Time for Vlad to look back

[Rudy T]

Romanov took over during the 2004-2005 season, the following season we finished 2nd and won the Scottish Cup ? fantastic - since then we have finished ? 4th 8th 3rd 6th 3rd, our Scottish Cup record is abysmal only once getting beyond the 4th round.

 

The season he took over we finished 5th?? a season of huge turmoil but 5th and a SF spot in the cup. Prior to this we had the 98 cup final win and finished 3rd. After that season up until he took over our league standings were impressive ? with three 3rd place finishes and two 5th?s with two QF of the cup.

 

I understand the finances involved but pre Romanov managers were allowed to do their job, there was no fanciful idea?s about unknown European managers suddenly turning us into Barcelona, we were feared (most of the time) at home and were up against strong Old firm teams yet held our own in the league and did reasonable in the cups.

 

Now he wants his train set to run his way, history suggests his way isn?t any better, in fact perhaps less effective than how the club was previously run (on the park)

 

If he genuinely wants us to improve and challenge the old firm ? it?s time he looked back at how managers performed before him, gets the right man with a knowledge of Scottish football and a track record of building winning teams, backs them and stays out of their business.

 

Until then we remain, as we are, a top half team with no cup runs to look forward to ? and that will drive the fans away slowly but surely.

 

Sergio will be the latest in a long line of very forgettable managers who talked the talk but were worked from behind by Romanov.

[Tynie b]

Romanov took over during the 2004-2005 season, the following season we finished 2nd and won the Scottish Cup ? fantastic - since then we have finished ? 4th 8th 3rd 6th 3rd, our Scottish Cup record is abysmal only once getting beyond the 4th round.

 

The season he took over we finished 5th?? a season of huge turmoil but 5th and a SF spot in the cup. Prior to this we had the 98 cup final win and finished 3rd. After that season up until he took over our league standings were impressive ? with three 3rd place finishes and two 5th?s with two QF of the cup.

 

I understand the finances involved but pre Romanov managers were allowed to do their job, there was no fanciful idea?s about unknown European managers suddenly turning us into Barcelona, we were feared (most of the time) at home and were up against strong Old firm teams yet held our own in the league and did reasonable in the cups.

 

Now he wants his train set to run his way, history suggests his way isn?t any better, in fact perhaps less effective than how the club was previously run (on the park)

 

If he genuinely wants us to improve and challenge the old firm ? it?s time he looked back at how managers performed before him, gets the right man with a knowledge of Scottish football and a track record of building winning teams, backs them and stays out of their business.

 

Until then we remain, as we are, a top half team with no cup runs to look forward to ? and that will drive the fans away slowly but surely.

 

Sergio will be the latest in a long line of very forgettable managers who talked the talk but were worked from behind by Romanov.

 

 

I hope you have your tin hat ready mate

 

I agree with what you have written, But, I ******* HATE Romanov with a Passion I normally leave for people like Neil Lennon and Ally McCoist!!

[Charlie-Brown]

Ah the good old days 1998-2005 , nice air-brushing of history conveniently forgetting continuous financial losses, increasing debts + interest and a debt spiral leading to the proposed sale of Tynecastle but that is off the pitch , on the pitch we were so good that average crowds were even lower than they are now, abysmal cup defeats to lower league teams like Ross County, Falkirk and Inverness but also papped in Semi-Finals by St Johnstone and Motherwell, Old Firm as far out of sight as they've ever been and frequent hammerings dished out everytime we played them.

 

It was a great time eh? Oh wait a minute you must also have forgotten some of Hibs biggest wins against us in the last 3 decades.....

[Clerry Jambo]

Ah the good old days 1998-2005 , nice air-brushing of history conveniently forgetting continuous financial losses, increasing debts + interest and a debt spiral leading to the proposed sale of Tynecastle but that is off the pitch , on the pitch we were so good that average crowds were even lower than they are now, abysmal cup defeats to lower league teams like Ross County, Falkirk and Inverness but also papped in Semi-Finals by St Johnstone and Motherwell, Old Firm as far out of sight as they've ever been and frequent hammerings dished out everytime we played them.

