PETER HARING has experienced his fair share of highs and lows at Hearts. From reaching previous Scottish Cup finals and playing a key role in securing the Championship title last term to suffering long-term injuries and bearing the pain of relegation from the Premiership, the Austrian’s four years in the capital have been pretty eventful.

Those dark days feel so very long ago now as Robbie Neilson’s men gear up for landing the oldest trophy in world football for the first time in a decade when they take to the Hampden turf this afternoon to take on Europa League runners-up Rangers.

A win in Mount Florida this afternoon would cap a fine campaign for the Tynecastle outfit. After securing third place in the league at a canter, Hearts have a minimum of eight European fixtures to look forward to in the new season and after watching Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side play 120 energy-sapping minutes in the baking Seville heat on Wednesday evening, players and supporters alike will fancy their chances of bringing the cup with them back to Gorgie.

After a few painful years, Hearts supporters will feel like the last 12 months have seen the team return to its traditional standing within Scottish football. Haring agrees with that assessment. When he arrived in 2018, he had two main goals: one has already been achieved, and he is potentially just 90 minutes away from landing the other.

“When I came to Hearts there were always two massive targets,” the 28-year-old explained. “One was playing in Europe, and this season we have finally managed to do that. The other was that this is a club that wants to win trophies and is capable of winning trophies.

“We haven’t managed to do that yet but that has been one of the big, big targets when I signed here. It’s going to be a big, big day for all of us and I just really hope we can make it happen.”

This afternoon’s encounter at Hampden will not be Haring’s first rodeo. Already a veteran of two Scottish Cup finals, the defensive midfielder is acutely aware of what is at stake today.

The final in 2018 against Celtic was painful in more ways than one for Haring. Odsonne Edouard’s second-half goal secured a 2-1 win for Brendan Rodgers’ side but Haring would be forced off injured during the game and miss the entirety of the following campaign as he recovered. He was a substitute in extra-time in December 2020, when the delayed final from the previous season was contested, as Hearts narrowly missed out on silverware as Celtic triumphed on penalties.

That previous experience, painful as it was, will stand Haring in good stead this afternoon.

“I’ve spoken about it before, it was just an injury that happened,” Haring said of the 2018 final. “It was very unlucky. It’s done now, I am not thinking about it anymore.

“There’s no time anymore where I think how it was when I was injured or I shouldn’t have done this or that, it’s done. I am feeling really good, now, better than ever, so there’s no point wasting any energy thinking about that anymore.

“100 per cent [playing in past finals helps]. I think the experience of playing at Hampden, and the ones who haven't played in a cup final before saw what it was like in the semis against Hibs. It’s a wee bit different build-up to the game, the sense you have before it is a bit different, so it helps massively when you’ve experienced it before.

“Almost everyone in the changing room has done that, so it’s definitely going to be a help having been in those situations before.”

Haring’s contract expires at the end of the season and the central midfielder remains in negotiations with the club over extending his stay in the capital. The 28-year-old hasn’t enjoyed the most conventional route to the Scottish top flight but he feels at home in the Premiership – particularly, he adds, because of the passionate backing teams receive from the stands.

“I was surprised when I got the offer from Hearts,” he admitted. “The team I played for [Austrian side SV Ried] before Hearts was a really good team. The club got relegated the year before. Really, we should have got promoted the season I was there. I still don't quite get how we didn't manage to get promotion back then. But if we would have I wouldn't be here. I'm happy to be here.

“There aren't many countries, unless you're playing in one of the top five leagues, where it's like what it is in Scotland. It's quite unique. Usually you don't get that in smaller countries or lower leagues. That's what makes the Scottish Premiership really special. The number of fans you get the stadiums and the atmosphere, that's what makes it so good to be in Scotland.

“It didn't really surprise me, but it's definitely something I was looking forward to. But when you've not experienced it then you don't 100 per cent know what it's going to be like. And I'm still happy, I really am, to play in front of those crowds.”