Rangers and Hearts battle it out for the Scottish FA Youth Cup tonight at St Mirren Park and the Ibrox side’s U20 manager Gordon Durie reckons the Edinburgh club are going into the game with a timely boost.
Durie reckons that the installation of Craig Levein as the new Director of Football at Tynecastle will give the likes of Callum Paterson, Jordan McGhee, Billy King, Dale Carrick and Sam Nicholson an extra incentive to win.
He said: “I am really disappointed for Gary Locke and Billy Brown, who had done a fantastic job at Hearts through difficult times. I was as shocked as anyone when I heard that ‘Lockey’ was no longer going to be involved.
“He is Hearts through and through and I wish him and Billy well in whatever they do next. Gary was a player when I was there at the end of my career and Billy came in after me as the manager of East Fife. I know the two of them and I know how hurt they will be feeling.
“Hearts have played some of what is their first-team squad in cup games already this season and that is their right. It will be their first opportunity to impress their new Director of Football. Players will go out looking to impress and they will be up for this final even more now with that extra incentive thrown in.
“We drew 1-1 and then beat Hearts 4-1 but I am not reading anything into those games, especially the second one which was against a young side."
Durie has resisted the temptation to add players from Ally McCoist’s pool: “We could have used Fraser Aird and possibly Lewis MacLeod, who is nearing fitness. They were keen to be involved but they are established first-team players and we felt that we had to be fair to the boys that got us to the final.
“Barrie MacKay is included as he has returned from his loan spell at Morton but that will be the only addition. Calum Gallagher, Andy Murdoch and Charlie Telfer have been involved occasionally in the first team over the past few months so hopefully they can show what they have learned.”
Rangers have not won this tournament since 2009 and they go into the final just a week after Celtic denied them the U20 crown with a 2-0 win that set up their fifth successive title, which was clinched against Dundee United last Friday.
Durie added: "It was disappointing how our league campaign finished but the boys have been terrific. We did not have the best of starts - if you had said in August that we would have finished second back we would have snapped your hand off for it.
“Training has been good this week and in football you have highs and lows. Last Tuesday was a low but the Youth Cup final is an opportunity to finish on a high.”
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