There's something about Saturday...

[SKII]

It's that time again. A time for over priced pink tickets, for a cut price Pink Bus Shelter. A time for early starts in the Roseburn Bar and tales of sing songs extraordinare regaling the Bounce for days and weeks to come.

At a venue whose stench can no longer be disguised by the high hum of hops from local breweries, Hibs once more take on THEM.

THERE.

Saturday sees the very first managerial derby outing for the Mighty Finn, Mixu Paateleinen. Although his record against the Hearts is not quite as immaculate as the like of Franck Sauzee, it is nonetheless sufficiently good that he will go into the game feeling able to add to The Lithuanians' current plight. Of course, there is no small matter of THAT hat-trick in THAT game...

Sorry, the four legitimate goals in the Demolition Derby - only a West Stand linesman denying the Finn an even bigger place in Hibernian folklore than he already has.

Thoughts of that virtuoso destruction of Hearts brings back memories of other occasions etched forever on Hibernian minds.

Who will ever forget Sauzee losing two front teeth as he rose majestically to header home from the edge of the area at the Dunbar End, then playing on as the most elegant warrior ever - tissues in gob not preventing the smiles at the final whistle.

Who can possibly forget Dieu (and Dirk and Kenny) as they systematically pulled Hearts apart in the game billed The Millenium Derby, just before Christmas in 1999? That pitch-long run to the Hibernian fans was the embodiment of class, a sophisticated gesture lost on the primitive inhabitants of Bus Shelter Central.

Many will claim to have been at Tynecastle in 1973 for the celebrated and revered 0-7 reverse of Jeffries and Co. If all who reckon they were there, were actually there...well, I reckon we weren't there after all. There's no danger they'd all fit. But, who the hell cares. Such events go down in history. And song...

I personally will never forget a less fabled 2-2 draw at the Bus Shelter in the mid 80s. It was not a remarkable game in many senses of the word but it was very much remarkable in terms of it's finish. 2-0 down with only minutes to go, Joe Joe Super Joe bangs in a couple of peaches that would be "World Class" if he had been English and his name Beckham. I started off somewhere near the top of the terracing at the Gorgie Road End...ended up somewhere down the front after the second goal. A really bad dunt in the back left me with a damaged sciatic nerve and unable to walk for over a week after it. Did I care? Did I hell. Them were the days, pre-Taylor Report...

Another day to remember came courtesy of a Hibs side with a sprinkling of truly world class players...Archibald, Collins, Goram and...well, for that day anyway, Kano! Ten men stuffed the Hearts after Big Gazza was sent off for not-quite-halfing-Colquhoun...oh the injustice and the sense of purpose. The rains fell round our ears that afternoon, Kano was reported to the polis and Stevie scored a goal to end all derbies. Goram showed why he really is the best goalkeeper we have ever seen...and JC twinkled and shone. One of the best of the pre-Sauzee era.

Less stylishly, but nonetheless just as rewarding, the "other" ten men stuffed the Hearts derby. This time courtesy of a late, late Garry O steal. Oh how we chortled. Poor Grant Brebner had been the victim of a miscarriage of justice in the first half, falling foul of Stuart Dougal and his guide dog. It only served to galvanise us - players and fans - and despite the fact it was not 6-2 territory, it was almost all the more sweet for the mugging factor.

Remember the day we lost them the league? Well, in reality, not really - but that was how it was billed and felt! The Lavety-Harper Derby. That dreadful, dreadful Duff season. It may well have been responsible for keeping Duff Jimmy in his job for far too long - but, heck, it was worth it that day! The day they "lost the league"...

And Deano wont forget the Wednesday night derby turnover in April a couple of seasons ago when he and Garry O overcame an early Lee Miller advantage - and sent the Hibees masses into rapture. A fine team performance, two gallous and greedy strikes from our heroes in green. That was some night...

So many games, in so many different circumstances and manners. Some quite breath-taking, many pretty damn impressive, others a bit spawny - but each and every one of them pretty damn good. And each and every one of them certainly 100% sphincter twitching.

As the adrenalin takes hold this coming week, and every minute ticks down towards lunchtime on Saturday, all of us should take comfort and hold tight to the sticking post that is Hibernian FC. No matter what ridiculous and outrageous prices they charge, no matter how much of a fortress they mistakenly think their Big Pink Bus Shelter is...we are Hibernian FC.

Win, erm, win or draw - we will remain so on Saturday night. And we should not fear anyone. Least of all them at this moment in time. You couldn't make it up as far as they are concerned.

The Mighty Finn, the hammer of the Hearts is back and will walk into the hostile arena like some Scandinavian Terminator. Fearing no one.

And we will follow.

©SKII

[gragil69]

Briliant read....how the hell am I gonna concentrate for the rest of the week...

[madkink]

very eligently put and delivered, if that don't lift you nothing will

[CraigHFC]

Great post.

[SoulBamRab]

The Mighty Finn, the hammer of the Hearts is back and will walk into the hostile arena like some Scandinavian Terminator. Fearing no one.


GGTTH

[Monaco Muppet]

Excellent post