Cathro in need of a big win to get those Hearts beating
THERE are some parallels that can be drawn between Ian Cathro and Mark Warburton in the build-up to what should be an interesting encounter between the two at Tynecastle in midweek. Both carved strong reputations at youth level, with their innovative thinking surely placing them on speed dial of SFA performance director Malky Mackay’s mobile — if he is still allowed one!
Outsiders in terms of having no notable playing careers, Cathro and Warburton also lack experience of management at first-team level.
Over and above the mixed standard of their respective sides’ performances, their words and actions continue to raise concerns they may not be suited to the movies they currently find themselves in.
Each will be under a degree of pressure on Wednesday night, but Cathro looks like being the one with the most to lose from defeat — in the short-term, at least — because of one key difference.
Rangers supporters accept any old rubbish these days. Hearts fans do not. It is not easy to figure out why. The sense of emotional exhaustion around Ibrox after the events of the past five years is understandable.
It allowed the eye-wateringly wellremunerated Ally McCoist and his players to plod along in the lower divisions, producing football to make the soul weep, with barely a murmur as ‘The Journey’ inevitably turned into a car crash.
Likewise, Warburton’s last visit to Gorgie in late November — when Rangers were decisively beaten — brought arguably the lowest point of an underwhelming campaign, yet he still walked away unscathed.
Outwith the fact that ‘The Magic Hat’ song has done a disappearing act, Rangers fans, on the whole, have taken to being uncommonly reasonable about Celtic now being visible only by their vapour trail. They nod along to the patronising baloney that the ‘intelligent’ ones among them can see that finishing second in the league would actually be quite an achievement, all things considered.
Perhaps that is all an act of selfprotection. In these uncertain times, it is tempting to shield oneself from certain realities.
The night Hearts swatted Rangers aside at Tynecastle on the way to a 2-0 win, Robbie Neilson said his farewells. This was a manager who had taken a rebuilt side up from the second tier with ease and guided them to third place on their return to the Premiership. This was also a manager who had been subjected to an aircraft flown above his home ground, bearing the message: No Style, No Bottle, Neilson Out. He had, of course, seen his team lose a two-goal lead over Hibs in the last 10 minutes and then exit the Scottish Cup in the replay.
To outsiders, the section of the support that remained against Neilson was perplexing. Hearts were not always pretty to watch and did lose to a team from Malta (in the Europa League), but they were second in the table when he left for MK Dons.
Maybe their followers are simply more engaged, more vocal about progress or lack of it, because there is a real dynamic around their club as it plots its own route back from financial meltdown.
Their ground is being upgraded and the overall running of the place moving ever closer to being handed over to the fan base. The urge to power forward is almost tangible.
Rangers fans did mobilise themselves to help bring about boardroom change, but chairman Dave King’s trips to Scotland are now conducted in relative secrecy rather than with the ground-shaking hyperbole of old as the Ibrox transfer policy becomes more unfathomable.
This apparent loss of momentum upstairs is possibly transferring itself to the stands.
At Tynecastle, meanwhile, Neilson’s team is being dismantled in tandem with the stadium. Given the depth of surgery, patience is an absolute necessity.
Cathro has managed only two wins out of seven so far, though. That record is likely to slide to two out of eight at Celtic Park today.
He could do with a big win to give him the breathing space required. If not against Rangers this coming week, most certainly against Hibs.
The anger that losing a derby in the Scottish Cup can generate is something he should be acutely aware of. In an interview given to Sky Sports ahead of today’s game, he spoke of his need to be honest and show his emotions in dealing with the media.
He ought to know, then, that he came across in his BBC interview at Raith last Sunday as someone who does not care about losing last-minute equalisers. That will not wash for long if results fail to improve.
Cathro is unlikely to be as sensitive to criticism as Warburton. His experience as No 2 at Valencia, a club whose fans are well known for turning nasty, will have been invaluable. He is also protected by the fact he has unequivocal backing from above, something which can be said with less confidence about Warburton.
The Englishman can do little wrong in the eyes of some directors, but King seems less convinced.
Warburton’s remarks about being unable to do more to secure new contracts for Kenny Miller and Clint Hill just add to the uncertainty.
Craig Levein and Ann Budge, in contrast, have made it clear they see Cathro as the coming man. The fans have bought into their vision.
However, he does not want to find himself in a position where all that is put to the test, though. Not this early, anyway.