Well it’s off to Tynecastle on Saturday for my 118th consecutive competitive game – I really must see that psychiatrist again soon!
I’m sure I wasn’t alone when I cringed at the sight of the fixture list when it was published. To have both halves of the infirm and their Edinburgh equivalents as the first four fixtures was a rough throw of the dice I’m sure you’ll agree, and although I was initially optimistic (overly so I’m told) about the number of points we’d gather out of those four games I’m having to revise down my estimates now! After all it’s not possible to get 12 points from two games!
I must admit to enjoying trips to Tynecastle more than I do to many grounds – the view from the stand is exceptional although it does tend to bring out my fear of heights somewhat! And the long trek to where the buses park is another black spot however – quite why they need to be parked quite so far down that road escapes me! The Weegie Arabs always seem to have a good day out before the game though – can anyone recommend a pub that lets young kids in? Poor Griswald Terror had to watch us sober the last time we visited Edinburgh!
So turning to the game itself what should we expect?
After the disappointment of the last two Saturdays I have to say I’m still optimistic about our chances of getting a result in Edinburgh. Robson will be back from his unfortunate suspension and that’s surely good news as I always feel games at Tynecastle need a bit of width – though whether the ground’s any wider than others I really have no idea!
I have to say at this point that I’m writing this preview on Monday night so it’s done without knowing whether we will have signed a centre half or not in time for the game – we certainly need one that’s for sure with Paterson being sidelined for a few weeks. Hopefully there will have been news of this by the time we get to the capital!
Predictions? Well despite mutterings to the contrary my nature at the moment is to be optimistic – I won’t go for anything as daft as an Easton hat-trick (though I suspect he may well feature in this game and it would be nice if he scored) but will venture to suggest that a win isn’t altogether out of the question – which will set us up nicely for the visit of the forces of darkness a week on Sunday!
Oh the hat!
McCall will be wearing it in the dugout on Saturday!