Fraser Mullen disappointed at Hearts exit
ON the same day that David Goodwillie and Kris Boyd were linked with fanciful moves to Hearts, right back Fraser Mullen has surprisingly tweeted his disappointment at being told he no longer has a future at Tynecastle.
Mullen, 19, has been at the club since he was 12 years old and was part of the youth team graduates that have stepped up to the first team in Gorgie during this season. His debut for Hearts was against Auchinleck Talbot in the Scottish Cup last season, where he missed a penalty. Despite this, manager Paulo Sergio described the youngster as his ‘man of the match.’
Therefore the decision to release Mullen at the end of his current contract next month will come as a big surprise to Jambos who have seen him in action. Mullen’s technical ability alone makes him stand out from the other options in the right back area next season - Dylan McGowan and Jamie Hamill - who played at RB at the weekend. Hamill’s distribution in the weekend’s derby defeat was particular painful to watch, constantly punting aimless balls forward.
Mullen, 19, has been at the club since he was 12 years old and was part of the youth team graduates that have stepped up to the first team in Gorgie during this season. His debut for Hearts was against Auchinleck Talbot in the Scottish Cup last season, where he missed a penalty. Despite this, manager Paulo Sergio described the youngster as his ‘man of the match.’
Therefore the decision to release Mullen at the end of his current contract next month will come as a big surprise to Jambos who have seen him in action. Mullen’s technical ability alone makes him stand out from the other options in the right back area next season - Dylan McGowan and Jamie Hamill - who played at RB at the weekend. Hamill’s distribution in the weekend’s derby defeat was particular painful to watch, constantly punting aimless balls forward.
Mullen made his debut against Auchinleck Talbot
Mullen said on Twitter: “Not being offered a contract for next season at hearts. Enjoyed being at the club since I was 12 but annoyed the way last few months ended with the injury. Absolute gutted at leaving some of the boys gona miss them a lot.”
Read more... Add new comment
Hearts: Must do better next term
SATURDAY'S result at Pittodrie and all round general toothless performance was a good example of how Hearts’ end of season report card will look like – “Must do better next term”. A drab affair at Pittodrie saw a number of chances created, and as usual, not taken, whilst two were conceded at the other end.
It’s probably going to get worse before it gets better as well. Experienced Scottish Cup winners Darren Barr, Danny Grainger, Andy Webster and Marius Zaliukas are all out of contract in the summer, and it is widely expected that at least Grainger and Zaliukas are set to depart Gorgie as the club continues to try and keep itself afloat following the collapse of the Romanov regime at Tynecastle.
Webster remains one who could potentially remain at the club if Hearts and the Scotland international defender could negotiate a reduced deal. However interest in Webster is likely to be high around the SPL, so Hearts will need to offer competitive rates to keep the experienced campaigner, who has played in consecutive cup finals in his last two seasons for the club.
It’s probably going to get worse before it gets better as well. Experienced Scottish Cup winners Darren Barr, Danny Grainger, Andy Webster and Marius Zaliukas are all out of contract in the summer, and it is widely expected that at least Grainger and Zaliukas are set to depart Gorgie as the club continues to try and keep itself afloat following the collapse of the Romanov regime at Tynecastle.
Webster remains one who could potentially remain at the club if Hearts and the Scotland international defender could negotiate a reduced deal. However interest in Webster is likely to be high around the SPL, so Hearts will need to offer competitive rates to keep the experienced campaigner, who has played in consecutive cup finals in his last two seasons for the club. Barr is another who will most likely be offered a deal to remain at the club, and the Hearts fan may feel that even with a wage cut there are not many better options available to him in the SPL. With the possible permanent addition of the so far underwhelming Danny Wilson to the backline there remains hope for Jambos that an experienced spine could be saved from the thinning skeleton of the Hearts squad.
Who should be the next Hearts manager?
JOHN McGlynn has left Tynecastle by mutual consent, leaving Hearts looking for yet another new manager.The Jambos have gone through many men since Vladimir Romanov took over, and with his departure likely in the summer the feeling was he had made his last managerial appointment.
However with McGlynn leaving weeks before the Jam Tarts bid to win their first League Cup in 50 years, the search for a new boss begins again.
It is fair to say Hearts fans rarely see their first choice appointed, with a strange array of managers given the post in recent years. Can any non-Jambo list the names given the job under Romanov without a trip to wikipedia?
This list is: George Burley, John McGlynn (caretaker), Graham Rix, Valdas Ivanauskas, Eduard Malofeyev (caretaker), Riabovas Eugenijus (advisor for two games), Valdas Ivanauskas (again), Anatoly Korobochka (caretaker), Angel Chervenkov, Stephen Frail, Csaba Laszlo, Jim Jefferies, Paulo Sergio and John McGlynn.
So we can probably expect a surprise appointment when the new man is unveiled, or will the fact it will most likely be Director of Football John Murray who makes the appointment mean a more familiar name gets the post? Predicting who that new man is likely to be could be an impossible job anyway, but here The Away End bravely give it a bash with a run down of possible favourites.
Hearts doing the right things to survive
PATIENCE is a great thing to have; unfortunately many Hearts fans seem to have run out of it. Whether it be the fact that Vladimir Romanov is no longer at Tynecastle for them to vent their frustrations, they have decided to take it out on manager John McGlynn.
The former Raith Rovers boss has had to work with his hands tied behind his back, his legs tied and a blindfold on. Of the starting line-up at Hampden on May 19th 2012, six have left the club, two are long-term injured, leaving just Jamie MacDonald, Andy Webster and Darren Barr as survivors.
The former Raith Rovers boss has had to work with his hands tied behind his back, his legs tied and a blindfold on. Of the starting line-up at Hampden on May 19th 2012, six have left the club, two are long-term injured, leaving just Jamie MacDonald, Andy Webster and Darren Barr as survivors.
McGlynn has made plenty of mistakes so far this season, but there is something that matters more than wins and losses, more than 4-5-1 and 4-4-2, and that’s the survival of the football club, which is reaching critical mass at the moment.
With the collapse of owner Vladimir Romanov’s bank, Ukio Bankas and his subsequential fleeing to Moscow, Hearts are the last thing on his mind, as he seemed to have mortgaged Tynecastle in order to keep his struggling bank afloat.
These next few weeks will be probably the most critical time in the history of Heart of Midlothian, as with the Ukio Bankas administrator Adomas Audickas looking to recover some of the money lost by the collapse, the stadium is now up for sale.