Alex Cochrane has pleaded with fans to stop throwing objects at players ahead of this weekend’s Edinburgh derby in the Scottish Cup.
Hearts return to Easter Road for the second time this season after a 1-1 draw back in August saw Cochrane pelted with chips from the East Stand at Easter Road. Just three weeks ago, home keeper Zander Clark suffered a cut on his head after being hit with something thrown from the Hibs end of the ground during the Jambos’ 3-0 win at Tynecastle.
Cochrane accepts that tensions run high in these games with both sets of fans desperate to see their side come out on top and secure the bragging rights until the next time the capital duo do battle. But after the last two encounters, he’s hopeful that nothing is launched towards the 22 players simply doing their jobs after recent incidents have threatened to overshadow events on the pitch.
“You don’t want to see that,” he said. “It happened to Zander the other week and you don’t want to see that in the game
“Hopefully it gets cut out and nothing similar happens on Sunday. You know what it’s like in a derby, you are going to get stick and abuse. Hopefully we don’t see that again, though. It’s always nice to keep them quiet. They do like to give you some stick so hopefully at the weekend we can keep them quiet and get the victory.”
This will be Cochrane’s eighth Edinburgh derby appearance and he’s yet to end up on the losing side. The former Brighton defender has enjoyed an impressive season since making his switch from the Amex permanent after spending last season on loan at Hearts and has been linked with Southampton.
But his focus is on another positive result against the Jambos’ local rivals. He told the Edinburgh Evening News: “You have more Hibs fans there so you’ve got more people giving you stick and abuse. You need to just block that out and focus on the game.
“The saying is that you need to play the game and not the occasion. We know what we have to do and what to expect from them. I feel I gained a lot of experience last season and this season has helped me a lot. I think I’ve improved but there is still a long way to go. I’ve still got stuff to learn
“It’s a big one for the fans. We had a good result against Hibs a couple of weeks ago but they will probably be looking for revenge,” Cochrane pointed out.
"It's down to us to put on a performance. Hibs will be fired up and we know they will want revenge. We have to be right at it. I’ve played at Easter Road a few times now and it’s always a feisty affair, but it’s one I’m looking forward to.
“We are unbeaten in eight games and we’ve been on a good run since the World Cup break. We are in a good place, feeling confident, and we go again on Sunday in a massive game. Form tends to go out the window in these games so we can’t get too carried away, thinking we just go down there and win. We know it will be 100 miles an hour from start to finish and it will be tough.”
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