NO HIDING PLACE
Levein couldn’t fool Auchinleck fans during ‘incognito’ spying mission on team who knocked Ayr out of Cup
CRAIG LEVEIN may have nothing but respect for the admirable endeavours of Auchinleck Talbot but, despite the efforts of one persistent punter, he drew the line at wearing their club scarf.
The Hearts boss, who plied his trade with Lochore Welfare as a fresh-faced teenager, returned to his Junior roots last week to watch the Bot travel to Petershill where they racked up a comprehensive 7-0 victory.
With the hosts clearly outclassed and suffering a red card after just 20 minutes, Levein conceded it was tough to judge tomorrow’s Scottish Cup visitors based on that one outing.
Nevertheless, he lapped up an afternoon that brought back some vivid memories — and created some colourful new ones.
His attempts to stay incognito failed miserably, with one supporter particularly persistent in his attempts to get Levein to show his support for Tommy Sloan’s Auchinleck.
‘I went to Petershill last week and it was brilliant,’ smiled the Tynecastle manager.
‘There was a guy trying to put an Auchinleck scarf on me continually. He just wouldn’t leave me alone. I ended up grabbing the scarf and throwing it on the pitch.
‘No, I loved it. The punters were magic. They were really welcoming and some of the shouts are just brilliant.
‘It brought back plenty of memories. I enjoyed playing Junior football, I was only 16 at the time.
‘In those days, even when I got to the Premier League, there weren’t as many cameras.
‘So you learned to watch out when the ball was at the other end of the park!
‘It was difficult for me to take anything from watching the Auchinleck game, other than a look at players and see their strengths and weaknesses.
‘Petershill had a man sent off after 20 minutes or so and it was already looking like a one-sided match. That didn’t help.’
However, Levein did see enough from that seven-goal triumph, allied with their shock victory against Ayr United in the fourth round, to be wary of becoming another scalp for a club who undeniably possess a winning mentality.
There will no repeat of the mass rotation of Paulo Sergio’s Jambos side in 2012, when Auchinleck gave the capital club an almighty fright before suffering a narrow 1-0 reverse at Tynecastle.
‘We will play a strong team, for sure,’ added Levein. ‘There are only three major competitions and I don’t want to put out a team that says: “We don’t rate you”. That might give Tommy and his players something to stick up on the wall.
‘It’s important for us. We’ve got a good recent history in the Scottish Cup, so I’m not taking this game lightly in any way, shape or form. They will be solid, resolute and will play with passion and energy.
‘They are used to winning, they win nearly every week. They are not accustomed to losing matches and I think that’s their biggest asset, their biggest threat.’
One player who will play against Auchinleck and certainly not shy away from the famed physicality of Junior opponents is Uche Ikpeazu, who will start his first match in four months after recovering from a serious foot injury.
Levein revealed that he has opened talks with the big Englishman with a view to extending his contract, despite Ikpeazu only joining Hearts on a deal until 2020 from Cambridge United last summer.
‘A new contract for Uche is something we are working on, I’m speaking to his agent at the moment,’ said Levein.
‘I knew, looking at him, that he is a unit, can hold the ball up and he’s quicker than people think he is. But it’s his attitude more than anything that I’ve been pleased with. He is loved round about the changing room and they respect him hugely. The punters love him as well.
‘He’s the right type of person that I want at Hearts. We have extended the contracts of others that fit that bill — Christophe Berra, John Souttar, Michael Smith — and I’m trying to sort something with Naisy (Steven Naismith) and twist Arnaud Djoum’s arm to stay.
‘The key is having people who are serious about playing football. Yes, they’ll have a laugh and a joke and help the team spirit, but they are strong characters. We shall see, we are working on these things.’