be completely wrong but in my mind's eye I see fans in the 50s as more likely to be carrying a wee whisky flask in their pockets to the game than cases of beer cans and bottles. You'd also be less likely to use your own flask as a missile!

Segregation, while designed to limit trouble, ultimately helped to fuel the tribal hatred IMHO. Nothing worse than seeing a stand full of yams/huns etc celebrating. It used to be even worse when it was terracing as there were more of them and the celebration looked much wilder. I don't mind admitting that in my younger days I'd imagine hurling a hand grenade into the midst of them!

I'd be interested to see how we'd all get on with each other now if segregation was scrapped.

[FilipinoHibs]

From what ive read, the 50s seems to have been the exception, and violence and antipathy were around in the decades prior.

I suspect it was all part of the post war boom, that groups of mates who had been through unimaginable horror together didnt put fitba rivalry above friendship and enjoying leisure time together. I suppose still a comradeship type thing.

No idea if this also happened in the 20s post WW1?

Certainly my grandfathers generation all did it apparently, with big groups of extended family. Probably to get away from tiny flats and houses packed full of screaming bairns!

Both clubs had good teams in the 50s. Knew a few old boys who watched both teams - some Hibs fans and some Hearts fans.

[SideBurns]

Yes, I meant to add that to my earlier post. My dad and uncle always said it was Rangers who were seen as the big rivals back in the 50s, not Hearts. Celtic were a bit of an also-ran back then as they were going to through a very lean period by their standards. Rangers (like all teams I guess) were terrified of Gordon Smith and my dad recalls going to watch Hibs at Ibrox where Smith would get an especially vitriolic welcome. Apparently he just stood there in the warm-up playing keepie-uppie in front of the Rangers fans, cool as you like.

Another story my dad told me was about a trip to Ibrox in the late 50s. He went with his wee brother, and as naive schoolboys wore green and white scarves. As they walked up the terracing, men were spitting on them - grown men spitting on wee boys. One decent Rangers fan grabbed them and said, "You're in a bad part of the ground lads" and directed them towards a safer area.

Catholic laddies, but with lots of pals from different persuasions, my dad and uncle had been brought up in a house devoid of bigotry or hatred. But it was certainly a memory that stayed with him throughout his life, and he detested the Huns. As for Hearts, they were just our local rivals and he loved a derby win. But any win over the Huns was a different, special kind of victory.

[Joe6-2]

Not sure anyone actually 'supported' both clubs in the sense that they liked both equally. Most will have been Hibs or Hearts supporters, but I think it was more the case that travelling to away games was less common and that there was something of a tradition that pals would go together to Easter Road one week and Tynecastle the next.

Based on what my older relatives have told me (and we're talking about games back in the 1950s here) the big difference was that the hatred we have now didn't exist. Rivalry yes but there was no segregation and folk just enjoyed having a game of football to go to. Probably helped that both teams had some terrific players in that era.

As far as I'm aware the venom and fighting didn't come in until the 70s. Hibs utterly dominated the yams in that era mind you so maybe they couldn't hack it...

There was a cartoon which ran for many years in the Evening News called Fitba' Daft which featured a couple of old pals who went to ER one week and Tynecastle the next. It became Boolin' Green in the close season IIRC.

That takes me back!
And no, never ever liked herts far less follow them!

[TelaStella]

Billy Brown is a frequent face at both grounds still to this day taking his grandson to Easter road one week, bus shelter the next. Hopefully the kid makes the right decision when he’s old enough.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Scouse Hibee]

Due to a friends illness I had the use of his Everton ST for nearly a whole season in the eighties so it was Anfield one week, Goodson the next. Thoroughly enjoyed it as Everton were also a top team then and most of my mates are Blues anyway. Everton won the league, I stayed away from the trophy presentation game 😁

[Since90+2]

Due to a friends illness I had the use of his Everton ST for nearly a whole season in the eighties so it was Anfield one week, Goodson the next. Thoroughly enjoyed it as Everton were also a top team then and most of my mates are Blues anyway. Everton won the league, I stayed away from the trophy presentation game 😁

Is the Everton v Liverpool derby not fairly friendly in general? It's obviously a game both sets of fans hate to lose but would I be right in thinking it doesn't have the venom of say Celtic v Rangers or a Millwall v West Ham?

