Bob Baxter, captain of Hearts, in 1945

A Season to Forget

Despite the Allied invasion of Europe, the Second World War was far from over when season 1944-45 commenced and tragically, two more Hearts' players were killed during the year.

At home, the team made little impact in the Southern League, due to a suspect defence and a poor away record of only three wins in fifteen games with the loss of 41 goals. As a result, and despite an eleven game unbeaten run at the turn of the year, Hearts could not make a serious challenge and eventually finished sixth.

Although away victories were few, one of these was a remarkable 10-3 win over Albion Rovers at Cliftonhill on 11 November 1944. However, the highlight of the season was most surely the 3-0 win over Hibs at Tynecastle during the festive period, because this ended the Easter Road club's title challenge. Rangers, the eventual Champions, were also held 1-1 at Tynecastle on 28 October.

No responsibility for a mediocre campaign could be held against Archie Kelly, because the former Arthurlie striker was the top scorer in Scotland with 33 Southern League goals. Kelly's total included seven away to Albion Rovers which is still a club record for a League match. Captained by Archie Miller, several youngsters were also breaking through, such as Alfie Conn, John Urquhart and Jimmy Walker. But with so many men in the services, guest players were still important and Jackie Oakes from Queen of the South made a particular impression.

Off to play the Army in Germany in 1946: Back Row--G Simpson (Director) Baxter J Walker Torbet (Trainer) Kelly Cox McAra T Rae (Director) Front Row--MacFarlane Conn Neilson Brown McCrae Johnstone and T Walker

Hearts also did little in the knock-out competitions. The Southern League Cup started with Section matches against St Mirren, Dumbarton and Motherwell, and the maroons should have qualified. However, with both clubs on eight points, Motherwell beat Hearts 4-2 at Tynecastle in the last game. The home side actually led 2-1 before the defence collapsed.

Germany surrendered on 7 May 1945 and "Victory in Europe" celebrations enhanced the two-legged Summer Cup competition. After beating Airdrieonians 5-0 on aggregate, Hearts went down to Partick Thistle and lack of success in all the local competitions brought a rather poor season to an end. The performance of the youngsters was encouraging and Hearts won the Second XI Cup against Celtic.

Peace Returns

The conflict in Europe was over when season 1945-46 commenced and in August, the War in the Far East also ended. Over fifty Hearts' men had served their country and four would never return: Donald MacDonald; John Donaldson; John Ramsey; and Walter Smith.

It would be some time before football could return to normal with many players still in the forces. Accordingly, while the country slowly returned to peacetime conditions, it was decided that there would be no promotion or relegation between the new Scottish League "A" and "B" Divisions. The Scottish Cup was held in abeyance, although there would be a special Victory Cup competition and a new Scottish League Cup, based on the successful structure used by the Southern League.

Hearts' squad was strengthened by the return of centre-half, Bob Baxter, from Middlesbrough. He was appointed captain and coached the players, but on the down side, Davie McLean's attempt to reshape his team with young men, was not helped by impatient supporters and questions about fitness and preparation.

Hearts eventually finished seventh in the League and with 11 wins; 11 defeats; and 8 draws, the team was unpredictable and never in serious contention for the title. However, there was some encouragement when Morton was beaten 6-0 at Tynecastle in October and young hopeful, Alfie Conn, added some much needed punch. Hearts also beat Celtic 5-3 at Parkhead, the Maroons' first League win on the Glasgow ground since 1901-02. In addition, Hearts took three points out of four from the eventual Champions, Rangers.

The task of rebuilding Hearts' team was an onerous one and in March 1946, the manager's job was made more difficult when his chief trainer, George McCrae, resigned. John Torbet formerly of Partick Thistle was his successor and ex-player, John Harvey, was appointed assistant trainer.

