What are we scared of playing at that tip?

[Scotty Leither]

Before this is taken as criticism, as I think Neil Lennon is the best thing to happen to Hibs since Leeann Dempster, but why the caginess when we play that mob at tiny castle?

You know what you're going to get, a war of attrition, where the ball's in the air 80% of the time, in a game punctuated by fouls and stoppages. So what's wrong with playing a player in the no 10 role in between the midfield and the forwards?

We give them far too much respect and as I've said before I'd like to see a big rumbustious forward signed in the January window so we can match them up physically, and after that let the football players in our team dictate the game, as watching them tonight i have no idea how that ***** are top of the league.

[Northernhibee]

Why are they afraid to have a pitch that leads to football being played?

[Scotty Leither]

Latapy p!ayed in "the hole" and big Mixu took the ball in and guys like John O'Neill buzzed round about him. They're a one-dimensional team cast in the image of their dinosaur manager.

Like I said, drop the caution. They're really not deserving of it.

[calumhibee1]

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Why are they afraid to have a pitch that leads to football being played?

This is a better question.

The pitch is apparently 1.3 times the size of an 18 yard box smaller than Easter Road area wise. Imagine moving the goals at Easter Road 20 yards forward and then think about how different a match it would be? They build a team based on playing there. They’ll continue to have good home records and smelling away records because their team is literally signed to play on what is a hugely different pitch.

[K.Marx]

Whilst the size of the pitch undoubtedly has an impact how we play I don’t think it should be a given that we just turn up and accept a 0-0. In the period that we have only won 1 game there, Celtic have won 4-0 twice, 5-0 and 7-0.

Now I know Celtic have spending power 10x ours, but even killie, Aberdeen have turned hearts over there in recent years. We just never turn up and it’s very frustrating.

[Smartie]

I don't think we're scared of playing there.

They have a playing style that suits their ground - they play to their strengths and their brawn in a derby would steamroller any attempt to play football.

I can't rememember the last time we went there and didn't give as good as we've got. All the games are tight and we've been unlucky to have lost some by the odd goal when most have been draws.

It's funny how different these games are to all others though, and it doesn't seem to matter who is in charge at Hearts.

[The_Horde]

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Before this is taken as criticism, as I think Neil Lennon is the best thing to happen to Hibs since Leeann Dempster, but why the caginess when we play that mob at tiny castle?

You know what you're going to get, a war of attrition, where the ball's in the air 80% of the time, in a game punctuated by fouls and stoppages. So what's wrong with playing a player in the no 10 role in between the midfield and the forwards?

We give them far too much respect and as I've said before I'd like to see a big rumbustious forward signed in the January window so we can match them up physically, and after that let the football players in our team dictate the game, as watching them tonight i have no idea how that ***** are top of the league.

The game more or less totally bypasses anyone "in the hole" at Tiny. See Scott Allan last season.

[Ozyhibby]

It’s a very small pitch with 22 big lads running about on it. There are a lot more tackles and collisions. That’s why the yams have such a poor disciplinary record every year and why they sign certain types of players.
We’re not scared of it, we just have to adapt to it.


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[FifeHibs]

Its almost playing 11 aside in a large 7 aside pitch.

[bingo70]

I think last night the fear was going 11 points behind them and that was a justifiable concern.

As it stands though we've a great chance to get the lead cut to 5 points on Saturday with them being away at Celtic and we'd still have our game in hand to potentially get it back to 2 points.

I get there is a bigger picture and in general we haven't performed well enough there recently however i totally get last nights tactics and performance, it was essential we never lost last night.

[hibbydog]

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Latapy p!ayed in "the hole" and big Mixu took the ball in and guys like John O'Neill buzzed round about him. They're a one-dimensional team cast in the image of their dinosaur manager.

Like I said, drop the caution. They're really not deserving of it.

Glory days man, glory days !!!

[Brightside]

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Why are they afraid to have a pitch that leads to football being played?

Nothing wrong with the pitch last night. The OP is bang on....its beyond me what we have to turn into a lower league team every time we play at tynecastle.