[FilipinoHibs]

Is the Everton v Liverpool derby not fairly friendly in general? It's obviously a game both sets of fans hate to lose but would I be right in thinking it doesn't have the venom of say Celtic v Rangers or a Millwall v West Ham?

Remember Everton fans singing he ain't heavy he's my brother after the Hillsborough disaster.

[brog]

Brog, my auld man used to tell me that the fighting in the 60s only really got bad when the Huns came; especially if they tried to 'change ends at half time' and attempted to enter the Cave. The amount of cairry oots (and therefore a ready supply of weapons in the shape of empty beer bottles) could make it a dangerous situation, he would say!

You're correct that there was much more trouble with the Huns than anyone else but it wasn't confined to them. I remember heading home from a Hibs Celtc cup tie, we lost 1-0 in extra time in front of about 50k+ & there was a pitched battle of about 60 people in Albert St. Everyone of them was a Celtc supporter!

[Keith_M]

In the 40s, 50s and 60s, my Grandad used to alternate between Easter Road and Tynecastle most weekends. He was a Hearts Fan but just enjoyed watching football in general.

He said that he never had the option of going to away games, as people used to work Mon-Fri then Saturday until about twelve. So Easter Road was the next best option, and he enjoyed watching the best Hibs team ever.

In fact, his first ever match was at Easter Road, where he was taken in the 1920s as a small child by a Hibs supporting relative.

He said he stopped going in the early 70s because of the sectarianism that had creeped in to some of the Hearts support (ER was not immune either), as it totally disgusted him.

[Valencia]

I posted before that I met two elderly gentlemen at the Meadowbank v Fort William a few years ago who had season tickets for both Hibs and Hearts. Told me they were Hibs fans and suspected the Hearts fans they sat beside knew they were Hibbies I saw them at the start of the season at one of the league cup games and one of them was relying on the other to help him along. Hope they are keeping well two nice guys

[Scouse Hibee]

Is the Everton v Liverpool derby not fairly friendly in general? It's obviously a game both sets of fans hate to lose but would I be right in thinking it doesn't have the venom of say Celtic v Rangers or a Millwall v West Ham?

Nowhere near as friendly as it used to be in eighties early nineties but I guess society has changed and a whole new level of thuggery has evolved since then. However you still see the odd groups of mix n match supporters which you would never see at an Old Firm game so relatively speaking yes.

[Pagan Hibernia]

Nowhere near as friendly as it used to be in eighties early nineties but I guess society has changed and a whole new level of thuggery has evolved since then. However you still see the odd groups of mix n match supporters which you would never see at an Old Firm game so relatively speaking yes.

I love the city of Liverpool and I can’t imagine the same level of vitriol there as you get elsewhere. They’re good, working, family people. I can’t imagine Everton fans for example mocking Hillsborough the same way as Manchester City fans mock Munich. Or the same sort of nonsense you get in Glasgow for that matter.

Edinburgh to me is a different kettle of fish as hearts actively tried to close down my club in 1990. That changed the derby forever in my opinion. I can’t ever forget it.

[ancient hibee]

When I was 8/9 I went to Hearts more than Hibs because the dad of a school pal was a Hearts supporter.We could get the train just round the corner from Prince Regent Street where we lived.My mum was happy because I would get looked after in the big crowds.What she didn't know was that we didn't see his dad from the time we got on the train until we got off it back in Leith.When I eventually confessed she let me start going to Easter Road with other pals and I didn't go nearly so often to Tynecastle and often went to the reserves at Easter Road instead.My dad had no interest in football but went with me a couple of times.We went once to see Hearts v Third Lanark as he was intrigued by the name.at half time he said that Hearts supporters were very fair minded as they'd lost five goals and were taking it very well.I told him it was Third Lanark in the red-Hearts were wearing their candy stripes.Think it finished 8-3 with Willie Bauld getting five.

