Academy inspired a change of heart from kid Neill

RISING Hearts star John Neill has revealed how he snubbed bitter rivals Hibs to put pen to paper on a deal at Tynecastle.

The highly-rated central midfielder, who captained the Jambos' under-19s last term, is aiming to make the breakthrough in Gorgie this season with big things predicted from him.

But the teenager has admitted he almost ended up featuring for the club's bitter rivals, with only a last-minute swoop from Hearts preventing him from signing on the dotted line at Easter Road.

Hearts fans will be hoping that Hibs' loss will be their gain and, on the evidence of his pre-season displays, that would certainly seem to be the case.

Indeed, Neill could even find himself involved in the Champions League qualifying match against NK Siroki Brijeg at Murrayfield tomorrow evening with Paul Hartley definitely out and Julien Brellier struggling to prove his fitness.

"I was at Hearts when I was younger and then I actually moved to Hibs for a while," said Neill, who captained a reserve side against Livingston last week and Berwick Rangers on Saturday.

"Then just when I was about to go full-time Hearts came in and made me another offer and I decided I would be better off there. "Both clubs had their pluses but, in the end, it was the fact that Hearts had a youth academy that really swung me into coming back.

"When I first came back to Hearts we had about six months still at Tynecastle before we moved to Riccarton. Moving out there was great because it meant you could stay back after training and work on various things.

"It was like night and day compared to Hibs, who were still training on public parks."

The contrast between an almost deserted Shielfield Park and Murrayfield, where 25,000 fans are expected to cheer on the men in maroon against their Bosnian opponents, could hardly be more stark.

But that is exactly the transition Neill is hoping to make ahead of tomorrow night's clash.

Midfield lynchpin Hartley has already been sidelined with a persistent groin strain while Brellier is also struggling to shake off a knock which forced him to limp out of last week's 2-0 victory over Spanish cracks Osasuna.

And Neill says it would be a dream come true to get a run out tomorrow.

"I'd expect to be pushing for a place in the first-team squad because I feel as though I'm playing well enough to be in there," he said. "It's just a matter of actually getting there and then showing what I can do.

"I know when I get my chance that I have to make sure and grab it. It's not easy with the guys that are in front of me just now and although it's not nice to say I suppose I'm just waiting for one of them to pick up an injury which might give me a chance," said the teenager.

"That's the situation we are in at the moment and it looks as though Lee Johnson [pictured left] is going to come in and get a shot. That might open things up for me on the bench.

"It would be brilliant to be involved in the Champions League. It would be ideal to start the game but it would still be an accolade to be on the bench. We'll just have to see what happens."

Of course, while being in the same squad as the likes of Hartley and Brellier isn't ideal, when it comes to getting a game it does at least mean that Neill is in the position of being able to learn from vastly-experienced players.

However, he insisted that he learns just as much from his under-19 colleagues as he does from more experienced first-team members.

"I work well with Eggert [Jonsson] and we both give each other tips," he said. "Lee Johnson is good for that too because he's got quite a bit of experience from his Yeovil days. I just get tips off everybody really whether it's Paul or Julien. The more advice you get the better a player you'll become.

"I know I've got to try and play well to force my way into the team and that is what I'm going to try and do. I was captain on Thursday against Livingston and then again on Saturday and that was a wee bonus. Hopefully, I can push on from that and try and force my way into the first team."

Taken from the Scotsman