[Blaster]

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Nothing wrong with the pitch last night. The OP is bang on....its beyond me what we have to turn into a lower league team every time we play at tynecastle.

We’ve tried 2 up front, 2 wingers, last night’s formation and still not won so no easy answer. I thought the tactics last night up to the sending off were ok and it was opening up a bit. If flo hadn’t been sent off and Mclaren had come on for Slivka I think we could have gone on to win it.

We’ll never know

[calumhibee1]

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Nothing wrong with the pitch last night. The OP is bang on....its beyond me what we have to turn into a lower league team every time we play at tynecastle.

There’s plenty wrong with the pitch. Maybe wrong isn’t the word as it is within the rules but there’s plenty ‘different with it. As I’ve said elsewhere, move the goals at one end at Easter Road 20 yards forward and imagine the **** show that would ensue. That would be about the same size of pitch area wise as Tynecastle. Short of being an outstanding side it’s nigh on impossible to do anything other than play horrendous eye bleeding stuff, especially when you only play there once or twice a season.

[B.H.F.C]

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There’s plenty wrong with the pitch. Maybe wrong isn’t the word as it is within the rules but there’s plenty ‘different with it. As I’ve said elsewhere, move the goals at one end at Easter Road 20 yards forward and imagine the **** show that would ensue. That would be about the same size of pitch area wise as Tynecastle. Short of being an outstanding side it’s nigh on impossible to do anything other than play horrendous eye bleeding stuff, especially when you only play there once or twice a season.

You can see how tight the pitch is but it’s also a very good surface now.

We never strung 4 or 5 passes together all night. That wasn’t because of the pitch. The fact we had 3 centre halves, 2 defensively minded wing backs and a defensive midfielder who’s best attributes are what he does without the ball had more to do with it.

Them being used to playing on the tight pitch obviously helps them but I don’t think we particularly helped ourselves in terms of how we tried to play.

[Brightside]

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There’s plenty wrong with the pitch. Maybe wrong isn’t the word as it is within the rules but there’s plenty ‘different with it. As I’ve said elsewhere, move the goals at one end at Easter Road 20 yards forward and imagine the **** show that would ensue. That would be about the same size of pitch area wise as Tynecastle. Short of being an outstanding side it’s nigh on impossible to do anything other than play horrendous eye bleeding stuff, especially when you only play there once or twice a season.

But it was us that played tight and compact... how often did our "wingback" actually get out wide and try and get to the byline? once maybe? We punted the ball into the mayhem constantly.... just like they do to. Now we only play that way when we play them at Tynecastle and as others have said other teams can still go there and play slightly more expansive football. Its was eye bleeding last night from both teams.

[jacomo]

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You can see how tight the pitch is but it’s also a very good surface now.

We never strung 4 or 5 passes together all night. That wasn’t because of the pitch. The fact we had 3 centre halves, 2 defensively minded wing backs and a defensive midfielder who’s best attributes are what he does without the ball had more to do with it.

Them being used to playing on the tight pitch obviously helps them but I don’t think we particularly helped ourselves in terms of how we tried to play.

I think this is fair comment. Too defensive and on the back foot last night. Hearts had far too much of the play - with their injury list we should have dominated them.

Disappointing.

[The 90+2]

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Nothing wrong with the pitch last night. The OP is bang on....its beyond me what we have to turn into a lower league team every time we play at tynecastle.

Yep, I don’t think you’ll get to shut it and piss off if you’re unhappy with it though.

[calumhibee1]

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But it was us that played tight and compact... how often did our "wingback" actually get out wide and try and get to the byline? once maybe? We punted the ball into the mayhem constantly.... just like they do to. Now we only play that way when we play them at Tynecastle and as others have said other teams can still go there and play slightly more expansive football. Its was eye bleeding last night from both teams.

Does anyone go there and play more expansive football though? And if they do, do they get anything? Hearts home record would suggest the answer to that is that if they do try to play a bit then the away side still don’t win. Celtic might try but they also keep getting turned over at Tynie since CL took over.

[B.H.F.C]

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I think this is fair comment. Too defensive and on the back foot last night. Hearts had far too much of the play - with their injury list we should have dominated them.