[lord bunberry]

One of my first derby games At Easter Road I travelled with a bunch of Hearts fans in the back of a furniture removal van from the Longstone Hearts Club where my much older brother was a member. All the other travellers were decked out in maroon scarves, whilst I wore my green and white one which I had woven at primary school.
As I remember it, Hearts won that day so I wasn’t thrown out of the back of a moving vehicle on the return journey.
Have you still got that scarf?

[Yorkshire HFC]

When I was at school and uni, a friend of mines dad was the Hearts team doctor and I often went to Tynecastle with him - free main stand tickets and I quite enjoyed watching as a neutral.

[SideBurns]

You're correct that there was much more trouble with the Huns than anyone else but it wasn't confined to them. I remember heading home from a Hibs Celtc cup tie, we lost 1-0 in extra time in front of about 50k+ & there was a pitched battle of about 60 people in Albert St. Everyone of them was a Celtc supporter!

Ha ha! That wisnae the cup tie when Celtic fans were using gravestones uprooted from the cemetery to batter down the doors in the Cave, was it? Another one i recall hearing from the auld man (I'd ask him but he cannae speak for himself these days).

[Valencia]

I posted before that I met two elderly gentlemen at the Meadowbank v Fort William a few years ago who had season tickets for both Hibs and Hearts. Told me they were Hibs fans and suspected the Hearts fans they sat beside knew they were Hibbies I saw them at the start of the season at one of the league cup games and one of them was relying on the other to help him along. Hope they are keeping well two nice guys

It was at Meadowbank but it was Spartans home game. It was only a few years ago.

[G B Young]

When I was 8/9 I went to Hearts more than Hibs because the dad of a school pal was a Hearts supporter.We could get the train just round the corner from Prince Regent Street where we lived.My mum was happy because I would get looked after in the big crowds.What she didn't know was that we didn't see his dad from the time we got on the train until we got off it back in Leith.When I eventually confessed she let me start going to Easter Road with other pals and I didn't go nearly so often to Tynecastle and often went to the reserves at Easter Road instead.My dad had no interest in football but went with me a couple of times.We went once to see Hearts v Third Lanark as he was intrigued by the name.at half time he said that Hearts supporters were very fair minded as they'd lost five goals and were taking it very well.I told him it was Third Lanark in the red-Hearts were wearing their candy stripes.Think it finished 8-3 with Willie Bauld getting five.

That always struck me as the more obvious thing to do rather than go to Tynecastle when Hibs were playing away. I imagine reserve games got reasonable crowds in the post-war years, especially as Hibs had a lot of good players who simply couldn't get into the first team because the Famous Five were so good. I recall reading that when Gordon Smith signed for Hearts more than 10k turned up for his first game in the reserves.

[JeMeSouviens]

One of the things that's always stuck with me from my first ever game, 1979, was the Hearts fans fighting among themselves. What was that all about?

[Killiehibbie]

My Uncle went week about, 40's and 50's, he classed himself as an Edinburgh supporter with a slight preference for Hearts. He took me to my first game at Easter Road in 1972 but never tried to take me to Tynecastle as he realised things had changed. Wish he'd taken me 1/1/73.

[Peevemor]

Nobody likes them. Even them.

[Keith_M]

One of the things that's always stuck with me from my first ever game, 1979, was the Hearts fans fighting among themselves. What was that all about?


That's when I started going as well and, according to a Hearts supporting classmate of mine, the Livi punks used to fight with some Edinburgh punks in the home end at Tynecastle, so it seemed to be a regional gang thing.

