Rebels with a cause right to expose dark side of maroon

YOU don't require eyes to witness, ears to hear, or a nose to sniff it out. A sense of injustice, of malpractice, of deviousness is provided by human genes aided and abetted by solid backgrounds.

Way back in time, in the late 18th century, the issue and its consequences were identified by one Edmund Burke, an Anglo-Irish philosopher and writer.

He determined: "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."

Subsequently, politicians of various shades have used the words to justify their actions, mostly to progress just causes but also to lend substance to the inherent dangers of adventures fuelled by self-interest.

The notion, however, has never been associated with football - well, not until this week, anyway.

Whatever is happening within Hearts FC hopefully and probably does not verge upon the evil, but it surely baffles and again raises serious questions of the stewardship and motivations of the club's owner, the Lithuanian banker Vladimir Romanov.

One good man, solidly backed by a further two of genuinely solid character, has decided that doing nothing about what is, at best, turmoil within Tynecastle is not an option.

Steven Pressley is to be admired and congratulated for his decision to stand aside from the club - at least temporarily - and put his immediate future on the line.

His fellow Scotland internationals Paul Hartley and Craig Gordon are also due enormous credit for their very public support of their captain.

A Philadelphia lawyer would toil to unravel the contradictory evidence of Romanov's regime at the club. At once he has funded an operation that, last season, split the Old Firm in the championship and delivered the Tennent's Scottish Cup and has, conversely, been a fulcrum in the mayhem that has seen managers and players enter and exit the gates through a revolving door.

Along the way, he has transported a slice of Lithuania to the west end of Edinburgh - the latest his new manager Eugenijus Riabovas, who was appointed yesterday.

All that is predictable about his strategies is their unpredictability. In this morass of confusion, Pressley, Hartley, and Gordon have managed to stand together.

They have been a credit to themselves, to the history of their club and to their profession.

It's not often possible to take a step back in admiration of footballers in this smash-and-grab age that determines the pursuit of the big bucks to be an end in itself but this trio are a glowing exception.

They stood shoulder to shoulder at a media conference a few weeks back to air their unease over what they regarded as obvious conflict within the club. On Wednesday, Pressley decided he could not go in against Falkirk in the midst of strong suspicions of a plot to strip him of the captaincy.

Again, Hartley and Gordon remained solid and offered to join him, but Pressley persuaded them to make themselves available, although the midfielder appeared for seconds only and Gordon wondered if he would have been chosen had there been a replacement available.

The crux of this contest is the character of the three players. Were they juvenile in age and mentality, hefting the self-indulgent behavioural traits of the modern pro, those running the football operation at the club would not have had a case to answer.

But these are bright and dedicated men, regarded as a joy to work with by the national manager Walter Smith. Pressley was hugely influenced by the definitive professionalism of Richard Gough when he was a youngster at Rangers and has never allowed the focus to slip.

Hartley has shown incredible commitment to attain standards that make him, arguably, the most complete midfielder in the country. He is also an intelligent and thoughtful man.

Gordon is just approaching his 24th birthday but enjoys a presence well beyond his years. When, collectively, they determine all is not well within the state of Tynecastle it's time to listen up. Very carefully.

Taken from Evening Times