 

It was a great time eh? Oh wait a minute you must also have forgotten some of Hibs biggest wins against us in the last 3 decades.....

 

All factually correct Charlie, the difference being the owner back then didnae open his trap and blame very man and his dug for the clubs failings, jist saying likes

[Jamdub]

Romanov took over during the 2004-2005 season, the following season we finished 2nd and won the Scottish Cup ? fantastic - since then we have finished ? 4th 8th 3rd 6th 3rd, our Scottish Cup record is abysmal only once getting beyond the 4th round.

 

The season he took over we finished 5th?? a season of huge turmoil but 5th and a SF spot in the cup. Prior to this we had the 98 cup final win and finished 3rd. After that season up until he took over our league standings were impressive ? with three 3rd place finishes and two 5th?s with two QF of the cup.

 

I understand the finances involved but pre Romanov managers were allowed to do their job, there was no fanciful idea?s about unknown European managers suddenly turning us into Barcelona, we were feared (most of the time) at home and were up against strong Old firm teams yet held our own in the league and did reasonable in the cups.

 

Now he wants his train set to run his way, history suggests his way isn?t any better, in fact perhaps less effective than how the club was previously run (on the park)

 

If he genuinely wants us to improve and challenge the old firm ? it?s time he looked back at how managers performed before him, gets the right man with a knowledge of Scottish football and a track record of building winning teams, backs them and stays out of their business.

 

Until then we remain, as we are, a top half team with no cup runs to look forward to ? and that will drive the fans away slowly but surely.

 

Sergio will be the latest in a long line of very forgettable managers who talked the talk but were worked from behind by Romanov.

 

Await the backlash from all the 'Romanov Rimmers'..........

[The Treasurer]

All factually correct Charlie, the difference being the owner back then didnae open his trap and blame very man and his dug for the clubs failings, jist saying likes

 

 

The owner back then was too busy lining his own pockets and engineering a big pay off when his "masterplan" to move to muddyfield became to only option left (viable or otherwise)

Jist saying likes

[Clerry Jambo]

The owner back then was too busy lining his own pockets and engineering a big pay off when his "masterplan" to move to muddyfield became to only option left (viable or otherwise)

Jist saying likes

 

Afternoon T, now I am not in the know to say if that is factually correct, but you do get my drift!

[pcw1874]

It started with sacking John Robertson and appointing Burley in 2005, but Burley was also sacked in 2005 for taking us to the top of the League, but we all bought the stuff about Burley liking a beer and all that, especially when Vlad lets it be known that Hitzfeld, Ranieri or Bobby Robson would get the gig and take us to the next level and the Champions League. We sacked Fireworks Phil too, but nobody cared about him.

 

What next? No Ranieri, but we did get Rix, a man with a penchant for young-girls, but we sacked him too, just after describing the sex offender as a ?hero?. Next up, Big Valdas and he prowled the touchline like a man possessed for a while during 2006; three manager?s in a year, way to go Vlad. Then Valdas went off on the mental, not so long after spanking Gretna in the Cup, poor Valdas, but that was all OK as footballing genius Malofeev was on the books, but that too was doomed and after a glorious six games at the helm, Malofeev was no more.

 

Korbochka also got a shot in the big chair, but he got binned and along came Stevie Frail, but that was no use either, so he too was for the can. There was more talk of some big names for a while, but some guy called Csaba got the nod, apparently he had done good stuff in Uganda, after turning them into a footballing super-power. Laszlo was a nice guy, but guess what, that went chunks-up too and back came JJ.

