We are above Hearts in the table.. is that natural order?
Jamie out to ram Levein jibes back down his throat
JAMIE MACLAREN hopes Craig Levein is forced to scoff humble pie tonight after running his mouth off to rile Hibs boss Neil Lennon after the last Edinburgh derby.
Hibs are out for revenge at Easter Road following defeat to Hearts in January’s Scottish Cup clash.
Levein wound Lennon up when he said the 1-0 victory at Tynecastle would “restore natural order” but Hibs can go 12 points clear of their rivals with a game in hand if they win tonight.
And Hibs striker Maclaren said: “He might eat his words if we get the three points. It’s a derby and there will be added spice. I’ve always known the Edinburgh derby is massive but I don’t know what the ‘natural order’ means.
“It’s between the coaches, not the players. For us it’s business as usual.
“We are sitting above them so I don’t know what that means in context.
“We are nine points clear and they want to catch us.
“But we want to catch Aberdeen and Rangers. That’s our main goal but our focus is on Hearts. We are feeling good, full of confidence and fear no one.”
Maclaren reckons his road to Russia starts with tonight’s derby after earning an Australian recall he insists justifies the decision to move to Hibs.
The striker has been called up to Bert van Marwijk’s first Socceroos squad for the upcoming friendlies against Norway and Colombia.
And Maclaren knows shining in a live TV game against Hearts would boost his chances of a dream World Cup spot.
The 24-year-old – on loan from German side Darmstadt – got a taste of what lies in store this summer when he faced Brazil and Chile last year and is hungry for more.
Maclaren, who won the last of his five caps as a sub in a 2-1 World Cup qualifying win over Thailand last September, said: “It’s nice to be back in the frame, it’s nice to be talked about back home in Australia.
“And it’s good to see my form has recognition from the new manager. I knew if I was playing regularly and my form was good I’d have a chance.
“It vindicates my decision to join Hibs. That was a big factor in me coming here. I knew Neil Lennon was a big personality in the UK and having a good manager would help.
“I haven’t spoken to van Marwijk but he has sent scouts out and about in the UK. Some Scottish games get televised back in Australia as well.
“It makes this match even bigger but I try to zone out those outside factors, I can’t control them.
“It was only a year ago I was winning the Golden Boot in Australia so it’s nice to be back on the radar. Now I have to kick on, the World Cup is just around the corner.
“I was at the Confederations Cup last year and that’s a smaller version of the World Cup. I faced Chile, who had Alexis Sanchez in their team, and prior to that we played a friendly against Brazil who had Philippe Coutinho.
“I was up against Thiago Silva and David Luiz and that was in Melbourne in front of my family. I swapped shirts with Luiz, which was a good one, and my debut was against England when I got Chris Smalling’s shirt. “I frame all my jerseys and hopefully there are a few more to come in Russia. It is a massive prospect.” Maclaren snubbed Hearts to sign for Hibs in January. And after being on the bench at Tynecastle for the 1-0 Cup defeat he’s desperate to sample the derby tonight – even though a home win will sicken his Jambos-daft family, including grandad Donald. He said: “Grandad is a Hearts fan and will be at the game but we are blood and it will be nice to play in front of my family. “If I get in the World Cup squad I’ll try to fly him over to it. It wasn’t frustrating being on the bench for the last derby because I knew Neil wasn’t going to throw me into such a big game when I lacked fitness. “But I feel really good now. It’s more a case of showing the Hibs fans this is our time. “Being ahead of them in the league helps but we want to catch the guys ahead of us.”