This can be turning point for Jambos
BY GORDON PARKS CHRISTOPHE BERRA insists Hearts must use their display against Rangers as a benchmark for the rest of the campaign.
The Jambo skipper is convinced their 1-1 draw with the Light Blues can become a turning point after moving above Hibs on goal difference to 10th in the Premiership table.
Berra believes there were clear signs his side have the stomach for the battles ahead and prove they don’t only raise their game for the big guns.
He said: “We’ve let ourselves, the club and the fans down in the last spell. It’s well documented and we will take this result with a pinch of salt and try to build on it.
“Against Aberdeen at home, Hibs and Celtic, we are always at it. Maybe because there’s no fear, there’s a bigger crowd and it’s live on television.
“We are happy with the result today and we will take positives from it but we need to prove ourselves against the so-called ‘lesser’ teams.
“‘When they come here and sit in and make themselves hard to break down before hitting us in the counter-attack, that’s where we’ve struggled over the last six to 12 months.
“There’s not going to be a tougher game than against Livingston next time out.”
Berra also insists Hearts have delivered a message to Rangers that their Betfred Cup semi-final clash against the Light Blues at Hampden in two weeks time won’t be a formality.
He said: “It showed we aren’t going to just turn up and be turned over. Hampden is a different game, bigger pitch and a completely different scenario.
“It’s two or three games away and we need to get ourselves up that league and start winning games.” JOE ARIBO admits Rangers need to become the sum of all parts if they’re to sustain a Premiership challenge.
The Nigerian international was handed his first taste of Tynecastle in a frustrating draw that saw the Light Blues blow a golden chance to pull clear of Celtic at the summit.
As Hearts set about making life difficult in Gorgie, the 23-year-old insists this share of the spoils came with a warning shot that titles are not just won by a mark of quality.
It’s more basic requirements such as character and having the stomach for a battle at difficult away grounds that g.parks@dailyrecord.co.uk make the difference over a campaign and Aribo reckons it’s also about confidence and calmness when the sparks start to fly.
He said: “It’s 100mph and what you need is composure and someone to get the ball down and be confident.
“This result is definitely disappointing. We wanted to get the three points and unfortunately we weren’t able to do that. It was frustrating.”
Aribo also lamented a slow start and a failure to seize the initiative which proved costly while proving another footballing law that you can’t expect to just turn up and pocket three points.
He added: “We started slowly and then from there we were constantly chasing the game. It was hard for us.
“You could say it was down to mentality. As a team we just didn’t start quickly enough and we were playing catch-up.
“They made it difficult for us. We have to bounce back from this.
“We need to take every game as it comes and put in the performances from the off throughout the next games.”
The Jambos managed to transform their recent fortunes by looking like a side with real enthusiasm to perform. And Aribo admits Rangers played into their hands by going toe to toe in a dogfight of a game that saw eight players yellow-carded.
He said: “We were suckered in, 100 per cent. That is their game plan and what we need to do as a team is fight. All 11 of us on the pitch have to match the battle and win our one v one battles.
GORDON PARKS
“It’s definitely about learning and, moving on from this, we have to keep pushing and keep battling. That has to be from the start. You can’t just turn up every 45 minutes. We have to do it from the first minute to the 90th.
“We know that teams are