I'll think more carefully in interviews '“ Hearts boss Ian Cathro

Hearts head coach Ian Cathro. Picture: Ian Georgeson

The Hearts head coach is finding life tough with just one victory in his first six games since succeeding Robbie  Neilson in early December.

Cathro, 30, has been afforded little in the way of a settling-in period and faces a tricky set of fixtures complicated by tonight’s Scottish Cup fourth-round replay with Raith.

Hearts travel to face Celtic on Sunday and then host Rangers next midweek. If the Tynecastle side avoid mishap tonight they will face Edinburgh rivals Hibernian at Tynecastle in the fifth round of the cup.

Cathro’s critics were given fuel by his admission he didn’t realise the replay with Raith would be so soon after Sunday’s tie. He also came under fire for his curt answer after a BBC Scotland reporter asked if he was disappointed by the draw – due to a late equaliser b y Declan McManus.

“Why should I be?” Cathro replied. But he was more at ease yesterday, assuring Hearts fans he is alert to the problem of trying to close out games after promising starts.

“It’s not a concern,” he said. “There’s nothing that we don’t have the answers to.”

On Sunday’s failure to hold on to a first-half lead, he added: “Obviously we did not want a replay. At that point, you feel and hear the fans’ frustration. I feel the same as the fans and the players x 1000. I maybe hide that sometimes and, in the last few days, I have maybe shown I don’t hide it other times, but that’s the truth.”

With specific reference to the BBC Scotland interview, he said he would probably “cringe” if he watched it.

“Everything rushes through your mind about what you can improve, you are thinking about other things,” he added.

“I probably need to listen to you guys’ questions more carefully rather than think about the things I am going to  do when it [the interview] is finished.”

Cathro accepted he was not in an “overly informed position” when he complained about the scheduling of the replay. It later transpired Hearts had agreed to the date more than a week earlier.

Cathro described blanking out the fact Hibs await tonight’s as “really easy”. He added: “I’m aware of the draw. I’m aware of the date of the game! But other than that, it’s just about tomorrow night.”