 

For a while things were as good as it gets for us Jambos, JJ did a decent job and got us back into Europe, but lo and behold JJ got sacked, just after signing all these new players, now that was a shock, not!. Next up, Paulo and his natty cardigan, coming in as manager even before JJ?s sizeable arseprint was off the leather recliner. Sergio had a non-existent track record at the smelly end of Portuguese football and despite not having done all that much before buying his cardigan, he's been charged with winning the League. But who needs a manager or even a cardigan, when Vlad?s got such an eye for player talent, dealing with the media and fiscal prudence?

[The Treasurer]

Afternoon T, now I am not in the know to say if that is factually correct, but you do get my drift!

 

 

I think it's widely acknowledged that our previous owner did quite well financially from driving the club to the brink of extinction.

At least Mr Romanov only has the good of the club in mind

[Clerry Jambo]

I think it's widely acknowledged that our previous owner did quite well financially from driving the club to the brink of extinction.

At least Mr Romanov only has the good of the club in mind

 

I refer you to Post 8

[Rudy T]

Ah the good old days 1998-2005 , nice air-brushing of history conveniently forgetting continuous financial losses, increasing debts + interest and a debt spiral leading to the proposed sale of Tynecastle but that is off the pitch , on the pitch we were so good that average crowds were even lower than they are now, abysmal cup defeats to lower league teams like Ross County, Falkirk and Inverness but also papped in Semi-Finals by St Johnstone and Motherwell, Old Firm as far out of sight as they've ever been and frequent hammerings dished out everytime we played them.

 

It was a great time eh? Oh wait a minute you must also have forgotten some of Hibs biggest wins against us in the last 3 decades.....

 

You're right it is off the pitch, and a big thumbs up to Vlad for all he's done, however I still have the right to critise him if the product on the park's not great - he did afterall buy a football club.

 

And right now we don't seem to be moving forward and IMO it's his leadership that is holding us back on the pitch.

 

In respect to cup defeats - we've been dumped by Dunfermline, Motherwell, Falkirk, Aberdeen, St Johnstone not to mention last weeks debacle - a pretty similar list to your pre Vlad's reign. Plus the old firm back then had ?12million players at their disposal - your lucky if the Rangers squad is worth 20million these days.

 

My point is under Vlad - we haven't improved as a football team, so maybe its time he left the football side to football people and put the controller for Champ Manager down for a season or 2.

[Jamdub]

It started with sacking John Robertson and appointing Burley in 2005, but Burley was also sacked in 2005 for taking us to the top of the League, but we all bought the stuff about Burley liking a beer and all that, especially when Vlad lets it be known that Hitzfeld, Ranieri or Bobby Robson would get the gig and take us to the next level and the Champions League. We sacked Fireworks Phil too, but nobody cared about him.

 

What next? No Ranieri, but we did get Rix, a man with a penchant for young-girls, but we sacked him too, just after describing the sex offender as a ?hero?. Next up, Big Valdas and he prowled the touchline like a man possessed for a while during 2006; three manager?s in a year, way to go Vlad. Then Valdas went off on the mental, not so long after spanking Gretna in the Cup, poor Valdas, but that was all OK as footballing genius Malofeev was on the books, but that too was doomed and after a glorious six games at the helm, Malofeev was no more.

 

Korbochka also got a shot in the big chair, but he got binned and along came Stevie Frail, but that was no use either, so he too was for the can. There was more talk of some big names for a while, but some guy called Csaba got the nod, apparently he had done good stuff in Uganda, after turning them into a footballing super-power. Laszlo was a nice guy, but guess what, that went chunks-up too and back came JJ.

 

For a while things were as good as it gets for us Jambos, JJ did a decent job and got us back into Europe, but lo and behold JJ got sacked, just after signing all these new players, now that was a shock, not!. Next up, Paulo and his natty cardigan, coming in as manager even before JJ?s sizeable arseprint was off the leather recliner. Sergio had a non-existent track record at the smelly end of Portuguese football and despite not having done all that much before buying his cardigan, he's been charged with winning the League. But who needs a manager or even a cardigan, when Vlad?s got such an eye for player talent, dealing with the media and fiscal prudence?

