Beleaguered Hibernian boss Jim Duffy knows he could be picking a team for the last time as he prepares his side for the big Edinburgh derby against Hearts.

His club slumped to bottom of the Premier League over Christmas and now they have to face their high-flying rivals.

Hearts are challenging for the championship and will go top if they win the Edinburgh crunch match.

Jim Duffy: manager under threat

Meanwhile, Hibernian have not won in 14 matches and Duffy, who was appointed 12 months ago, knows a defeat against Hearts could cost him his job.

Hibs boss Jim Duffy explains why Edinburgh derby is crucial to reviving his team's fortunes (0'20")

He said: "If Hibs lose again there will be calls for my head. But I don't think a year is long enough to re-organise a team.

"I have no excuses whatsoever. The team started the season well but failed to maintain that standard."

He added: "You cannot change things without the players and every one of them has to stand up and be counted.

"It is up to them to show they are prepared to fight and that they want to play for me as manager."

Hearts stormed into the championship race with emphatic victories over the struggling sides.

Jim Jefferies: title contender

Despite losing twice to both Rangers and Celtic, who play each other on Friday, they have only lost one other league match all season to keep them in the running.

Hearts manager Jim Jefferies said: "Everybody has said that you have to beat Celtic and Rangers to win the league and we have not beaten them yet this year.

Hearts manager Jim Jefferies says his team could go to top of league after the match (0'34")

"We have given six points away to both of them so we must have handled the other teams better than they have."

Back to top | BBC News Home | BBC Homepage	©