Hearts did seem happier in the knock-out competitions and in the League Cup, the maroons qualified from a Section involving Hamilton Academical, Falkirk and St Mirren to set up a Quarter Final match against East Fife at Easter Road. After a 3-0 victory, the Semi Final against Rangers on 27 April was also allocated to Easter Road. Nevertheless, the Hearts' officials wanted the game switched to Hampden where the team lost 2-1 before a crowd of 70,000. Jimmy Walker headed a goal after one minute, but Rangers pulled back to win in extra time.

In the Victory Cup, the Tynecastle men defeated Alloa Athletic 6-3 on aggregate then played Hibs at Easter Road on a straight knock-out basis. Tommy Walker's exultant return from the forces attracted a crowd of 39,323 but Hearts went down 3-1. The season ended with the team winning the Shield and then flying out to Germany and beating the British Army of the Rhine by 3-2 at Celle.

With sixty players on the books, McLean had to quickly rationalize the squad and there were many departures, including Andy Black to Manchester City. Then on 11 May 1946, the club provisionally signed Willie Bauld from the Edinburgh mining village of Newcraighall. He was destined to become the "King of Hearts".

Normal Service Resumed

Football was nearly back to normal in season 1946-47, but the hopes of the Hearts' fans were quickly dashed when in early September, Tommy Walker was transferred to Chelsea for a club record of £6,000 just after helping to defeat the high-flying Hibs. He was quickly followed by Archie Garrett and Jimmy Briscoe to Northampton Town and the loss of these experienced players affected the side. In mid-September, Hearts problems increased when top striker, Archie Kelly, collided with a post during a home win over Kilmarnock breaking his collar bone and an upright.

Davie McLean did recruit Bobby Dougan and Davie Laing and he increasingly introduced young prospects. However, the manager did not wish to push them too hard and as a result, he frequently changed the team. This had an unsettling effect and Hearts did well to finish fourth in the League, 8 points behind the Champions, Rangers. Only a lack of goals let Hearts down, as the defence, marshalled by the veterans, Bobby Baxter and Archie Miller, was very sound.

The strong rearguard was responsible for a fine 2-1 win at Ibrox in April. Hearts also won at Celtic Park at the start of the season and these were the outstanding performances of the campaign. Any hope that Hearts might actually challenge for the title ended when only one point was taken from four games over the festive period.

The League Cup commenced in September and on the 28th of that month, against Kilmarnock, the players wore numbers on their shirts for the first time. After going on to win their Section against Clyde, Kilmarnock and Partick Thistle, the maroons met East Fife in a two-legged Quarter Final. The Fifers won 1-0 at Tynecastle, but Hearts redeemed themselves at Methil with a 5-2 win. However, in March 1947, the team went down 6-2 to Aberdeen in the Semi Final at Easter Road, despite being 2-1 up after 37 minutes. It was a demoralized Tynecastle side that took the field that afternoon following a shock defeat in the Scottish Cup.

After beating St Johnstone and Cowdenbeath in the Cup, Hearts were drawn away to "B" Division, Arbroath, in the Fourth Round. Jimmy Walker failed to turn up and on a heavily sanded pitch, Hearts produced an abysmal performance, going down 2-1 with Ken Currie's goal being only a consolation. Walker was then exchanged for the redoubtable Bobby Parker of Partick Thistle. Alex McCrae also went to Charlton Athletic for a new record fee received of £7,500 plus a friendly fixture, but Davie McLean had the magnificent Jimmy Wardhaugh ready to replace him.

Hearts lost in the Shield Final and as the SFA would not extend the season to accommodate the Rosebery Charity Cup, the life of this venerable trophy had run its course. Hearts did manage to play Chelsea in a friendly in April 1947 and Tommy Walker seemed embarrassed to score against his old club at Tynecastle as the Londoners won 4-1

Tommy Walker is mobbed by well-wishers at Chelsea before his return to Edinburgh in December 1948.

A Relegation Scare

1947-48 was one of Hearts poorest campaigns with the team perilously close to the relegation zone, before eventually climbing to ninth place in "A" Division. Results were so poor that the directors ignored the manager's cherished youth policy and bought the club out of trouble. This proved to be a correct short-term decision.

