One thing is certain at Hampden.. I'll get booked for my first tackle, insists Hearts star Ian Black

May 19 2012 By Scott McDermott

IAN BLACK already has 13 yellow and two red cards to his name this season alone.

Unsurprisingly, then, the Hearts ace expects no favours from man in the middle Craig Thomson as he prepares for the biggest game of his career at the National Stadium.

However, the Tynecastle midfielder has urged the whistler to appreciate today’s Scottish Cup Final against Hibs will be like no other encounter he’s taken charge of.

The 27-year-old has warned he won’t alter his style of play for the big occasion – but insists it’ll be his technique and not his tackling that’ll hurt the Hibees.

Black cemented his reputation as the sinner of Scottish football in October last year when a studs-up challenge on Dean Shiels earned a straight red just 16 minutes in against Kilmarnock.

But asked whether he might get a challenge for ‘free’ early doors down to the nature of today’s tie, Black said: “I never get any tackles for free!

“I think the referee has to take into account that it’s a derby – he’s got to. He’ll know it’s a hard game to control which could go either way.

“There could be a bit of trouble with tackles flying in. There’s always that edge in these games but he’s experienced enough to deal with it.

“I won’t be looking to stamp my authority on the game earlier, I don’t feel I have to. I’ve enjoyed derby games in the past and I won’t treat this one any differently.

“I’ll just play how I play. Obviously, I’ll be looking to win my battle in the middle of the park and if I do, the whole Hearts team will do well.

“Even in this game, I think I can get on the ball and play – I’ve done it in other derbies against Hibs.

“I set up Craig Beattie’s goal in the last one at Tynecastle and Hampden is a bigger pitch. They’ll know what our strengths are and they’ll try to stop us. But I’m confident enough in my own ability.

“This is definitely the biggest game of my career. I’m just relishing being involved in it.”

No-one will revel in this Hampden derby more than Black who grew up a staunch supporter of the men in maroon.

It was a dream come true for the die-hard Jambo when he left Inverness Caley three years ago to sign for his boyhood heroes – but it could have been a very different story for the Tranent-born star.

As a teenager, Black was a Hibs youth player before being offered a full-time deal by then gaffer Alex McLeish.

He knocked it back to join Blackburn Rovers and insists he’s never regretted exiting Easter Road. In fact, Black even revealed he NEVER hid the fact his loyalties lay across the city when training with ardent Hibees like Garry O’Connor and Derek Riordan.

He said: “I was at Hibs for a year and a half, maybe two, as a youngster. It was really good at the time. I had the opportunity to go there but said no. Alex was the manager at the time and gave me the option but I chose to give it a bash south of the border.

“The guys there at the time were Scott Brown, Derek, Garry, and Kevin Thomson was full-time as well.

“But I don’t regret not staying at Hibs. I’d never say I regret anything in my career. I’ve been happy with it so far.

“I’ve got to live with my decisions and I think they’ve been right. Going down south, coming back and starting again at Inverness, and I think I’ve kicked on at Hearts.

“It was strange back then to be wearing a Hibs shirt but I was a kid. It didn’t mean as much as it does when you are a
professional footballer. I was basically employed by the club – even as a kid, I was just trying to make a living.

“I never hid my feelings for Hearts, not at all. I used to get a bit of stick for it with the other boys knowing but that was as far as it went.”

Black will play his last game for the club he loves this afternoon after the Tynecastle outfit opted not to offer a contract
extension this summer.

So, understandably, he’s desperate to finish on a high by lifting the Cup against their bitter Edinburgh rivals.

Despite being booked in for a hernia operation in just 10 days time, Black insists he’d play with a broken leg at Hampden if it meant being involved.

He said: “I feel fresh and I’ll take an injection before the game, as I have been doing, to get ready to play.

“I’d play with a broken leg if I could. It’s such a massive game nothing will keep me out of it.

“Come Saturday morning, I know I’ll be nervous, but I think that’s a good thing.

“I’d have taken any team in the Scottish Cup Final but because it’s a derby, it makes it more special. This game is great for Edinburgh football, it shows there’s life outside Glasgow. People are saying it’s even bigger than Rangers against Celtic.

“I’m just delighted to be a part of it. It doesn’t happen too often and it might never come round again so all the boys want to grab the opportunity.

“It would be a huge last game for me, personally. If I can walk away from the club on a high with the Scottish Cup in the trophy room, it would be the highlight of my career.

“The best way to leave a club is as a winner.

“Hopefully my future will be sorted out soon. I’m still looking for a team.

“The phone hasn’t rung yet which is a bit disappointing. But I just have to concentrate on Hampden.”

Taken from the Daily Record