The Edinburgh massive

The rivalry between Hibs and Hearts here in Edinburgh is, frankly, not as friendly as it should be at times. I have friends on both sides of the maroon-and-green divide, and over the course of the season -- when and only when Dumbarton are not playing -- I will make trips to see both of them.

That said, I live in Leith and Easter Road Stadium (pictured) is less than a mile from where I stay… plus the Hibees link with the Sons, through gaffer Ian Murray and others, is strong. So I lean green. Or at least, I  have in recent Scottish Cup finals, though I tend to avoid the derbies.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to the possibility/probability that the mighty DFC will get to play at Tynecastle next season, and hope that Hearts can recover and flourish as a fan-directed club after their recent woes. This afternoon they are up against Inverness Caley Thistle (former boss: new Hibs gaffer Terry Butcher) in the Scottish League Cup semi-final this afternoon… and, ironically, the match is at Easter Road.

If I'd had the time and money I'd have tried to grab a ticket. As it is, I'll be watching on BBC1 Scotland. The other semi, won 4-0 by Aberdeen against St Johnstone, grabbed the headlines for the right, footballing reasons. I hope the same is true of today's showcase, given the unsavoury happenings after the game at Gorgie yesterday.

There will be another major Scottish final without either of the Old Firm involved at the end of this season, that's for sure. This can only be good for the game here, which deserves much more of a break (especially in the media) than it gets.