 

[The Treasurer]

I refer you to Post 8

 

 

All fairly accurate (apart from the last sentence)

 

The point is that HMFC as a club are by no means at their lowest point (on or off the park) and I'd even say that we are probably in a better position now (last couple of results excluded) than we have been for a lot of the 45 years that I've been going to games.

2005 showed that we could achieve more but only with a level of investment that was not sustainable

[pcw1874]

All fairly accurate (apart from the last sentence)

 

The point is that HMFC as a club are by no means at their lowest point (on or off the park) and I'd even say that we are probably in a better position now (last couple of results excluded) than we have been for a lot of the 45 years that I've been going to games.

2005 showed that we could achieve more but only with a level of investment that was not sustainable

 

I do accept Romanov bought a club in massive debt, but, and it's a big but!! Despite selling our best assets over the last few seasons - Gordon, Berra and Wallace, our debt has increased to an even more massive ?35 million under Romanov. People shouldn't be fooled by his debt for equity scams either - these only reduce the debt level if they attract outside investors, in our case they have not attracted any new investment. All Romanov has done has increased the debt then spread the risk though his other trading companies, by issuing new shares. It's like switching your credit card to your overdraft, you still have the debt and you aren't paying any off.

 

So I would argue that we are now in worse position financially than we were before Romanov took over, As Robinson left Hearts with a ?20 million debt, while Romanov has almost doubled that.

[adso7]

I do accept Romanov bought a club in massive debt, but, and it's a big but!! Despite selling our best assets over the last few seasons - Gordon, Berra and Wallace, our debt has increased to an even more massive ?35 million under Romanov. People shouldn't be fooled by his debt for equity scams either - these only reduce the debt level if they attract outside investors, in our case they have not attracted any new investment. All Romanov has done has increased the debt then spread the risk though his other trading companies, by issuing new shares. It's like switching your credit card to your overdraft, you still have the debt and you aren't paying any off.

 

So I would argue that we are now in worse position financially than we were before Romanov took over, As Robinson left Hearts with a ?20 million debt, while Romanov has almost doubled that.

 

I'm not sure you are correct re debt for equity (although I am not an expert).He is issuing further shares and taking these in return for forgiving a chunk of debt. The debt is gone from Hearts but the number of shares has increased (further) diluting the value of existing shares.

[pcw1874]

I'm not sure you are correct re debt for equity (although I am not an expert).He is issuing further shares and taking these in return for forgiving a chunk of debt. The debt is gone from Hearts but the number of shares has increased (further) diluting the value of existing shares.

 

Only when those creditors are external, with Romanov it's all internal paper shuffling. Yes the debt is removed from Hearts, but it's shifted to other UBIG companies via diluted and devalued shares being issued in Hearts.

[colinmaroon]

All factually correct Charlie, the difference being the owner back then didnae open his trap and blame very man and his dug for the clubs failings, jist saying likes

 

 

No, he just shut his ears and refused to listen!

[Dirty Deeds]

The Mercer era lasted around 14 years, Robinson ran the club for about 11 years. Romanov is now into his 6th full season.

 

Results wise, we split the Uglies three times under Mercer but failed to land silverware.

 

Robinson & Romanov have both had their cup wins but have been up & down in the league.

 

Surely Romanov won't see out 10 years at the club?

 

The real measure of his success will be the position Romanov leaves us in.

 

If we have a manageable debt and a football stadium we should count ourselves fortunate.

[colinmaroon]

It started with sacking John Robertson and appointing Burley in 2005, but Burley was also sacked in 2005 for taking us to the top of the League, but we all bought the stuff about Burley liking a beer and all that, especially when Vlad lets it be known that Hitzfeld, Ranieri or Bobby Robson would get the gig and take us to the next level and the Champions League. We sacked Fireworks Phil too, but nobody cared about him.

