Paul Hartley gave Harry Milne a 'glowing' Hearts reference as former boss tells Jambos exactly what they're getting
Paul Hartley has watched as Harry Milne has gone from working in a bar to raising it after sealing his move to Hearts.
The 28-year-old came through the ranks with Cove Rangers in the Highland League and helped them progress up to League One before he got his move to Partick Thistle in 2022. From there he has kicked on and now he will be fighting it out with James Penrice for the left-back slot at Hearts. Hartley said: “He's come through the hard way. He's had to graft and fight and work. He had a part-time job in a pub.
“Even when he was playing here, he was working a Friday night in a pub. We sort of stopped that just because of the preparation. He's come through a difficult route but a route that looks where he is now. We sort of paid the shift he was getting to just keep him out of that environment in a pub on a Friday night or whatever. He's on his feet all the time. It just shows you where he's come from.”
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The Cove Rangers boss admitted he gave his former left-back a glowing reference when the Jambos came on to him as they did their background on their potential January signing. “Hearts have done an unbelievable amount of background work on him,” Hartley confirmed. “They knew everything about him.
“They knew what he did and what he was like, his background and everything. I gave him a glowing reference to be quite honest with you. He never caused me any problems. He was terrific.”
Hartley wasn’t even sure if Milne wanted to go through the leagues but has watched him step up with relative ease. The former Hearts star said: “You could see he was a really good player there. Even when Harry was here, there was often chat about how much potential he had, even in his Highland League days.
“There’s an argument for the guys that drop out of full-time football. Harry was a clever boy. I never thought he wanted to go to that full-time level. I didn't think he actually pushed himself enough.
“It wasn't until the last 18 months that he saw that he could jump a couple of levels. He's certainly done that. He's never come through an academy, really. He's come through the tough way, the hard way.
“I think that makes it even more pleasing for myself to get a move to a club like Hearts. The size of the club he's going to. He's had to come from the Highland League, right through the divisions, every league. When he left here to go to Thistle, it was another step up again. It was a good jump for him.
“Then he's proved that he's a really good player. There's still loads of good football left in him at 28. Then he's gone to a massive club like Hearts. From that jump in the space of 5-6 years is quite remarkable. It shows you that he's earned it.”
Meanwhile, Cove haven’t given up hope of getting winger Adam Emslie back on-loan from Aberdeen. He was recalled on transfer deadline night after Duk was sold to Leganes. Hartley confirmed: “My plan is to try and wait, and if we could get him back, it would be great.
“Yeah, that's what I'm hoping for, but he may get the opportunity to get into the team. If he does well, then we might not have that chance to bring him back.”