The season began with Tynecastle under major repair with the drains, retaining wall and track being renewed and the terracing being fully concreted. As a result, the opening fixture was switched to Easter Road where Hearts had a thrilling 2-1 League Cup win over Hibs. The other clubs in the Section, Clyde and Airdrieonians, presented some problems, but Hearts claimed a Quarter Final place by recording another 2-1 win over Hibs at home when Bobby Parker demoralized the famous Easter Road forward line with his tackling and long clearing. Hearts then met East Fife in a one-off Quarter Final at Tynecastle and this game indicated problems ahead, with the Fifers winning 4-3 after extra time.

The League started with mixed results and concerns about a lack of experience. Alfie Conn then suffered a serious knee injury and with Jimmy Wardhaugh being called-up to the RAF, the directors decided to pay a club record £5,000 fee for the Clyde forward, Arthur Dixon. Nevertheless, after the League Cup exit, there was a serious slump with only three wins in the next eighteen League fixtures. This included six defeats in a row at the end of the year when Hearts fell to second bottom position.

Bobby Flavell comes close against Celtic at Tynecastle in January 1948 and he later scored the only goal of the game

The run of defeats ended on 3 January 1948 with a 1-0 win over Celtic at Tynecastle. The winner came from International striker, Bobby Flavell, who had been signed from Airdrieonians for a Scottish record fee of £10,000 in order to arrest the decline. He was joined by George Hamilton of Aberdeen who cost £8,000 plus Archie Kelly. The new men clearly lifted the team and Hearts made a much better showing in the second half of the season, indeed the Maroons were undefeated in the last ten League fixtures. On the final day, Hearts won 2-1 against Rangers at Ibrox, a result which gave Hibs the Championship on points not just goal average. Hearts finished ninth but the fans came in record numbers with a League average gate of 22,694.

In the Scottish Cup, Hearts won 4-2 at Dundee in the First Round and then the maroons then took 8,000 fans to Broomfield in the Second Round to swell the all ticket gate to 20,000. In heavy rain, Airdrieonians' tackling was too strong and the home side established a 2-0 lead. Hamilton got one back, but Hearts late rally could not produce an equalizer. Hamilton then became unsettled and went back to Aberdeen for a new record sum received of £12,000.

Davie McLean had almost resigned over the lack of faith in his youth policy and he now asked that Tommy Walker be brought back as assistant manager. This was a very far-sighted request and he received the total backing of the directors, with a deal being struck with Chelsea that Walker would return in December 1948.

Trainer John Torbet on the golf links at North Berwick flanked by Willie Bauld and John Urquhart

Hearts Recovery

Davie McLean had faith in his young squad but in 1948-49 this was sorely tested when after six League games, Hearts had suffered five defeats and were two points adrift at the bottom of the table. To make matters worse, Hibs were again on top.

At this point there was some relief when the League Cup commenced with Hearts in a Section together with Partick Thistle, East Fife and Queen of the South. The first four matches produced only three points and forced the manager to make changes. Accordingly, on 9 October 1948, McLean sent out Alfie Conn, Willie Bauld and Jimmy Wardhaugh against East Fife and Hearts ripped open the visitors, winning 6-1. Bauld scored a hat-trick on his senior debut and 24,374 fans witnessed the birth of the "Terrible Trio" whose unsurpassed firepower would lead the club to many honours. In another inspired move, Bobby Dougan went to centre-half, where he was a class act, and Bobby Parker moved to right-back.

The following week, the maroons crushed Queen of the South by 4-0 and although Bauld hit another hat-trick, the revival was too late to take Hearts into the League Cup Quarter Finals. However, spirits were lifted and when the League resumed on 23 October, Hearts recorded a fine 2-0 victory over Rangers at Tynecastle. Alfie Conn had fully recovered from his cartilage operation and scored a brilliant goal which earned him a place in the Scottish League International team.