Disappointing.

I’m not sure that we should have dominated them as such. They will always have their fair share of the ball when we go there. Problem, IMO, was that when we did turn the ball over we didn’t have enough pace in the team to break and get bodies up the park quickly. That has been one of our biggest strengths this year but we didn’t play to it last night.

[bingo70]

How does our record at Pittodrie compare?

We seem to have a dreadful record up there as well so maybe it's nothing to do with pitch size etc, maybe we just struggle to get in to a passing rhythm when we play against physical sides that know how to stop you playing?

Against the likes of Celtic and Rangers they like to play football as well so in a football match we're as good as anyone, in a physical encounter we can hold our own but struggle to mix that with actually playing football and scoring goals, seems to me we either do one or the other.

[Danderhall Hibs]

What’s the difference in dimensions of the pitches? This small pitch stuff seems to be growing arms and legs. I thought although it’s a bit smaller it feels smaller than it is cos the fans basically sit on the touch line.

[matty_f]

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Before this is taken as criticism, as I think Neil Lennon is the best thing to happen to Hibs since Leeann Dempster, but why the caginess when we play that mob at tiny castle?

You know what you're going to get, a war of attrition, where the ball's in the air 80% of the time, in a game punctuated by fouls and stoppages. So what's wrong with playing a player in the no 10 role in between the midfield and the forwards?

We give them far too much respect and as I've said before I'd like to see a big rumbustious forward signed in the January window so we can match them up physically, and after that let the football players in our team dictate the game, as watching them tonight i have no idea how that ***** are top of the league.

I totally agree - we have convinced ourselves that the only way to play them is to play them at their own game.

We don't massively change our game plan to play Rangers, Celtic, Aberdeen etc, so while I understand the rationale behind changing it for Hearts at Tiny, I also don't think that it's totally out of the question that teams can go there and play football.

[heretoday]

I don't think we are scared of playing at Tynecastle.

It's a Derby match. You have to be on your mettle.

[TheMrSandiego]

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What’s the difference in dimensions of the pitches? This small pitch stuff seems to be growing arms and legs. I thought although it’s a bit smaller it feels smaller than it is cos the fans basically sit on the touch line.

According to Google Easter Road is 105 x 68 and Tynecastle is 100 x 64. Like you say it feels smaller but the reality is it's only a couple of yards shorter at each side.

[Smartie]

They also press very hard high up the pitch, Bogdan was getting closed down very quickly as well as our defenders.

A lot of our hoofball was forced by their pressing, then they scrap to win second balls from our punts.

Playing silky football from the back under that level of pressure might just invite more pressure.

I don't think Lennon got it wrong at all and I don't think we're in the least bit scared - if anything I think it takes balls to acknowledge that it is a different type of game and set up accordingly rather than play into their hands by playing our normal game. I think that's why Celtic have come unstuck there a couple of times.

[Danderhall Hibs]

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According to Google Easter Road is 105 x 68 and Tynecastle is 100 x 64. Like you say it feels smaller but the reality is it's only a couple of yards shorter at each side.

That doesn’t sound like much of a difference but it’s hard to say without laying a picture of one on top of the other.

Are we making too much of it?

[The Modfather]

When we go to Tynecastle we become what we mocked them for during their clean sheet run, solid defensively but at the cost of any attacking intent.

[Keith_M]

Hearts tactics are largely about stopping the opposing team playing football, even more so when it's Hibs they're playing.

While Hibs play an open, attractive style against a lot of other teams (not always, but mostly), they're up against all manner of ****housery against the Yams, so it's not easy to play your normal game. It's very similar when we play Aberdeen.



If nothing else, maybe last night's game will put an end to anybody that doesn't agree with posters predicting a walk over against them being called 'negative', or 'doom and gloomers'

[Keith_M]

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According to Google Easter Road is 105 x 68 and Tynecastle is 100 x 64. Like you say it feels smaller but the reality is it's only a couple of yards shorter at each side.

Maybe the Easter Road figure is Metres and the Tynecastle one in Yards