[Glory Lurker]

I know that there were a few people that followed both in the past. But are there any still today?

Magic thread, btw. Have really enjoyed folks' posts.

[Glory Lurker]

Did the 'cairry-oot' start to become more of a thing post-1950s maybe? I might be completely wrong but in my mind's eye I see fans in the 50s as more likely to be carrying a wee whisky flask in their pockets to the game than cases of beer cans and bottles. You'd also be less likely to use your own flask as a missile!

Segregation, while designed to limit trouble, ultimately helped to fuel the tribal hatred IMHO. Nothing worse than seeing a stand full of yams/huns etc celebrating. It used to be even worse when it was terracing as there were more of them and the celebration looked much wilder. I don't mind admitting that in my younger days I'd imagine hurling a hand grenade into the midst of them!

I'd be interested to see how we'd all get on with each other now if segregation was scrapped.

What we've lost in basic human decency has been made up for in the atmosphere segregation gives :-)

I've been to the odd friendly in the wrong end, and a few non-segregated lower league games. I've enjoyed that, but they were games I wasn't anywhere near as invested in as I am at a competitive Hibs game. I couldn't do without segregation. I suppose really it's all I've ever known and maybe we're poorer for it (we probably are from a civility point of view!), but the tribalism was a huge part of what got me hooked.

[brog]

Ha ha! That wisnae the cup tie when Celtic fans were using gravestones uprooted from the cemetery to batter down the doors in the Cave, was it? Another one i recall hearing from the auld man (I'd ask him but he cannae speak for himself these days).

Its quite possible, it was in 1961. Crowd is now shown as just under 40k but my memory at the time was it was over 50k with many locked out. It was only a month or so after the Barcelona game IIRC & at time that crowd was stated as 54k & its now shown as 45k. I do remember as a young boy being terrified at the dozens of Celtc fans battling each other with bottles etc. Horrendous!

[Liberal Hibby]

What we've lost in basic human decency has been made up for in the atmosphere segregation gives :-)

I've been to the odd friendly in the wrong end, and a few non-segregated lower league games. I've enjoyed that, but they were games I wasn't anywhere near as invested in as I am at a competitive Hibs game. I couldn't do without segregation. I suppose really it's all I've ever known and maybe we're poorer for it (we probably are from a civility point of view!), but the tribalism was a huge part of what got me hooked.

It's an interesting thought getting rid of segregation. Like you I go to the occassional non-league game down here. Althought the games aren't officially segregated home and away fans gravitate to different ends (and cross over at half time like the old days at Easter Road). So there was always a degree of segregation before it was enforced.

I wonder if the thing that gives the atmosphere is the roof - the old massive open terraces could have three or four chants going on in different places before any one caught on (and even then I suspect most of the noise went skywards).

[oldbutdim]

Have you still got that scarf?

No. It was pretty rubbish to be honest, and I went mainstream and got a shop bought one pretty quickly.
I’ve got quite a few now, limited edition ones as well as standard.

Funnily enough I just wear one when it’s really cold!

[LancsHibs]

I have a season ticket for both, looking forwards to seeing some different teams next season. Arbroath, Alloa etc bring it on. Can’t wait for the fitba to get started again.

[Pretty Boy]

Was going 'week about' ever as widespread as some claim?

I've asked my Grandad about it and he said it wasn't something that ever crossed his mind, his friendship group of the time was the same. They were Hibs fans, they went to Hibs games and when Hibs were away they might have taken in a junior game. I hear a lot of people talking about it but I can't say I've ever met anyone who admits to actually doing it.

Fwiw I love the tribalism of football. Standing with the 'other lot' and enjoying the game might seem a nice idea but it wouldn't be for me. It seems a bit romanticised. Being with your own tribe on Derby day is what it's all about.

[Lang Toun hibby]

Nowhere near as friendly as it used to be in eighties early nineties but I guess society has changed and a whole new level of thuggery has evolved since then. However you still see the odd groups of mix n match supporters which you would never see at an Old Firm game so relatively speaking yes.

