Neil fears Cup derby KO fall-out
didn’t think ‘wee man’ sounded very pleasant but when I heard what it actually meant I thought, ‘I’ve been called far worse than that’. “Thankfully, John stepped straight in. I don’t know who shouted it – I don’t know too many players in Scotland. “That’s not being arrogant, I just don’t watch a lot of football.” Bartley won’t be fazed by facing off against Ian Cathro’s side today but he’s adamant that it should be regarded as a Cup upset if Hibs go and win. Asked how the current side under Nei l Lennon compares to Stubbs’ team, he said : “We l l , we’re top of the league now, where we last year? “This is a massive game but Hearts are a Premiership team so are favourites to win. “We need to go there and try to cause an upset. That’s the way it is. “I know it’s a derby but it would still be an upset for a Championship team to beat a Premiership one. “We’ l l deal with Sunday and if we’re in the draw for the next round, I’m sure the lads will update me and tell me who we get!”
Neil Lennon admits he’s wary of being the manager who loses Hibs’ grip on the Scottish Cup to their bitter city rivals.
The Easter Road gaf fer is confident his Championship side can stay in the competition by seeing off Hearts in Gorgie today.
But knowing the stick ex-Jambos boss Robbie Neilson got for being a victim of Hibs’ glory run to Hampden a year ago he wants to avoid a similar fate.
Lennon is adamant Ian Cathro’s men are favourites going into today’s fifth- round tie but that won’t stop him going all out to win.
He said: “There was a lot of talk last season about the fact Hibs won the Scottish Cup and beat Hearts along the way.
“Our fans obviously enjoyed that. But it could flip over this year. So I have to be aware of that and I’m sure the players will be too. “To blame Robbie for Hibs winning the Cup is a bit shortsighted when you consider what he did overall as their manager. “I’d love to do what he did – get promotion and finish in the top three of the Premiership. “I’ll certainly watch the derby games from a year ago, just for myself. The circumstances will be different but I’ll watch them. “In a way, this is a free swing for us because Hearts are favourites. But we’re the cup holders and it’s a derby game. “Both sets of fans will expect to win. But for me, Hearts are clear favourites. They’ve been playing at a high level for a couple of seasons now and have strengthened their squad.” Lennon met Cathro for the first time at an SPFL managers meeting recently and believes he’s well equipped to be a success at Hearts. He said: “Ian has accepted how big the job is there – he understands it. He didn’t go in with his eyes shut because he has worked at big clubs before like Valencia. “There are aspects of the job he’ll need to quickly get his head around but I found him affable and a laid-back character.”