Hearts in crisis: MP leading fans' buyout bid admits club has just endured the darkest day in its 139-year history

David McCarthy

18 Jun 2013 08:24

IAN MURRAY admits the cost of the club's recent Scottish Cup wins came at too high a price - but he insists the supporters can help Hearts recover from the shock of going into administration.

Somehow the MP for Edinburgh South, entrusted with the job of trying to orchestrate a supporters’ buyout that will allow his club to rise from the rubble of the Romanov regime, kept his emotions in check.

Maybe it’s because the chairman of the Foundation of Hearts knew this day would come. He just didn’t know when.

Yesterday it happened and Murray managed to divorce personal feelings from the job in hand. Which is to make sure his organisation is sitting at KPMG’s table as soon as possible to try to thrash out a deal for fan ownership at Tynecastle.

The administrators may have other offers to consider and Murray is a realist. KPMG will sell the club to the people who can guarantee the best deal for creditors. And, incidentally, the name at the top of the creditors’ list will be their own.

But Murray is determined to ensure even if the Foundation does not end up in control of their beloved club, they will be in a position to work with those who take over.

The 36-year-old had his business head on as he spoke of the need to get a deal done. But the mask did slip occasionally. The supporter took over and he spoke from, well, the Heart.

It came when he was asked if it has all been worth it. The 5-1 rout of Hibs in the 2012 Scottish Cup Final – a day most Hearts fans believe was the greatest in their history.

The 2006 Scottish Cup Final win. Some Hearts fans over the weekend were stating that, yes, it had been worth it. But yesterday the Labour MP wasn’t so sure. He has seen the devastation and is feeling the hurt as much as any Hearts fan but can’t let it affect the business that has now to be done with the administrators.

Paulo Sergio holds aloft the Scottish Cup during his time as Hearts boss Paulo Sergio holds aloft the Scottish Cup just 13 months ago

He said: “Today is the darkest day in the history of Hearts. You have to be able to divorce your emotions as a fan from the situation.

“That’s not easy but we can’t get into the situation again where the club is so badly run they end up in the same place further down the line.

“We have to do everything in the best interests of the club and make sure this is a business transaction and is dealt with in that fashion.

“But as a fan I don’t subscribe to the view it’s all been worth it. Yes, we enjoyed the good times but that has come at a huge price.

“Has the price been worth it? It will depend on what happens over the next few weeks.”

He believes fan ownership can deliver Hearts from the regime that will finally slink off the scene when KPMG move in. But even if it doesn’t, he is convinced the supporters – 4000 have pledged cash and yesterday’s news is sure to massively increase that number – have now earned the right to be heard by whoever takes the club out of administration.

Murray added: “We will open lines of communication with KPMG as soon as possible to see about getting the club into new ownership.

“We hope we can help the club rise again and we are working hard on finding a way to do that. There are enough people out there to make it happen, I’m sure of it.

“There are three things the Foundation hopes to achieve – to buy the club for the fans or on behalf of the fans. If that doesn’t happen we want to be in a position to encourage others to do so.

“The third thing is the Foundation is now in a very strong position to say to any new owner, ‘Let’s do something together’.

“We are pushing ahead to put a bid in to purchase the club, so there is true fan ownership. But if we achieve another owner coming in because we have pushed for that to happen and the new owner wants to work in conjunction with us that will be something the club hasn’t had before and it should be welcomed.”

Murray also wants answers to a question that will be worrying the 7000 fans who have bought season tickets for next term – and in particular those who handed over cash at the weekend following the club’s plea for them to do so because Hearts had run out of money.

He said: “My first reaction is shock but it is probably inevitable given where they were last week.

“The Foundation of Hearts is committed to a fan-led, community governed, transparent and well-structured club, at which supporters are at the very heart.

“We are backed by all the key fans groups, by a significant group of former players and by key players in the Edinburgh business
community. We are set to launch our pledge conversion campaign in the next 24 hours and with time of the essence we ask all supporters to pledge what they can in preparation for the fight to keep our club alive.

“I am disappointed the club has been encouraging people over the weekend to buy lots of season tickets then this announcement they are appointing administrators comes quickly afterwards on the Monday.

“I hope they will stand by those season tickets at the very least.”

Supporters Direct chief Paul Goodwin believes any new owner will make good on the season tickets – because it would be a PR disaster if they didn’t.

Goodwin, a driving force behind the Foundation of Hearts’ formation, said: “To have 7000 disgruntled fans at the start of a new regime would be a disaster for the owners.

“Today is a black day for Hearts but can also be the start of something new and exciting. More than 4000 have made pledges but Tynecastle gets 14,000 on matchdays so I hope all those fans seize the chance to make the Foundation preferred bidder.”

Taken from the Daily Record