Easter Road legend is divided as grandsons signed up by Hibs..and Hearts

AS AN Easter Road legend, he must never have thought he would end up cheering on Hearts as well as his beloved Hibees.

But Bobby Kinloch has found himself with little choice after his grandsons ended up playing for different sides of the city's footballing divide.

Max Todd, 14, plays for the under-14s Hibs team while brother Sam, 15, is part of the Hearts under-17s squad. Bobby, 74, said he was just thrilled that they were both taking their chance in the beautiful game.

"Sam became a Hearts supporter when he joined the club. Before then he supported Hibs, probably because his grandad played for Hibs. But now that he's playing for Hearts, he's supporting Hearts.

"I'm just delighted that I'm around to watch them both play and it would be great if I was still around to see them kick their first professional football – and there's a good chance of that."

Despite now being a Hearts fan, Sam still accompanies his grandad to the occasional Hibs game. He laughed: "He does want Hibs to win, I wouldn't take him if he didn't. If Hibs are not playing Hearts then he'll support Hibs, but if Hibs are playing Hearts it's a different matter."

Sam, a pupil at Holy Rood High School, said he had been teased by friends – and his brother – for switching his football allegiance.

He said: "People say I was a Hibs fan and now I'm a Hearts fan, it's been like that throughout my whole career at Hearts. It is just friendly banter and I just get on with it."

Sam initially signed for the Hearts under-14s team from Edina Hibs, and has progressed his way through the age groups.

Max, a Hibs fan, first signed with Hibs' under-12s from Cavalry Park around three years ago.

The left-footed Duddingston brothers, who are both wingers, also cannot agree on which team it would be their ambition to play for, with Sam's dream team being Liverpool, while Max would love to play for rival club Manchester United. "I've always wanted to play for them, I've even got Man United wallpaper in my room, which I've had since I was six," laughs Max, who is a pupil at George Heriot's School.

Bobby played for Hibs from around 1958 to 1962 and is famously remembered for scoring the winning goal from a penalty when Hibs beat Barcelona in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup at Easter Road in February 1961.

And if there are ever any family arguments, Sam can remind his grandad that he was a Rangers supporter until he signed with the Easter Road outfit, having been brought up in Glasgow.

But would the Hibs legend prefer both his grandsons to be playing for his old club?

"The truth of the matter is, frankly I don't care," he said.

"I would just like to make sure that both of them get to where they want to go. They have both got the talent – they are a better talent than me. If I had their pace, I would have been a great player!"

• Click here to play our Hearts v Hibs predictor