Cammy Devlin is gutted father figure John Souttar won’t be hanging around at Hearts much longer.
The all-action Aussie insists he will forever be indebted to the Rangers -bound defender for taking him under his wing at Tynecastle.
But even after star man Souttar has shot the crow, Devlin is certain Robbie Neilson can keep the Jambos flying high.
The dynamo from Down Under has won over the Hearts support with his tenacious displays in the engine room and again emptied the tank in Saturday’s Scottish Cup Final defeat to Rangers.
After helping secure third, European football and getting a taste of Hampden, the 23-year-old is desperate for more next season.
He’s just sorry it will be without the guiding presence of Souttar who, he insists, proved to Hearts fans just what the club means to him by battling back from injury to put in a towering performance in the final.
Devlin said: “From the day I got here John’s taken me under his wing, though half the time he’s screaming at me because I’m maybe not doing what he wants me to.
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“But I don’t mind that. We always chat behind the scenes and he’s only trying to make me a better player and show me his experiences.
“I couldn’t wish him anything more going to Rangers. I couldn’t be more grateful to share a pitch with him, he’s an unreal guy, an unreal player and he’s got a massive future.
“I wasn’t here when he was injured but I’ve heard all about it. He had a few years out. It’s not easy being out for two or three months, which I was.
“It’s a credit to him. But I’m not surprised because I see him in the gym working harder than anyone. He was one of the guys who hadn’t played for so long and he came back.
“It shows how much Hearts mean to him and how much the group is tight knit.
“For him to play like that is super special but I’m not surprised. He’s such a good player.
“John is going to be tough to replace. Like you’ve seen, we have had a lot of injuries in recent months with him and Halkett, two of our starting back three, but we have been doing well and winning games.
“Toby Sibbick, Taylor Moore and Alex Cochrane have been unreal and with the squad depth we have and the players we have to bring in then we should be okay.
“It’s going to be tough replacing a Scotland international. But I’m sure we will.”
Devlin is heading home to Sydney for the close season after his parents made the opposite journey to watch him in action at Hampden.
He never even dreamed of playing in a Scottish Cup Final when he travelled from the other side of the world for his first proper taste of the big time.
But as he returns Down Under for the summer the Aussie U23 star is already committed to going the extra mile on his return.
European football is giving him the buzz to get right back at it.
And he said: “For me, a young Aussie coming over from the other side of the world, making a Scottish Cup final is something I never thought about.
“To do that in front of my mum and dad was really special.
“It would have been extra-special to win but it was an unreal experience, our fans were outstanding, they sold out their half of the stadium which we’re so happy and grateful for.
“Unfortunately we just couldn’t do it for them.
“It’s a fine line isn’t it? Celtic and Rangers are unreal teams, everyone knows that.
“But we back ourselves, we went into the game with a game plan and I mean it when I say we believed we could win.
“It was beaming through that changing room. It would have been nice to get one over them especially in a final.
“The target for us as a team was to make the Scottish Cup final, win the final, get in the top three in the league and get into Europe.
“We’ve done two out of three. We’ll enjoy our summer, come back stronger. We’ll have some new players, some players will go unfortunately.
“But we’ve got big games to look forward to and that’s so exciting for us.
“I’m super proud of the team and I’m so lucky to be at this football club.
“I’m so proud to be a Hearts player. Hopefully we can just take that extra step next year.”
After that Devlin has his sights on following fellow Tynecastle Aussie Nathaniel Atkinson into the Socceroos squad.
Atkinson, who was called-up by Graham Arnold earlier this year, came in for heavy treatment in the final but managed to see out the 120 minutes.
And Devlin said: “He’ll have a teaspoon of cement and will toughen up! Nat will be fine. You can’t say no to getting a call up.
“The Socceroos squad has definitely on my mind for a while now.
“With hard work and how I apply myself I’m sure I will get my call up. Doing well for Hearts is the only way I’m going to make it.”
