THE mood was sombre as we trudged away from Tynecastle after Saturday's depressing no score draw against Falkirk.
Fans had turned up once again in good numbers to give our team the benefit of the "twelfth man" a large home support can provide, in a crucial match.
In doing so we denied Falkirk the extra seats they had requested. And there are many other compet
ing ways to spend an Easter Saturday afternoon.
But Hearts fans are among the most loyal not just in Scotland but the whole UK. We turn up in rain, sleet or snow and the freezing conditions of Saturday because our club has a long, fine and honourable tradition.
A tradition which was again underlined when 300 turned up on Saturday night for the Willie Bauld Memorial Dinner.
Pilmar Smith, in his toast to "the king" exemplified the deep respect so many fans have for our club, its heroes and its history.
But, as I left the Wheatfield Stand earlier in the day, there was no doubt some felt their loyalty was being stretched to breaking point.
Writing this column means that fans are not shy to let me know their views. It is clear that the undoubted affection for Stevie Frail is being strained.
There is a recognition that he has been thrust into a position of responsibility and an impossible position not of his making. But any benefit of the doubt began to evaporate as we saw the lack of urgency in players and total absence of any strategy from the dugout.
Falkirk manager Yogi Hughes clearly knew what he wanted and achieved the necessary draw away from home to maintain their advantage in the SPL.
We thus now need to speed up the search for a permanent managerial appointment.
As recently as last week I was among those who was prepared to accept a deadline of June for the New Year promise to be fulfilled. Now it is clear that it must be done sooner.
If we are to get off to a flying start next season we need to get a new coach in as soon as possible. He will need some time to get the right squad in place, plan the pre-season and get them working together as a team.
If we do not move soon, some potential managers could be snapped up elsewhere.
Why does it need to have taken so long already? I can't believe that if we make the right offer to the right man he wouldn't come straight away.
All the sentimental talk about commitments to other clubs is not something I recall from my time in the boardroom.
As well as having my ears bent with the views of fans on Saturday, I took a straw poll on the basis of three possible choices. They are the obvious ones of Jim Jefferies, Mark McGhee and Craig Levein.
There was overwhelming support for Levein. Having attended the CIS Cup Final and seen the way he set out his stall there I must agree.
And, on the day of our depressing draw, he recorded yet another victory. Craig may be proud, have strong views and a high opinion of his own ability but all this is justified and he has an affection for Hearts.
As I have said before I have reasons to believe, if he is given the right offer with an assurance he will have the full powers of a UK-style manager, he would accept.
It is rumoured that Campbell Ogilvie also backs Levein. If this is so and if his appointment as Managing Director really does give him more responsibility he should now start exercising it.
With the season tickets now being put on sale the appointment of Levein as manager would also give a boost to sales.
Next week we face the prospect of Levein in the away dugout as we limp towards the lower half of the SPL and finishing in the bottom six for the first time since the split came into existence. There could be no better time to make a bold move which would give a real boost to those who left the ground in deep gloom on Saturday.
Final decision sparks debate on use of technology in footballAT THE time I thought Dundee United were denied a cast iron penalty in the CIS Cup Final.
Television evidence confirms emphatically what we thought on the day. It also once again raises the question of why, in this 21st Century, where technological advances have revolutionised other sports, in football we remain firmly in the 20th Century. Technology is now available which would enable the fourth official to watch TV screens giving views of every angle of play.
If there was any doubt the referee could almost instantaneously consult the fourth official on fouls, offsides and penalties.
This would avoid having to admit afterwards a mistake had been made which could have cost a club dear.
I understand also the technology which determines whether the ball is out at tennis could be used to confirm if the football was over the line, particularly the goalline. When will the SFA start to move with the times on this and other potential changes? For instance, when a player is injured why is it his team which suffers the loss of a player while he goes off the park and sometimes waits many minutes to be called on?
After all it is his opponents who have committed the foul yet his team has to play with one man down.
And then there is the idea of introducing 'sin-bins' for fouls so the offender's team has to play one short for a period of, say, ten minutes, as a more appropriate punishment than the yellow card.
The full article contains 970 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
