SCOTLAND'S OTHER DERBY

It may lack the Old Firm's toxicity, but Edinburgh's head-to-head is no less hostile. FFT went to witness it first hand

- Alex Miller

Boxing Day in Edinburgh is a picture perfect scene. Most of the country might have ground to a halt, trying to decide between leftover turkey and a half-demolished tub of Celebrations for breakfast. Not Scotland's capital abuzz with tourists filling the usual hotspots as the sun splits the sky.

Lined up for selfies the length of the Royal Mile, leading to Edinburgh Castle, most are in blissful ignorance of the real attraction that dominates the hearts and minds of locals come lunchtime.

Unaware, at least, until they stumble on a sea of maroon or green and white as supporters of Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian trod the well-worn path to Tynecastle Park for the latest instalment of the Edinburgh Derby. Today's headto-head comes 149 years and a day since the first, when the Jam Tarts ran out 1-0 winners over the Hibees - giving birth to one of football's oldest rivalries.

Familiarity has bred a good deal of contempt, if not the same toxicity as Glasgow's Old Firm. That's despite the best efforts of the late Wallace Mercer, the ex-Hearts owner whose attempted 1990 merger - see also: hostile takeover - with Hibs failed. Mercer's name will be chanted in less than flattering terms today from the away end. FFT will leave the specifics to the imagination.

If one thing does unite the two tribes, it's a sense that they're both selling themselves short - especially on the back of investment from down south.

Brighton owner Tony Bloom hopes Jamestown Analytics can replicate the success at Hearts that they've enjoyed with Union Saint-Gilloise in Belgium, while Hibs have welcomed Black Knight - Bournemouth's ownership group - as minority investors.