Towards the end of 1948, Hearts moved away from the relegation zone with great results, such as 4-0 against high-flying East Fife and 5-1 away to Albion Rovers where Jimmy Wardhaugh scored his first hat-trick. On New Year's Day, Hearts beat Hibs by 3-2 at home, with Alfie Conn scoring a last minute winner. The team then lost to Celtic and Dundee, with the new assistant manager, Tommy Walker, returning in the latter match. Unfortunately, the loss of Bobby Parker for a cartilage operation was a major blow and mixed results followed. Eventually Hearts finished eighth, 16 points behind the Champions, Rangers.

In the Scottish Cup, Airdrieonians, Third Lanark and Dumbarton were all beaten at Tynecastle and then Dundee came to Gorgie in the Quarter Finals. After a thrilling contest in the rain, the visitors won 4-2, although Hearts were worthy of a replay and Davie Laing even missed a penalty with Dundee leading 3-2.

Significantly, the club's average League crowd was the highest in Hearts' history at 28,196. This was due not only to the post war boom, but also because the rewards from McLean's youth policy were clearly coming through. The season ended with defeat in the East of Scotland Shield Final and stalwart goalkeeper, Jimmy Brown, earning a place on the SFA tour of North America. Hearts also signed Colin Liddell from Morton for a record equalling sum of £10,000.

Willie Bauld stretches the Dumbarton defence in the Scottish Cup match at Tynecastle in February 1949

Real Progress at Tynecastle

Despite a lack of honours since 1906, attendances at Tynecastle were still superb in season 1949-50. The Scotsman explained that, "supporters knew that they stood a fair chance of seeing real football at Tynecastle with the key man being Willie Bauld, a player of unsurpassed skills and unselfish to a fault. Hearts play the game, a policy fostered over the years by management. This partly explains the consistency of the faithful crowds the envy of others no matter how badly Hearts fare".

Proof, if it were needed, came when Bauld opened the season with a hat-trick as Hearts defeated Stirling Albion 5-1 in the League Cup at Annfield. Hearts then defeated Raith Rovers 5-1 at Tynecastle, but stumbled to a 1-1 home draw against East Fife. The team lost 5-4 in the return match against Stirling Albion and although they won away to Raith Rovers, Hearts went out of the League Cup after losing 4-3 against East Fife. Davie McLean had firepower, but could he find an "iron curtain" defence?

Tangible progress was made in the Championship and Hearts finished third, 7 points behind the title winners, Rangers. This seemed unlikely after six matches when Hearts had only three points and were bottom of the League. However, two of these points came in a 5-2 win over Hibs at Tynecastle, a match that Hearts led 5-0 after 54 minutes. At that stage Bobby Parker even missed a penalty before Hibs grabbed two goals and respectability.

Hearts suddenly hit form on 29 October with a 6-2 home win over Clyde, the first of twelve consecutive League victories, and including an astonishing 9-0 romp against Falkirk at Tynecastle. During this run, which was then a record in one season, Hearts looked like Champions, particularly when Celtic was defeated 4-2 at home. Two days later, with Hearts second and Hibs on top, the maroons won 2-1 at Easter Road. The attendance on 2 January 1950, was a record 65,840 the largest crowd to have watched a Scottish match outside of Glasgow and bigger than the "Old Firm" gate that day. The run came to an end on 7 January at Dundee, and when Rangers won 1-0 at Tynecastle later in the month, Hearts were out of the title race. Bauld was the League's top scorer with 30 goals.

In the Scottish Cup First Round, a Bauld goal after 82 minutes earned a replay with Dundee at Dens Park, which Hearts won 2-1 after extra time. In the Second Round at Pittodrie, Hearts lost 3-1 to Aberdeen when the team just did not perform. A few weeks later, Hearts won 5-0 at Pittodrie on League business, but it was too late.