My Dad was brought up in Liverpool in a "mixed" family. However he was a blue and moved to Leith where thankfully he brought me up as a Hibby. HoweverI have a sft spot for Everton and have been down to a game there. Maybe being spat at by Liverpool fans near Annfield when Hibs played them in the early 70's put a seal on that. So I go on the Toffees website and the vitriol towards the Reds is unbelievable. Ifyou watch their derby now compared to years ago there is very little mixing now. Maybe society, media and keyboard wariors have a lot to answer.for

[Topographic Hibby]

Was going 'week about' ever as widespread as some claim?My dad's best man (Hibby) and his gang o' pals from school used to do week about. And a friends Dad (Jambo) said the same. Both would be a similar age and were teenagers in the 50s, where they just came out of WWII and had a little cash to go to a game each week, but not enough to get the train to follow "their team" away from home.

I've heard it from two different horses mouths, so I def think it was a thing. :agree:

[Scouse Hibee]

My Dad was brought up in Liverpool in a "mixed" family. However he was a blue and moved to Leith where thankfully he brought me up as a Hibby. HoweverI have a sft spot for Everton and have been down to a game there. Maybe being spat at by Liverpool fans near Annfield when Hibs played them in the early 70's put a seal on that. So I go on the Toffees website and the vitriol towards the Reds is unbelievable. Ifyou watch their derby now compared to years ago there is very little mixing now. Maybe society, media and keyboard wariors have a lot to answer.for

It was easier for them to be friendlier in the eighties when for a few years they could actually compete with Liverpool, now they’re just bitter that they can’t.

[Ringothedog]

Was going 'week about' ever as widespread as some claim?

I've asked my Grandad about it and he said it wasn't something that ever crossed his mind, his friendship group of the time was the same. They were Hibs fans, they went to Hibs games and when Hibs were away they might have taken in a junior game. I hear a lot of people talking about it but I can't say I've ever met anyone who admits to actually doing it.

Fwiw I love the tribalism of football. Standing with the 'other lot' and enjoying the game might seem a nice idea but it wouldn't be for me. It seems a bit romanticised. Being with your own tribe on Derby day is what it's all about.

My father never even considered it, he was from Stenhouse but Hibs were his team, having said that, he was a good football player so never got the chance as he played at Junior level most weeks.The only time he saw Hearts at Tynecastle was if Hibs were playing.

[Clarence]

My grandad says that Hearts are his second team. He wants them to finish second in every game they play 🙂

[Clarence]

In the 40s, 50s and 60s, my Grandad used to alternate between Easter Road and Tynecastle most weekends. He was a Hearts Fan but just enjoyed watching football in general.

He said that he never had the option of going to away games, as people used to work Mon-Fri then Saturday until about twelve. So Easter Road was the next best option, and he enjoyed watching the best Hibs team ever.

In fact, his first ever match was at Easter Road, where he was taken in the 1920s as a small child by a Hibs supporting relative.

He said he stopped going in the early 70s because of the sectarianism that had creeped in to some of the Hearts support (ER was not immune either), as it totally disgusted him.

The west coast meedja think that sectarianism is good for the popularity of the game and gives it a “special” atmosphere but it really drives away more civilised fans in the less barbaric areas of the country.

[Paisley Hibby]

My dad was a Jambo. So was his dad and in the late 40s/50s they went week about ER/Tynecastle. The only team they didn't like was Rangers. My dad always said he was 90% Jambo and 10% Hibee (with his Hibs percentage rising every time we beat Rangers). I grew up not hating Hearts and didn't mind them doing well (as long as not at our expense). I was living in Glasgow in the 1980s when Hearts lost the league on the last day and I was really disappointed. I'd been looking forward to an Edinburgh team winning it for a change to shut the Weegies up. But then I moved to Edinburgh, started going to Hibs games home and away and within a few years I realised I hated Hearts with a passion. Can't explain it but that's what happened.

