June 2014. The stark realisation
at Tynecastle that Hearts were relegated. Truth be told it had happened earlier
in that season when the Gorgie outfit were placed in administration and docked
points.
However, once Ann Budge’s Bidco
1874 consortium took the reins in May last year, Hearts had the chance to
essentially start again. However, unlike Rangers, whose rebuild job has been a
categorical disaster, Hearts went about theirs more clinically, with more
thought, more planning, and a far wiser use of resources.
Rangers, 2012 – Ally McCoist’s
failing regime – a regime which lest we forget began in July 2011 – McCoist had
more than a fair crack at the SPL – it was not till February the club was
placed in administration, but by then Ally had already become a complete
disaster at the helm. And there was the first mistake – instead of ‘moving
upstairs’ and remaining a figurehead of the Club while handing over the
managerial reins to fresh blood, McCoist stayed in the hotseat.
Now we look at Hearts. Ann Budge’s
consortium takes control and instead of leaving Gary Locke in charge,
immediately rips up the entire managerial book and starts again, removing Locke
and bringing in rookie Robbie Neilson instead. She looked at the cost and
decided a cheaper alternative was better, and someone who knew the club. It was
a tiny gamble, but one worth making.
Now to the Hearts players. 14 first-team
players were released, and 16 were brought in, while the average age was
brought massively down by having a glut of 20-23 year old players in the squad,
and not just in the squad, but the first team. Combined with the more senior
players like Buaben, Gomis and Sow, it truly was the ideal blend of youth and
experience, at a low budget.
Now the Rangers players. More or
less the entire first-team squad departed, leaving only Lee Wallace as the
single decent player left (McCulloch, Alexander, Little and Perry just do not
count), while then-CEO Charles Green and manager Ally McCoist threw all the
money they could in wages for the likes of Argyriou, Cribari, Sandaza, Kyle,
Templeton, and Black, while giving only rare chances to youth such as Barry
McKay, with only Macleod being played frequently.
This is the crudest summary of
why Hearts’ model was absolutely spot on, and Rangers’ was an utter disaster,
and why McCoist was talking out his backside saying youth could not win Division
3 or League 1. Odd then how Hearts’ young players managed to sail through the
infinitely harder Championship at the first time of asking at an embarrassing
canter.
Rangers tried to fix their
problems by throwing money at mercenaries while keeping the services of the
hopeless McCoist, while Hearts planned their route carefully, signing young
hungry players along with a few high-quality senior ones, getting in a
motivated rookie coach, and shipping out the dead wood.
And the opening match of this season proves who got the right solution.
Promotion or not, Rangers have a
second chance this summer to get it right.
Please, do not squander it.