In all competitions, Willie Bauld hit 40 goals and he was capped by Scotland. Unfortunately, Hearts' centre-forward was in the team that failed to qualify for the World Cup Finals and this was always held against him. The season ended on a strange note with Bobby Flavell running out on the club for a lucrative contract with CD Los Millonarios of Bogota, Colombia.

Tommy Walker Takes Control

There were high hopes for 1950-51, as Hearts had out-gunned the Champions, Rangers, during the previous campaign, scoring 86 League goals to their 58. However, defence was still a problem with Hearts conceding 40 goals against Rangers 26. There was soon encouragement in that direction with the performance of centre-half, Bobby Dougan.

Hearts were indeed destined for major honours but tragically, 67-year old manager, Davie McLean, was not to see the result of his youth policy as he passed away in February 1951. The task of guiding Hearts to honours then fell to the illustrious Tommy Walker who nevertheless, was always quick to acknowledge the foundations laid by Davie McLean.

The season began with the League Cup and Hearts joined Motherwell, Airdrieonians and Partick Thistle in the preliminary Section. A 1-1 draw at Partick was followed by a brilliant 4-1 victory over Motherwell. Hearts then defeated Airdrieonians and Partick Thistle before slipping 3-2 at Motherwell and ending the group games with a 3-1 home win over Airdrie. Only three points were dropped, but Hearts failed to reach the Quarter Finals as Motherwell had one more.

The League campaign started with a 1-0 defeat at Dundee, but Hearts won the next five games to go top of the table. This included a 1-0 victory over the eventual Champions, Hibernian, at Easter Road. Hearts good form ended with an injury-hit team losing 5-2 away to Partick Thistle and a period of mixed results followed. Defensive problems continued and this took Hearts out of the title race, but the fans had the satisfaction of a double over Hibs with the New Year game ending 2-1 on a rain swept afternoon. Hearts ran up some great wins, such as 8-0 versus Morton and 4-1 versus Aberdeen, but overall, the team lacked consistency and eventually finished fourth in the League.

In the Scottish Cup, the maroons had away victories over Alloa Athletic and East Stirlingshire. This set up a Third Round game against Celtic, but tragically, on 14 February, just before the big event at Tynecastle, Davie McLean died. This fatherly man was succeeded by Tommy Walker, who controlled the team for the big Cup match where a crowd of 47,672 witnessed a 2-1 Celtic victory. At the end, the Glasgow fans carried their goalkeeper shoulder high off the field, a clear sign that Hearts deserved more.

Bobby Flavell, who had returned from Bogota, was sold to Dundee and John Prentice moved to Rangers. The season then ended with an invitation to visit West Germany and the tourists managed a 3-3 draw against the Champions, VfB Stuttgart. In heat wave conditions, they also beat Fortuna 1895 of Dusseldorf, but lost to FC Kickers 1901 of Offenbach and FC Augsburg.

Tommy Walker Gets to Work

Tommy Walker's influence was soon apparent and at the start of season 1951-52, he brought over Paul Osswald, the coach of FC Kickers Offenbach, to assist with pre-season training. The fitness of the German players during the recent tour had made a lasting impression on the new manager, who also appointed Bobby Parker as captain. In addition, Colin Liddell was exchanged for Eddie Rutherford of Rangers and both Tommy Sloan and Charlie Cox moved to Motherwell.

Hearts' overall form certainly improved, but at the start of the season, the performance in the League Cup Section was disappointing and Dundee progressed on goal average after finishing with the same points as Hearts, only seven. The highlight was a 5-5 draw against St.Mirren at Paisley, where Willie Bauld scored all Hearts' goals.

The maroons made a listless start in the League, but the fourth game brought a 3-1 victory at Celtic Park. A cruel run of injuries then prevented Hearts from building upon this result, particularly one to Bobby Dougan, who found his leg in plaster after playing for the Scottish League. Nevertheless, in November 1951, the team started a great run of thirteen unbeaten matches and this included a polished 5-0 victory at Motherwell; a 6-1 home win against Airdrieonians; and a 3-2 win at Easter Road on New Year's Day. This was followed by a 2-1 victory against Celtic and Hearts stood second in the League.

