Murrayfield conversion
Levein’s gone from sceptic to big fan as he gives thumbs-up to rugby ground becoming the new home of Scottish football
I don’t think there are any big barriers from moving away from Hampden any more CRAIG LEVEIN
CRAIG LEVEIN has only attended one rugby international and predictably – as most dyed-in-the-wool football lovers would – he thought it was rubbish.
The stadium that hosted it, however, was far from it.
And that’s why, three years on from that visit to take in the Scotland v England rugby clash, Levein is open to the idea of football’s equivalent being held at Murrayfield too. The ongoing bid by Scottish Rugby to convince the SFA to ditch Hampden is gathering pace ahead of their lease on the home of football expiring in 2020.
Last weekend’s rugby Test match against Samoa presented another big opportunity to state the case for Murrayfield, with chief operating officer Dominic McKay emphasising their superior transport links serving the stadium.
But the opinion of a football manager who has personal experience of Murrayfield’s suitability as a host venue may carry even more weight to the debate.
Especially one who has also seen the internal workings of Hampden first-hand as a former Scotland national coach.
For that reason alone, Levein is cautious about becoming too involved – fearing the politics of an ex-Scotland gaffer being seen to pin his colours to either mast. But as a Hearts manager who has used Murrayfield to host four Premiership fixtures during the redevelopment of the club’s Tynecastle home, he can’t fault the place.
The facilities are first class and at a capacity of 67,144 it has over 15,000 seats more than the current home of Scottish football.
The pitch is top notch too – and certainly a heck of a lot
better than the worm-infested patch branded “Muddyfield” the day Levein rolled up to watch England thrash the Scots 20-0 in February 2014.
A new hybrid blend of grass and synthetic fibres was laid in the aftermath of that game and the surface has been universally praised ever since, as Hearts would now testify after their recent games against Aberdeen, St Johnstone, Rangers and Kilmarnock.
The only question, however, hangs on whether the atmosphere would be any better than Hampden – as its cavernous stands have the same issues with being set back a considerable distance from the pitch.
But Levein has heard Flower of Scotland belted out at both stadiums and has no doubt Murrayfield in full song would rise to the biggest occasions in football.
He said: “Having been the Scotland manager I don’t want to get too involved in the politics of it but it would be reasonable for me to say that Murrayfield has been a very good experience.
“The pitch is fantastic, the dressing rooms are great and the atmosphere was good, particularly in the Rangers and Aberdeen games.
“I would imagine that the idea would be to play some of the smaller matches at other grounds and Murrayfield would host the big games. That makes sense.
“From what I’ve seen I couldn’t make any criticisms of the way things have gone.
“I’ve been to one Scotland rugby international. It was rubbish. It was the game against England three or four years ago when the pitch was terrible and we didn’t play very well.
“That was before the pitch was replaced with the synthetic-grass hybrid one they have now, which has been excellent for our games there.
“The atmosphere was good before the game but it would have been better if Scotland had played better but that’s like any normal situation for any sporting event.
“But as an international venue I can’t see anything negative that I could say would be any reason why it shouldn’t be tried anyway. That’s not my decision though.”
Surely this is all sacrilegious talk though? To even consider the spiritual home of Scottish football being ditched in favour of playing second fiddle to the hoity-toity rugger set?
Traditionalists may be horrified at the thought but Levein admits the emotional appeal of Hampden as the historic jewel in the games’s crown has faded over time.
Since the £60million redevelopment of the 1990s reduced the terrifying Hampden roar to a distant whimper from 100 yards behind the goal, home advantage is no longer what it used to be for Scotland.
So Levein would rather see our Bravehearts hit the road more often, touring around the country visiting stadiums on a game-by-game basis to ensure a venue best suited to the individual occasion.
He added: “I think times they are a changing. Things are moving on, so I don’t think there are any big barriers from moving away from Hampden any more. But that’s not reason enough to make that decision.
“I quite like the idea of Scotland games going round the country.
“For the smaller games you could go to Tynecastle, Easter Road or Aberdeen and get a full house.
“Then for the big games you could sell out Murrayfield. If we played England there it would be certainly full. It’s a simple as that.”