HEARTS boss Ian Cathro said sorry to their fans — and admitted his team are going BACKWARDS.

Cathro reckons the humiliating derby defeat proves they are miles off where they want to be.

2 Cathro has apologised to Hearts fans after derby defeat at Easter Road Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd

He labelled the display unacceptable and vowed to make sure they never surrender so tamely again.

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Cathro said: “We’ve made a very big mistake in overestimating where we are. We’ve lost the game because we didn’t have the level of fight, we didn’t turn up. We know where we want to go. We know this is an amazing football club with tremendous ambition.

“But now it’s going to be a bit further in the future. We’ve taken a couple of steps back tonight.

“We’ve caused a lot of people who love the club to hurt. I’m sorry for that.

“We need to put our hands up and accept that we’ve let the club down, let the fans down — and we’ve got a hell of a lot of making up to do. Of course it’s a concern. It’s a lesson. And we need to find that.

2 Walker can't hide his disappointment after missed chance Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd

"They have it. But we — and I — have made the mistake in overestimating what stage we’re at. We will do that by never, ever, ever, ever allowing even five minutes of the game where the opponent wins things easily . . . dropping balls, loose balls, long balls, second balls.

“We can never, ever go through even five minutes of a game the way it was in the first half there.

“We forgot to show the most basic parts of football. It can never happen again.”

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