[PatHead]

I didn't mind Hearts when I was younger. Had a good friend who supported them. I went off them when they almost won the league. Every Monday you would go into work and Hearts "supporters" who had never been to a game since yon time would give you it really tight. They still never went to games but had a smug superiority about them.

Never liked them since and the despising was brought in by that fat tory ****, Mercer.

[eezyrider]

As a kid my dad used to take me to see Meadowbank when Hibs weren't playing. It was more a novelty of a new team playing almost on our doorstep.

EZ

[Tom Hart RIP]

Jambo neighbour took me to Easter Road for the big European nights in the 60s. Also took me to Tynecastle but there was no contest.
Always be grateful to him.

[One Day]

As a kid my dad used to take me to see Meadowbank when Hibs weren't playing. It was more a novelty of a new team playing almost on our doorstep.

EZ

I often take my grandson to watch Edinburgh City if Hibs are away or don't have a game that day.

[hibee-boys]

If there still hibs/hearts fans let me know and I'll send round the men in the white coats!

[jgl07]

This idea was all a bit 1950s.

I remember the Jack Docherty/Moray Hunter sketch on Saturday Live. They claimed that it was always ‘week about’: Easter Road on Saturday, Tynecastle the next. Never varied! That was until they got out of synch and ended up watching a lot of reserve matches!

It was certainly common with my father’s generation. Many in Manchester watched both City and United and supported both teams. It similar in the 1960s except for the supporting part.

Back then Football was very cheap and crowds were not that big. Virtually all matches were pay at the gate so it was possible to make a spontaneous decision to go to a particular match.

If you couldn’t afford an away trip, the decision was usually between going to see the reserves or going to see the other lot and shout for the visitors.

[Brizo]

Good summary. As others have said it was also very much a social thing at the time. Remember, in the late 40's many young men & women were returning home after being gone for maybe 5 or 6 years. Many didn't return home & so there was very much a feeling that every social outlet should be enjoyed. It's not a coincidence that in that period every team enjoyed a boom in attendances & in the 20 seasons after WW2 we saw the most equal period in Scottish football since the prior century. We won 3 titles, Hearts 2 & Dundee, Aberdeen, Killie & a wee team called Celtc 1 each! My family were 100% Hibs & only ventured to Tiny once a season but more middle class supporters often had a season ticket at both grounds. I was very young but even then my memory was that it was much more likely for a Hearts family to have a 2nd season ticket at ER than the other way around. It was also a bit reflective on one's social standing to have 2 seasons at a time when very few people could actually afford one! The 50's ( & early 60's) were probably the last old fashioned decade with men wearing suits, collar & ties to ER. I think the fighting, which was certainly around in mid 60's was more reflective of overall social changes than anything specific to Hibs & Hearts.

As you say the post war return of servicemen looking for a social outlet and a return to competitive football for all of society were main contributing factors, as was the fact that most working men worked Saturday mornings and a lot would go to the football straight from work with their workmates regardless of who they supported. And of course other entertainment options were very limited with pub and bookie opening hours being very different in those days and TV ownership being limited to the well off. Add to that going to the football was much cheaper in relative terms than it is now and so most working men could afford to go to ER one Saturday and Tynie the next.

My late Dad and his pals did this back in the late 40s and 50s and they were a mix of Hibs, Hearts and Celtic. Maybe there was something about having come through a War together but definitely seems to have been a time when it was mainly good natured rivalry not hatred and folk would quite happily watch a game at their rivals ground.

As you say, it all changed in the 60s and by the time I started going even East of Scotland fixtures could be carnage. The Mercer takeover bid and the bulk of the Hertz fans gloating support of it (despite some recent revisionism) upped the ante. I've never met anyone who follows Hibs and Hearts and am always slightly suspicious of folk who say they want the Edinburgh teams to do well :)