No New Year's Day derby for fans

EDINBURGH fans won't have a New Year's Day derby to look forward to this season - but the Capital clubs will clash at Tynecastle on Boxing Day.

That meeting will be the second Edinburgh derby of the season with Hibs hosting the first at Easter Road on October 14. The third is on March 31 and is the penultimate game before the SPL split.

Hearts, who finished second last season, will kick off the new campaign on July 29 with a trip across the Forth to face Dunfermline while Hibs will be at home to Aberdeen.

And in the second round of fixtures Hearts will be at home to champions Celtic, a match which will be played on Sunday, August 6, and screened live on Setanta Television.

The visit from Celtic comes just three days after Gordon Strachan's side are due to play Yokohama in Japan, part of the Shunsuke Nakamura deal.

However, the prospect of a trip to Gorgie after such a gruelling journey could well force a rethink among the powers-that-be at Celtic Park. On that day Hibs will be away to Kilmarnock while the first Old Firm clash of the season will take place at Celtic Park on September 23.

Today Hibs chairman Rod Petrie declared himself satisfied with the fixture list, the Easter Road outfit having expressed misgivings over last season's schedule which saw them play twice at Tynecastle before the split for the second year in succession as well as facing four of the five sides who had finished in the top six the previous year twice away from home.

And although there will be no New Year's Day derby, Petrie insisted the Boxing Day fixture - which will be televised - will be more welcome to Capital fans than the scenario they faced last season when the "Festive" derby took place at the end of January.

He said: "You hope for a balance in the fixtures and I think that is what we have got with a home/away start and a home/away finish before the split as well as having Hearts at home twice.

"It may not be a New Year's Day derby but it does fall right in the middle of the Festive period which will allow all those people who have travelled home to Edinburgh for the Christmas holidays to go to the game."

Hearts coach Valdas Ivanauskas, meanwhile, declared himself pleased with his side's early programme, with a trip to Dunfermline followed by the visit of Celtic to Edinburgh one week later. "That is a good start for us," said the Lithuanian. "Our first competitive game is in the Champions League at the end of July, so although it will be a difficult start it is not too difficult.

"Dunfermline is not a long journey, which will be good for our supporters after the Champions League trip. Then Celtic at Tynecastle, which is okay in my opinion. The derbies have also worked out well for us with the first one being at Easter Road and then the next at home on Boxing Day. Our fans will be happy with that because they can have a celebration."

Hibs boss Tony Mowbray said: "You know you have to play everyone, the onus on managers and players is to be ready for each fixture as it comes along and that's what we on the playing side will be concentrating on."

Taken from the Scotsman