Hibs striker tells fans they'll see a different result in league clash

DAVID HARDIE

TAM McMANUS today urged Hibs fans not to lose any sleep over their Festival Cup defeat by arch-rivals Hearts, promising them: "It’ll all be different in two weeks’ time."

The Easter Road striker admitted he and his team-mates were disappointed to go down to an Andy Webster goal on their home turf - where they will face Hearts again a week on Sunday.

But he insisted boss Bobby Williamson can use the days in between on the training pitch to ensure Hibs get it right when three Premierleague points are up for grabs.

McManus was adamant Hearts will gain no psychological edge from their latest victory over Hibs - they haven’t lost a derby in almost two years - and pleaded with Easter Road fans not to be worried.

He said: "I don’t think that’s the case at all, it will be totally different in a couple of weeks’ time.

"There will be a lot more at stake then than there was in this match although we wanted to win it and are disappointed we lost.

"We have a lot of things to work on and I think this match showed we still have a bit of work to do on different aspects of our game.

"But I am sure we will be better prepared for Hearts in two weeks’ time. We aren’t taking this result too seriously, it was basically a pre-season game after all, and I hope the Hibs fans aren’t either."

Meanwhile, McManus praised the common-sense attitude taken by referee Tom Brown after he and Hearts star Austin McCann got involved in a touchline fracas which saw players from both sides and match officials jump in to separate the pair.

Admitting he feared a red card, McManus said: "It was a bit of a wrestling match, but it was a handbags job.

"The pair of us were rolling about on the ground, there was a bit of wrestling but there was nothing in it.

"Austin and I are good friends, we had a laugh and shook hands after it."

But McManus revealed he was well aware that the repercussions from the incident could have been much more serious if he had been dismissed.

He said: "If it had been an SPL game we might have been dealt with a bit more harshly but it was good to see the referee showing common sense. I was a bit scared I was going to be sent off and have another major fine coming my way."

Taken from the Scotsman