Face to face again but Ross claims there’ll be no bad blood in derby...

READING between the lines, it is pretty clear that relations between Jack Ross and Daniel Stendel remain seasonably frosty. Bordering on the downright hostile.

If their lunchtime meeting on the Tynecastle touchline today needs an ice breaker, then, might Sportsmail suggest something along the lines of a ‘small world’ theme?

Hibernian boss Ross, smiling at the twist of fate that has enabled him to renew a fierce professional rivalry that began when he was Sunderland boss and Stendel was in charge of Barnsley, freely admits that no one could have predicted such a quick reunion.

Sacked on the same day, the Scot and the German probably thought — maybe even hoped? — that they would never clap eyes on each other again.

‘That’s modern football, I suppose,’ said Ross.

‘That second game (between Sunderland and Barnsley) was in March. And I don’t think, if you’d said to us then, that the two of you will be managing in Scotland in six months’ time… it just shows you how difficult it is to predict where you will be.

‘I would regard myself as fortunate in that sense, in that I have got back into a good club.

‘Daniel can answer that himself but I am sure he would say the same because he has ended up with an opportunity at a big club as well.’

Hearts rather pointedly made mention, in their official announcement heralding the arrival of a new manager many weeks in the pursuing, of the fact that Stendel’s Barnsley pipped a Sunderland side under the management of Ross to promotion from England’s League One.

Reports from down south suggest that the pair had more than one run-in during two games that yielded a home win and an away draw for the Black Cats last season. Indeed, there’s even photographic evidence of them exchanging ‘pleasantries’ during play.

Stendel revealed at the weekend that the pair never did manage to complete the social nicety of the post-match managerial drink, though Ross was quick to point out that he had not snubbed his opposite number.

‘I think that’s because Daniel didn’t come in,’ said the former St Mirren gaffer with a grin.

‘They (the matches) were fine, they were all right and no more so intense than any other games.

‘They were both very different games — the one at the Stadium of Light was a terrific football game and the one at Oakwell was played in a borderline hurricane.

‘Barnsley were probably the best team in the second, but I thought we were good in the first. I enjoyed those games and I’ve no issues that way with Daniel at all.

‘Not all managers do share a drink. It’s actually a myth that everybody does that after the game; some do and some don’t. It’s no big deal.’

Personal animosity may make for an interesting subplot but, in the eyes of most supporters, what matters most is who comes up with the best plan for today’s game.

Hearts fans have seen only fleeting glimpses of the muchtrailed high-pressing Stendel style so far.

In front of a home crowd on derby day, it’s difficult to imagine them suddenly adopting a more passive style.

‘He came with that reputation,’ said Ross. ‘And I think we have seen parts of games to date where he has tried to go and play that way.

‘These games lend themselves to players playing like that, anyway, in terms of getting caught up with the emotion of it all. In that sense, it will probably not be a long way from how he plays.

‘We came up against each other a couple of times last season. It’s difficult to gauge too much from that in terms of going into Boxing Day, because we were both in charge of different teams, had different personnel — and both teams were in the top two or three positions in the league in both matches, different circumstances as well.

‘Much as been made of how his team played at Barnsley. It’s maybe difficult to do that right away at Hearts.

‘I know he’s used a lot of personnel and systems in the few games to date. It’s difficult to predict with certainty what we’ll come up against.

‘But I think they’ll be a team committed and desperate for points, given the position that they’re in.’

Ross has one advantage over Stendel before a ball is kicked. Namely, that he’s been involved in this fixture before — though it was as a member of the Hearts coaching team.

Having put in more hours in the home dugout at Tynecastle than the current gaffer must be a bonus, right?

Ross isn’t biting, pointing out: ‘When you get to a certain stage of football management — and it is your job and profession — then you’ve had to prove you have a relative set of skills to deal with it.

‘In terms of dealing with players and occasions, I think Daniel has shown that in his two jobs as well.

‘Me, having been involved before, I don’t think will make a huge bit of difference.’

For Hibs fans, the delight to be had in keeping Hearts bottom of the table — one more push towards the drop — would arguably be the most enjoyable part of any victory. That’s just how football rivalry works.

Ross cannot afford to think like that, or at least not to admit as much in public, simply saying: ‘For us, it is important because we worked hard to get back into the top six so quickly over the last month — and then we dropped out over the weekend.

‘Our aim is to be back in there for the turn of the year. And to ensure that, we need to win our next two games (against Hearts and then Livingston). That’s the aim. It is a very short-term aim but it is a very clear one.

‘Winning these next two matches means we finish this part of the season okay; we will have gone from a disappointing position to an okay position.

‘The only way we do that is winning the next two matches. The Boxing Day match, irrespective of who it is against, is a massive game.’

The opposition is irrelevant, then. And there’s definitely nothing personal going on between the gaffers.

Even in this season of myths, legends and made-up characters stealing down chimneys, most will find that hard to swallow.