Andy's driving factor

18 May 2022

The Jambos face Rangers at Hampden on Saturday as we gear up for our third cup final appearance in as many years, with our last triumph in the competition coming ten years ago.
 
Andy was part of the Hearts squad that went agonisingly close to bringing the cup home to Gorgie in 2020 against Celtic and has had near misses with other clubs in his time in Scottish football.
 
The memories sting, but Andy reckons Hearts can harness those memories as motivation for one last push on Saturday.
 
“We know we’ve a very good side awaiting us, but we’re hoping for a good game. I certainly don’t hold many fond memories of the Scottish Cup final I’ve played in so far!” he told the media in his cup final preview.
 
“I hope this time is different. You can use the low points to drive you on, to help instil a fear of losing which can give you that extra ten percent. With so many of the boys from the 2020 final here, hopefully that can be our driving factor.
 
“I’m very excited. If you can’t look forward to these big occasions as a footballer, then there’s something wrong with you! We’ve put ourselves in a great position to win a Scottish Cup for Hearts for the first time since 2012.”
 
A sold-out national stadium awaits at the weekend, with a packed Hearts end set to bring an electric atmosphere to Glasgow as we bid to take the Scottish Cup back along the M8 to Edinburgh.
 
Rangers will head into the weekend three days on from the outcome of their Europa League final clash with Eintracht Frankfurt tonight. Asked whether this sharp turnaround could benefit Hearts, Andy says the JTs can’t afford to drop their guard, no matter what happens in Seville.
 
“For us as a football club, we can’t rely on what happens on Wednesday. Their fitness levels have been incredible across the season, some of their boys have played in 60 matches. That won’t determine how we’ll play or try and affect the game,” he explained.
 
“We’ve got to worry about ourselves. I don’t think you could personally pinpoint a single member of this squad that have let the club down. I’ve been really happy with my performances this season and been able to get a level of consistency.
 
“I don’t think there was any doubt our club was going to sell the Hearts end out. You saw it at Hampden against Hibs, alongside the great following we’ve had all year. The atmosphere in the semi-final was second to none and I don’t think it’ll be any different this weekend.”