OVER the past few years the Hearts team has included more than a few players whose ability or attitude has been open to question. Some who have been brought in to the squad have patently been out of their depth; others have arguably had the talent but have failed to get up to speed in the SPL; others still have looked clueless and demoralised.
Michael Stewart does not fit into any of those categories. Michael Stewart has ability – not as much, perhaps, as his early days promised, but a fair amount nonetheless. Michael Stewart, a Hearts supporter as a boy, is as committed to the cause as an
y of his team-mates.
Yet it was the same Michael Stewart who bore the brunt of the home fans' abuse at Tynecastle on Saturday, as Hearts played out a scoreless draw with bottom-of-the-table Falkirk. Subjected to ironic applause as he was substituted, according to some reports; booed off, according to others.
For many Hearts fans who were at the game, the picture was more complex. Their perception was that Stewart's removal was indeed applauded by the supporters in the Wheatfield Stand – and that, as the midfielder walked slowly back towards the players' tunnel, fans in the Main Stand booed the reaction of those in the Wheatfield.
But either way – whether those Hearts supporters were at one in their vocal criticism of Stewart or were instead at each other's throats – the incident is emblematic of what is an increasingly frustrating season for everyone connected with the Tynecastle club.
Stewart has not enjoyed a vintage couple of months, but by most accounts Saturday was not his worst performance of the season. (What is more, it emerged later that he had declared himself fit despite having been prevented from training for most of the week by injury, which provides mitigating circumstances for any deficiencies he may have displayed).
But he was not judged in isolation, and those fans who were most vociferous in their complaints were not aggrieved purely by their team's failure to score against Falkirk. The levels of discontent have risen because of a whole string of substandard displays, not so much from Stewart as an individual, but from the team collectively.
Hearts have played one really rousing match this season – the 2-0 Europa League win over Dinamo Zagreb which followed a 4-0 defeat in the first leg. Domestically they have played decently in losing to Rangers, been equally unfortunate to drop points in a couple of other matches, and had the odd unspectacular win.
But, while their results have not been calamitous, they have fallen well short of the standards which their supporters can remember from most of the past six or seven seasons. Many might blame the club's owner, Vladimir Romanov, for not investing in new players, but it's hard to make yourself heard as far away as Lithuania when you're in Gorgie: instead, you vent your frustrations on those club representatives who are within earshot.
As someone who embodies the aspirations of the support more than anyone else, Stewart is in one sense the obvious target. They know he cares, and they know he can do more than most players to try to rectify the situation.
At Tynecastle as at other clubs, there are supporters who regard booing their own team as anathema, and others who believe the cost of admission entitles them to voice their displeasure as bluntly as they like. To the latter group, the effect that their self-expression may have on their team is at best a secondary matter: they simply have to vent their spleen.
As things stand, Stewart and his colleagues can expect to be subjected to a whole lot more vituperation over the course of the season, for Hearts do not look like turning the corner any time soon. Not only do they have too many players of limited experience and ability in the side, they are not even playing coherently as a team.
As captain, some of the responsibility for that may be down to Stewart, and there are those who believe he is too aloof to be an ideal leader. But whatever reservations he may have had, Csaba Laszlo had little realistic choice when deciding on his captain for the season.
Next season the manager's choice could be a lot more difficult. Stewart's contract runs out at the end of the season and he could be allowed to leave, and the same applies to several others who are among the most experienced players at the club.
With no cash available to lure new recruits, it is hard to see where sustained improvement is going to come from. Those Hearts fans who felt moved to criticise their team on Saturday could soon find themselves indulging in the habit a whole lot more regularly.