At the end of January, Hearts lost a two goal lead and drew 2-2 with Rangers at Tynecastle. The following Saturday, the unbeaten run came to an end at Aberdeen and Hearts' Championship challenge collapsed, with only one win from the next seven League games. The team fell back to finish fourth and with Hibs winning the title, the pressure was on to do well in the Scottish Cup.

Hearts entered in the Second Round against Raith Rovers and a crowd of 47,245 observed a minute's silence following the death of King George VI. Bauld scored the only goal with four minutes left and then the Third Round took Hearts to Dumfries where a record attendance of 26,552 saw the Edinburgh men win 3-1. Many of the fans who traveled in 200 buses and three special trains, later watched film of the match at the Lyceum Cinema. Another record attendance, some 26,000, packed Broomfield Park for the Fourth Round tie against Airdrieonians. The game ended in a 2-2 draw and Hearts won an exciting replay at Tynecastle by 6-4.

Tommy Walker's men then faltered at the Semi Final stage, after a three match epic against Motherwell at Hampden Park. The first game ended 1-1 before a 98,208 crowd and goalkeeper, Jimmy Brown, earned Hearts a replay. The gate that day is still the biggest at a Hearts' match not involving the "Old Firm". The replay was also a huge affair and 80,141 fans saw another 1-1 draw. In the third encounter, the defence had an off day and the maroons went down 3-1 in front of a 60,290 crowd.

The season ended with Jimmy Wardhaugh scoring eight goals as the team won 12-2 at the opening of Burntisland Shipyard's new ground. More significantly, in May 1952, the club trainer, John Torbet was replaced by former player, John Harvey.

Hearts went to Sweden in 1953

Chasing that Winning Formula

Season 1952-53 opened with news that goalkeeper, Jimmy Brown, had again dislocated his shoulder and sadly, this would lead to his release in April 1953. His cover man, Jimmy Watters, rose to the challenge, as did centre-half, Jimmy Milne, who replaced Bobby Dougan during his long absence. Another unsettling event concerned Jimmy Wardhaugh who asked for a transfer and only personal terms stopped him joining Newcastle United. I was just as well, because in due course, Jimmy became Hearts' all-time leading marksman.

Away from team matters, the club added a plaque to the War Memorial in respect of those who served in the 1939-45 conflict. Training lights were also erected along the walls of Bond Three, although many other clubs were pushing ahead with full floodlighting systems.

The League Cup saw Hearts, Rangers, Motherwell and Aberdeen in a Section and the maroons made a stunning start with a 5-0 home victory over the Glasgow giants. Hearts then won 4-2 against Aberdeen, but stumbled in the third game, when Motherwell won 1-0 at Tynecastle. The team then lost the decisive game at Ibrox against Rangers who went on to win the Section.

League form was erratic to say the least, and nine defeats by the turn of the year took Hearts out of the title race. In fact after losing to Hibs on New Years Day, the maroons were in relegation trouble. Things were difficult for Tommy Walker because of injury to six first team players, while six others were on National Service. Matters certainly improved in 1953, following the signing of Jim Souness from Hibs and the return of Davie Laing and Bobby Dougan. Hearts lost only two of the last twelve League matches and pulled up to a respectable final position of fourth. The highlight of this run was a 7-0 thrashing of Clyde at Tynecastle in March.

Hearts again did well in the Scottish Cup, starting with a 1-0 victory over Raith Rovers in front of a Starks Park record attendance of 31,306. Willie Bauld scored the solitary goal to earn a Third Round tie at home to Montrose. The Angus team was defeated 3-1 and Hearts next opponents, Queen of the South, provided a much stiffer test. The Maroons won by 2-1, the winner coming after 54 minutes from a spinning lob from Bobby Blackwood.

