We’re still up for the Cup

Neilson: Jambos so glad Hibs semi is on

ROBBIE NEILSON admits the thought of Hearts dumping rivals Hibs in the Scottish Cup semifinal is what got them through the summer.

The Edinburgh duo are scheduled for a Halloween Hampden showdown – Saturday, October 31 – with Celtic facing Aberdeen the following day to complete last term’s competition.

It had been suggested, much like the first Old Firm derby of this term, the match be played later when there’s more chance of supporters being allowed back.

But Neilson is on the same page as capital counterpart Jack Ross in that he wants to go toe to toe on the date set because the Jambos have been tailoring everything to ensure this is the match they’re ready for.

The Gorgie gaffer, right, said: “We are looking forward to it and it has been one of the drivers for us all the way through pre-season.

“We knew we HAD to be ready for that game.

“Hibs have been playing for months now and we need to make sure we take these games seriously.”

The Jambos continued their pre-season preparations with a 2-0 friendly win over M8 allies Partick Thistle at Tynecastle on Saturday.

And they will take on

Queen’s Park in a bounce game this midweek.

The competitive action starts a week today when Inverness visit in the Betfred Cup before they host Dundee in the Championship curtain-raiser on October 17.

Neilson could be without two of his main men next week if Craig Gordon and Steven Naismith are included in Steve Clarke’s squad for the crunch Euro 2020 play-off semi-final at Hampden, to be played two days after the Inverness encounter.

The Hearts boss said: “There’s not much we can do. We’ll find out, probably in the next week.”