Rumour on Twitter is that Hearts are requesting tomorrows game be postponed as they have 18 players down with a bug. They've already called off todays Development League game at Dundee

22 minutes ago, RiG said:

The Daily Record has something that says SPFL (?) rules state that every team must field a 'recognised' keeper (whatever that is).

So how did we get off with playing Les Fridge for all that time?

Attendance for Tuesday the 12th is likely to be lower , the kids will be back to school . 

I actually don't have a problem with this.  To be fair to Hearts, they really have no particular reason for wanting to duck the game.  They are in 3rd place 12 points behind Aberdeen and 12 points ahead of Motherwell.  They are going to finish 3rd and they are out of the cup.  I appreciate that with the size of their squad they probably could field a side, but there is a likelihood of other players falling ill in the next 24 hours and a trip up and down the A9 in a coach would not be a good idea in the circumstances.  It is certainly against any medical advice they will be getting.  The nature of the problem makes this quite a different issue than shortages through injury - it is about preventing spread of the outbreak and not just about player availability.  With that in mind, there is also the point that if Hearts were to field infected players then the illness could be passed to our squad.

In any case, the game has been re-scheduled for a week tomorrow when it is likely that their squad will still not be fully fit (but no longer infectious).  What also benefits us is that we now don't have a match prior to the Utd game and can therefore prepare fully for that without risking further injuries or suspensions.  Saturday's game is a massive game and will be a huge step towards securing our survival if we win.

By the way, I think the problems started with Oshaniwa on Saturday.  He got sent off and went for an early barf.

Blessing in disguise the game is off tomorrow in my opinion. 

Get the confidence back in the squad with a win at Tannadump and then give Hearts a doing at the TCS.

I tend to agree with the above two comments. It's to our advantage this game Is off. We'll now know if a draw or win is needed against Hearts when they come here.
Incidentally, all teams are allowed to request a postponement if they are unable to field a team considered 'strong enough'. The rules are there - the SPFL haven't just made-this-up this afternoon to disadvantage Caley Thistle!
 

Hearts only have one fit keeper over the age of 16.

The rules state that they MUST name 2 recognised goalkeepers in the match squad, one of which must start the game.

Hearts can't meet that rule through no fault of their own and there's insufficient time for them to bring in an emergency loan.

All the rest of the guff about 16 players out etc is meaningless in terms of the game being called off.

It sucks....but what ya gonna do?

What is a recognised keeper?

not recently ... but I could swear we played entire seasons without a recognised keeper !!! just saying like 

7 minutes ago, RiG said:

What is a recognised keeper?

One we all know.

6 minutes ago, RiG said:

What is a recognised keeper?

I'm told goalkeepers are actually registered as such with the SFA.  This is apparently done to prevent the "emergency loan" rules being exploited.

6 minutes ago, tm4tj said:

One we all know.

That's what I was thinking

2 minutes ago, CaleyD said:

I'm told goalkeepers are actually registered as such with the SFA.  This is apparently done to prevent the "emergency loan" rules being exploited.

Surely Hearts must have more than 3 'recognised goalkeepers'? I think they should be relegated TBH.

9 minutes ago, tm4tj said:

One we all know.

To be honest it's been that long since I've seen Dean Brill I doubt I'd recognise him  

30 minutes ago, Fanoffooty said:

To be honest it's been that long since I've seen Dean Brill I doubt I'd recognise him  

He's the one with the limp.........

As opposed to Fon Williams who has no limp, but butter on his fingers.

3 hours ago, Fanoffooty said:

Attendance for Tuesday the 12th is likely to be lower , the kids will be back to school . 

Midweek rescheduling a midweek reschedule of an original wknd fixture is an opportunity lost. As per my earlier post, should have put it on Sat 16th as both teams are out of the cup and hopefully would have drawn a decent size crowd with a reasonable kick off time. Chance for common sense missed again. Disappointing but not surprising.

7 hours ago, Alex MacLeod said:

Game officially off

Edited April 4, 20169 yr by TopSix

SPFL Rule G16 sets out the goalkeeper situation. It's in line with the laws of the game. I wonder if Hearts will be able to field a team against Aberdeen on Friday night? 

Does anybody know what "contagious" means ? Our next game/s could have been postponed due to a strong potential that the virus carried into the stadium was passed on. From a medical and prevention perspective this was a no-brainer and there are no counter arguments that can be made. 

If this is a viral outbreak then there should be no way that the Aberdire game should go ahead. Symptoms take at least 72 hours to pass with treatment which is basically isolation and letting it take its course. No training and evidently fitness and general well being will deteriorate significantly. This could lead to a SPFL nightmare waiting to decide the split IF our game with the Jam Tarts leaves the split in question or will they go for an and/or scenario. 

13 hours ago, bdu98196 said:

Midweek rescheduling a midweek reschedule of an original wknd fixture is an opportunity lost. As per my earlier post, should have put it on Sat 16th as both teams are out of the cup and hopefully would have drawn a decent size crowd with a reasonable kick off time. Chance for common sense missed again. Disappointing but not surprising.

Common sense is to play it as soon as possible. Waiting till the following saturday would leave only a week to get fixtures, times and TV sorted.

1 hour ago, IMMORTAL HOWDEN ENDER said:

If this is a viral outbreak then there should be no way that the Aberdire game should go ahead. Symptoms take at least 72 hours to pass with treatment which is basically isolation and letting it take its course. No training and evidently fitness and general well being will deteriorate significantly. This could lead to a SPFL nightmare waiting to decide the split IF our game with the Jam Tarts leaves the split in question or will they go for an and/or scenario. 

Neilson said he would get them all back in on Thursday to prepare for the Aberdeen match. 

He is talking shitt 

STV News just said the Hearts V Aberdeen game will go ahead on Friday 

no entirely unexpected - the 'cause' bandied about was gastroenteritis and the symptoms usually clear up within a few days. Would rather any residual leakage happened on their own pitch ! 

2 hours ago, Fanoffooty said:

STV News just said the Hearts V Aberdeen game will go ahead on Friday 

And on the BBC news, Aberdeen are saying that Hearts told them yesterday (Tuesday) that they were sure all would be fine for Fridays game. It must be great to be able to see into the future.