 

What next? No Ranieri, but we did get Rix, a man with a penchant for young-girls, but we sacked him too, just after describing the sex offender as a ?hero?. Next up, Big Valdas and he prowled the touchline like a man possessed for a while during 2006; three manager?s in a year, way to go Vlad. Then Valdas went off on the mental, not so long after spanking Gretna in the Cup, poor Valdas, but that was all OK as footballing genius Malofeev was on the books, but that too was doomed and after a glorious six games at the helm, Malofeev was no more.

 

Korbochka also got a shot in the big chair, but he got binned and along came Stevie Frail, but that was no use either, so he too was for the can. There was more talk of some big names for a while, but some guy called Csaba got the nod, apparently he had done good stuff in Uganda, after turning them into a footballing super-power. Laszlo was a nice guy, but guess what, that went chunks-up too and back came JJ.

 

For a while things were as good as it gets for us Jambos, JJ did a decent job and got us back into Europe, but lo and behold JJ got sacked, just after signing all these new players, now that was a shock, not!. Next up, Paulo and his natty cardigan, coming in as manager even before JJ?s sizeable arseprint was off the leather recliner. Sergio had a non-existent track record at the smelly end of Portuguese football and despite not having done all that much before buying his cardigan, he's been charged with winning the League. But who needs a manager or even a cardigan, when Vlad?s got such an eye for player talent, dealing with the media and fiscal prudence?

 

 

There was no need to embellish the truth, damning enough, with some of your fanciful stuff!

 

 

It damages your case!

[Boab Mugabe]

0/10, gash wum.

 

Romanov era > Pieman era. Easily.

[Dirty Deeds]

0/10, gash wum.

 

Romanov era > Pieman era. Easily.

I'm terms of money spent versus achievement both are pretty depressing.

[Sydney from Sydney]

Romanov took over during the 2004-2005 season, the following season we finished 2nd and won the Scottish Cup ? fantastic - since then we have finished ? 4th 8th 3rd 6th 3rd, our Scottish Cup record is abysmal only once getting beyond the 4th round.

 

The season he took over we finished 5th?? a season of huge turmoil but 5th and a SF spot in the cup. Prior to this we had the 98 cup final win and finished 3rd. After that season up until he took over our league standings were impressive ? with three 3rd place finishes and two 5th?s with two QF of the cup.

 

I understand the finances involved but pre Romanov managers were allowed to do their job, there was no fanciful idea?s about unknown European managers suddenly turning us into Barcelona, we were feared (most of the time) at home and were up against strong Old firm teams yet held our own in the league and did reasonable in the cups.

 

Now he wants his train set to run his way, history suggests his way isn?t any better, in fact perhaps less effective than how the club was previously run (on the park)

 

If he genuinely wants us to improve and challenge the old firm ? it?s time he looked back at how managers performed before him, gets the right man with a knowledge of Scottish football and a track record of building winning teams, backs them and stays out of their business.

 

Until then we remain, as we are, a top half team with no cup runs to look forward to ? and that will drive the fans away slowly but surely.

 

Sergio will be the latest in a long line of very forgettable managers who talked the talk but were worked from behind by Romanov.

The Hearts coaching job is a poisoned chalice. Not one of the coaches employed by Romanov has gone onto find a decent coaching job, Robbo included.

[bighusref]

If you are to compare the Romanov era to the Robinson era then you have to look at the off field issues that Robinson would have instigated. We would be homeless right now, if we were still a functioning football team. Romanov stopped that and as yet is still in credit despite some bonkers behaviour.

 

Having said that, the time to look back and judge is either at the end of his tenure or when he reaches a similar timescale in charge. This isn't the time.

[JamboX2]

The Mercer era lasted around 14 years, Robinson ran the club for about 11 years. Romanov is now into his 6th full season.

 

Results wise, we split the Uglies three times under Mercer but failed to land silverware.

 

Robinson & Romanov have both had their cup wins but have been up & down in the league.

 

Surely Romanov won't see out 10 years at the club?

 

The real measure of his success will be the position Romanov leaves us in.

 

If we have a manageable debt and a football stadium we should count ourselves fortunate.

