Defender has settled into role as vice-captain and would take the armband permanently if needed
SHOULD Craig Gordon decide to head for pastures new before the summer transfer window closes, Hearts would appear to have a ready-made replacement captain in Christophe Berra.
At 22, the defender has matured beyond all recognition during the last 12 months. Initial scepticism over his ability to amply replace Andy Webster has given way to justifiable respect and international recognition with the Scotland B squad following
a year of commanding displays.
But equally as important has been the evolution of Berra's leadership qualities, prompting his installation as Hearts' vice-captain. Both matches on last week's Austrian tour saw Berra deputise for Gordon as knee and thigh injuries afflicted the goalkeeper, although the side was barely compromised in terms of inspiration.
The departures of dressing-room mainstays like Webster, Steven Pressley and Paul Hartley have forced the more youthful players at Tynecastle to seize the initiative, and the tones of Gordon and Berra have become evermore dominant since.
"I'd say 90 per cent of the boys can speak a decent amount of English, but I think Shaggy looks to Craig and I to be the louder voices in the team," said the centre-back in reference to assistant coach Stephen Frail, pictured. "He gets on at us to be more responsible because we're Scottish. I think he wants us to set the example for other players.
"We've taken that on, and as a centre-back you must communicate well. I think that area of my game has been getting better."
For any pointers or guidance, he need only turn to Gordon. Pressley's unceremonious exit from Hearts last December propelled the captain's armband across the dressing room towards the Scotland goalkeeper, who has responded to the challenge of rallying his colleagues.
"Craig's admitted that when he first became captain he didn't know how much responsibility it involved," continued Berra. "You can see he puts in a lot of time for the club and organises a lot of things for the boys. It's a great honour for him and I know he's really proud to be captain of Hearts having supported them as a boy.
"I watch him doing some of the less obvious things like geeing the boys up in the dressing room before a game and making speeches before kick-off. He also organises tickets for the players, which might sound an incidental task but it can be quite hard with the number of players we have.
"We don't get a lot of tickets to share out so it's up to Craig to distribute them and he's very good at that."
Gordon's promotion to on-field leader also saw Berra step-up in status, but the self-effacing defender is keen to play down the significance of being second in command.
"Sometimes if we're doing an exercise in training Tom Ritchie will say, 'we'll start with vice-captain Christophe,' but I don't look at it that way. I just consider myself one of the boys because I still have a lot of improving to do as a player.
"I'm honoured to be the captain when Craig's injured or not playing. I know Craig is the first-choice Hearts captain and everyone respects him for that and looks up to him. I just step in from time to time and it's important to still play your normal game. I try to organise the defence and make sure we keep clean sheets.
"You're going to places like Parkhead and Ibrox trying to spur the players on but that's part of being a centre-back. Not everybody does it but it's a good thing to be able to organise those around you.
"I'm 22, I think people know I'm a level-headed guy who's quite sensible and dedicated. Hearts are a massive club and definitely the biggest in Edinburgh, so you have a lot of responsibility on your shoulders."
The onus on Berra could increase significantly if Gordon heads south to the English Premiership. Sunderland continue to pursue the Hearts No.1 with other clubs also monitoring the situation, but those at Tynecastle are understandably reluctant to part with their captain.
Berra said: "You don't want to lose your best players so we can only hope Craig is here as long as possible. He knows he's attracting attention from a lot of clubs and he will move on to a higher standard one day. He deserves that but at the moment I know he's dedicated to Hearts and wants to do his best for the club. With him fit, we can get off to a good start in the league next season."
Having completed the Austrian leg of their pre-season tour, Berra and his colleagues depart for Meschede in Germany tomorrow on another 11-day trip. Pounding the luscious training fields of Walchsee last week lifted fitness levels considerably, now Frail and his fellow coaches will be keen to fine-tune their players' performance.
Saturday night's victory over Austria Vienna certainly augmented squad morale following a friendly defeat by the Ukrainians of Tavriya and a bounce-match loss to FBK Kaunas.
"It's good to get away to a different country and play foreign teams instead of Scottish ones," explained Berra. "It's just a different type of football, so I'm looking forward to the Germany trip now. The two trips are 11 days each so we're expected to bond with each other during that time.
"We lost probably a cheap goal from the corner on Saturday but apart from that we were reasonably solid. They had a couple of quick forwards and it was a good test for us. Concentration is one of the most important things for a defender, you've got to concentrate for 90 minutes. We were training twice a day in Austria and it was very hard, but that's what pre-season is. We know it's going to be hard when we're away and you travel expecting to really work."
The full article contains 999 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