A huge Tynecastle following swelled the Hampden attendance to 116,262 for the Semi-Final against Rangers and that was the largest crowd to have watched Hearts up to that time. The maroons' fans were first to cheer when Jimmy Wardhaugh scored after 12 minutes, but Rangers powered back to win 2-1. John Cumming was injured in the first half and accordingly, Hearts did well with virtually ten men.

The season ended with a cruise to Scandinavia. Hearts beat AIK 4-1 at Solna but then went down 5-1 to Djurgaardens at the Olympic Stadium in Stockholm. Overall it seemed as if the management team of Walker, Harvey and assistant trainer, Donald McLeod were slowly putting things right.

Jimmy Wardhaugh scores in the 4-1 win over AIK in the Rasunda Stadium, Solna in 1953

A Championship Challenge

In season 1953-54, the Hearts' team produced its best Championship performance since 1937-38, but the outcome was similar with the maroons finishing runners-up to Celtic who finished five points ahead. The maroons dropped seven points in the last six games, immediately after defeating Celtic at Tynecastle, but again Walker's squad suffered from an appalling injury list which partly explains why the title was lost. At the business end of the season, no team could afford to lose defenders such as Bobby Parker and Bobby Dougan, and attackers such as Alfie Conn and Jimmy Wardhaugh.

Tynecastle had a new look this term with modern glass-fronted trainers' dug outs having been erected. The club was still unsure about floodlighting, preferring to play a number of friendlies in England in order to inspect the systems. On the playing front, the season opened with the usual four-club League Cup Section and Hearts dropped out at this stage, with Rangers proving too strong in a group that also included Hamilton Academical and Raith Rovers.

In the Championship, Hearts took a while to settle but at least enjoyed an early 4-0 success over Hibs at home. The team then improved rapidly and although Dougan and Bauld suffered injuries, Jimmy Wardhaugh was in brilliant form and eventually hit 27 League goals. This made sure that Hearts were always in a challenging position and John Cumming was also proving to be a huge success. On 14 November, Hearts defeated Raith Rovers 5-1 at Tynecastle and subsequently lost only one of the next fourteen League fixtures. This included an incident packed 3-2 victory over Celtic in February before a capacity crowd at Tynecastle.

The Championship dream was alive, but the Scottish Cup brought problems after Hearts had won away to Fraserburgh and then Queen of the South. The Maroons then faced their bogey team, Aberdeen, and a record gate of 45,061 packed Pittodrie to see Hearts swept aside by 3-0. During the game, Parker broke his jaw, while Conn injured his back and Wardhaugh suffered a shin injury. Not only did this affect the Cup tie, but it damaged the League challenge, bearing in mind the already serious injury to Bobby Dougan. Hearts lost three of the next five League games and finished 5 points behind Celtic. Injuries had taken their toll.

Touring style in 1954 with John Urquhart, Jimmy Wardhaugh, Davie Laing and Jimmy Watters in South Africa

Hearts did win the East of Scotland Shield before the season ended with 16-player squad flying to South Africa where a 10-match tour was undertaken. This was particularly memorable due to the hospitality, playing facilities, and general environment. Hearts won the First Test Match against South Africa by 2-0 in Pretoria and the Second Test in Durban was the tourist's only defeat (1-2). The players developed a superb team spirit that was soon to be of enormous benefit.

HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN HONOURS BOARD (1944-1954)
The East of Scotland Shield: 1945-46; and 1953-54

DECADE HALL OF FAME
Jimmy Brown; Bobby Parker; Bobby Dougan; Davie Laing; Tom Mackenzie; and Archie Kelly

INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS (Excluding Unofficial Wartime Internationals)
Willie MacFarlane; Willie Bauld; and Bobby Dougan

"B" INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS
Bobby Parker; and John Cumming

SCOTTISH LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS
Willie MacFarlane; George Hamilton; Alfie Conn; Willie Bauld; Bobby Dougan; Jimmy Wardhaugh; and Davie Laing

Written by historian David Speed with archivist Alex Knight

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