 

He'll go eventually. Probably in 5 more seasons, maybe more depending on a buyer. But when he does the debts will resurface as a major headache and the belt tightening at the club will be huge I reckon.

 

I think his plan is to make us attractive to sell, ie new ground/stand, reasonable in the league. He'll get bored eventually but when is the question. It doesn't seem as if he meddles in the affairs of his other sides as much, but then again I can't say that for certain.

 

Just got to wait till someone on here wins the Euromillions rollover and then we can see a new age of terror begin.....

[kennyblack'sshot]

I do accept Romanov bought a club in massive debt, but, and it's a big but!! Despite selling our best assets over the last few seasons - Gordon, Berra and Wallace, our debt has increased to an even more massive ?35 million under Romanov. People shouldn't be fooled by his debt for equity scams either - these only reduce the debt level if they attract outside investors, in our case they have not attracted any new investment. All Romanov has done has increased the debt then spread the risk though his other trading companies, by issuing new shares. It's like switching your credit card to your overdraft, you still have the debt and you aren't paying any off.

 

So I would argue that we are now in worse position financially than we were before Romanov took over, As Robinson left Hearts with a ?20 million debt, while Romanov has almost doubled that.

 

Your argument would be wrong for one simple reason - under Chris Robinson we owed 22m to the Bank of Scotland not Chris Robinson. Do you think we would have survived the economic collapse of 2008 owing that money to a bank - especially one that went under?

 

Let's say we cleared the debt by selling Tynie. We would have moved to Murrayfield, playing in front of an average of 10,000 (if we were lucky) in a stadium built for nearly 70,000. Utter nightmare. We'd have lower crowds, lower wages and worse players. We'd very possibly get relegated. We would not have seen any of the quality players we've seen at Tynecastle the last 5 years (including home-grown ones for long - as they would have been sold after a decent half season). We may or may not have won the cup - probably not. We definitely would not have finished second and we would not have played in Europe as often, if at all.

 

Now we owe 30m to the man who owns Hearts. Yes, there is more debt on paper but what people need to realise is the amount of debt is never as important as how you pay it back. Very, very rich people use credit too even if they have heaps of cash sitting in a bank or investments - because it makes financial sense for them to do so. And obviously owing money to your owner is better than to a third party. Yes, if Romanov kicks the bucket then we are in trouble - but that applies to Aberdeen, D Utd, Rangers and quite a few clubs being kept afloat by their owners.

 

Do I wish Romanov would have more patience and run the club better? Yes. Would I rather we had sold Tynie and moved to Murrayfield (the only other option at the time)? No. I think with Romanov we ended up with the lesser of two evils. I look at the other clubs in the SPL and I honestly wouldn't swap places with any of the other larger SPL clubs. They've all got their problems:

 

Rangers - teetering on the brink, in denial

Celtic - under performing, obsessed with rangers and permanently offended at everything

Hibs - going backwards, only way out is to go into debt which their owner won't let them do - i.e. they are stuck

Aberdeen - going backwards, in financial trouble

D Utd - treading water, in financial trouble

 

The worse that can happen to us in the next 5 years is we go into administration, get relegated and start again. Worse teams than us with smaller fan bases have gone down and come back. Part of the problem from reading comments on threads like these is that the Romanov years - or the good parts - have drawn glory hunters to the club who don't see the point of supporting a club that doesn't win things or challenge. They don;t seem to realise that supporting Hearts usually means 1 decent season in 3 at best. These people would disappear if administration happened and we would be left with our hard core support of up to 10,000.

[Peebo]

When Romanov eventually leaves, we'll look back on his era as a rollercoaster with some great highs, some ridiculous lows, some enjoyable times and lots of indifferent times.

[The Treasurer]

Excellent, well thought out (and accurate) post by Kennyblack'sshot

[Gods a Jambo]

Seeing as people started talking about the pie man etc, I found this on the net, good article.

 

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4156/is_20000730/ai_n13952600/