Gers standing doesn't scare us

PAUL KIDDIE

KID keeper Craig Gordon doesn’t subscribe to the theory that Rangers are untouchable - and believes Hearts are the team to prove it.

Since the Ibrox side struck a major blow in the championship race with victory over Celtic at Parkhead, many observers have claimed the Glasgow giants will sweep all before them in the SPL until they go head to head again after the league splits.

Not if Gordon and his Gorgie team-mates have anything to do with it, however.

The Gers maintained their advantage at the top of the SPL with a nervy 2-1 win over Kilmarnock at the weekend - and Gordon believes there could be a chink in the Light Blues’ armour.

"From what we’ve been hearing about their match against Kilmarnock it was a bit anxious for them towards the end. Everybody is saying Rangers and Celtic won’t drop any more points in the league until their next meeting, but I just can’t see that happening. To suggest no teams will take points off them until they meet again I think does a disservice to the rest of the SPL.

"There is a long way to go before the end of the season and they still have to go to a lot of hard places. Tynecastle is one of them and we will be right up for it.

I don’t think the Old Firm will have it as easy as people think.

"I don’t think they are unbeatable and while Rangers will come here full of confidence they are there to be shot at."

Hearts play host to Alex McLeish’s table-toppers tonight having already given the Light Blues a stern examination on their two previous meetings this season. A goalless draw in September was followed by an equally encouraging display at Ibrox towards the end of November, the Jambos emerging with nothing to show for their efforts after a 3-2 defeat in a pulsating encounter.

John Robertson’s outfit bounced back from a disappointing loss to Motherwell with victory over Livingston in the Tennent’s Scottish Cup quarter-final on Sunday to set up a semi-final showdown against Celtic on April 10.

The Hearts boss was delighted with the first half against the Lions when his side could have scored a handful of goals, although the performance level dipped after the break.

With cup fever now on the back burner for some five weeks, the Gorgie outfit will try to keep the pressure on third-placed Hibs, starting tonight.

"We got the result we were looking for against Livingston if not quite the performance and the mood in the camp this week has been good," said Gordon. "We’re going into the Rangers game full of confidence. This is a huge match for us.

If we can take anything from tonight’s match then that would set us up nicely for what is another vital period coming up.

"It’s important to maintain our league challenge and Hibs face a tough away game tonight in Inverness so you never know what might happen."

While Robertson readily acknowledges his men face a stiff challenge, Scotland star Gordon insists the players won’t be overawed by their visitors. "I think Barry Ferguson coming back has given Rangers a lift and Thomas Buffel is playing well, too," he said. "But we can’t afford to single just one person out. We’ll have to get in about them and stop them playing."

Team-mate Paul Hartley will be a key man for Hearts in the battle for midfield supremacy and the man who was desperate to join boyhood heroes Celtic during the January transfer window is expecting a hot reception from the visiting fans this evening. But he will treat any abuse from the Rangers legions as a compliment and handed the Gorgie faithful a major bonus by declaring he will be happy to sit down and discuss extending his current contract which still has 18 months to run.

He said: "I’ll just concentrate on my own job but to be honest I thrive on opposition fans having a go at me. Over the last 18 months my form has been good, I’m at the right club and I’m very settled here. I haven’t thought about what happened in January since the transfer window shut and my concentration is on helping Hearts finish in third place.

"The takeover has been finalised now and hopefully over the summer we can sit down and talk about things. I’d be happy to talk about a new contract and if the club want to speak to me about that then great."

Taken from the Scotsman