Ann Budge hails Hearts turnaround under Steven Naismith as manager contract and Millwall link addressed

Hearts chairwoman Anne Budge, goalkeeper Craig Gordon and the National Lottery Heritage Fund's Andrew Milne announce the launch of the Maroon Mile project. (Photo by Mark Scates / SNS Group)

Tynecastle chairperson planning talks with Naismith over his future

Hearts chairperson Ann Budge has stressed she hopes Steven Naismith sees his long-term future at Tynecastle while praising the manager for sparking a sudden uplift in fortunes at the club.

It's only a matter of weeks since shareholders were voicing their dissatisfaction with the management team at a stormy agm held just a few days after a 2-1 defeat to Aberdeen that left Hearts in sixth place.

Since then the team have tasted just one defeat in 15 matches. This run has included two wins over Celtic, the latest of which came on Sunday at Tynecastle as Hearts further cemented their third-place position in the Premiership.

Now, instead of facing calls to sack Naismith, Budge and chief executive Andrew McKinlay are being urged to extend the manager’s contract amid reported interest from Millwall. Naismith’s current deal is due to expire in 2025 with the option of a further year.

Although she admitted “certain things” were not working towards the end of last year, Budge stressed she was always confident Naismith would turn things around. Speaking in the same room where she faced many angry shareholders as recently as mid-December, Budge could be forgiven for displaying some satisfaction as she reflected on the change in mood at Tynecastle.

“It's a funny old game,” she said. “I really do think you've got to give managers a chance. Yes, certain things weren't working, but it was always clear in his head what we had to do differently. He would analyse why something had gone wrong. He gets frustrated, you've seen that at least as often as I have, but he was never giving up. He was saying: 'We know what we need to do, we need to keep doing it and it will come good.' I, and the rest of the board, have every confidence in him.”

Asked about a desire to secure Naismith’s services for longer in light of the Millwall speculation, Budge, who has just returned from holiday, said he she would “see him before the end of the week”.

She continued: “Things are going well. Steven has presented his view on what Hearts must do to continuously improve to get to the next level. The board have backed him all the way and will continue to do so.

"Will somebody come in from left field – whether it's Millwall or anybody else – and make him an offer he feels he can't refuse? I hope not, but I can't do anything about that. I can only give him all the support he needs and keep listening to him.”

On the appetite to extend his contract, she added that it was up to Naismith as much as the club: “I would probably say yes to that but, again, Steven has been in this game a long time and I don't know if he would be prepared to make that commitment or not.

“I haven't asked him. It is not a short, sharp exercise, it's a long-term project. If he feels that together we can make Hearts even more successful, I think he will want to stay.”

Budge was talking at an event to announce a Maroon Mile project, which is helping mark Hearts' 150th anniversary.

The Royal Mile was referenced by Budge as an inspiration for what she views as a Hearts equivalent. Helped by over £200,000 of National Lottery funding, the club have revealed plans to further mark their territory in the Gorgie and Dalry areas of Edinburgh. Such items as signage and street furniture will be installed to highlight the role the club has played in the lives of multiple generations within the community.

The trail will begin at the Hearts war memorial at Haymarket which is dedicated to those players at the club who fell in both wars, including those who enlisted for McCrae’s Battalion in 1914.

The memorial was removed due to tram works over a decade ago and although since reinstated, changes to the road infrastructure has meant that, according to a Hearts statement yesterday, “its dignity has been eroded”.

The statement continued: “A central part of this (Maroon Mile) project will be to begin to restore that dignity”.

Budge added: “That’s been an unfortunate thing over the last few years but hopefully when that is all freshened up and enhanced it will be something to be proud of again, instead of something looking a bit …run down.”

The Maroon Mile project which be delivered over an 18-month period and will include an audio walking tour that finishes at the club's museum at Tynecastle.