The 2003–04 season was the 123rd season of competitive football by Heart of Midlothian, and their 21st consecutive season in the top level of Scottish football, competing in the Scottish Premier League. Hearts also competed in the UEFA Cup, Scottish Cup, League Cup and the Festival Cup.
| 2003–04 season | |
|---|---|
| Manager | Craig Levein |
| Stadium | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Scottish Premier League | 3rd |
| Scottish Cup | Fourth round |
| League Cup | Quarter-finals |
| UEFA Cup | Second round |
| Top goalscorer | League: Mark de Vries (12) All: Mark de Vries (15) |
| Highest home attendance | 17,587 v Girondins de Bordeaux Uefa Cup 27 November 2003 |
| Lowest home attendance | 8,516 v Berwick Rangers Scottish Cup 10 January 2004 |
| Average home league attendance | 11,961 |
Fixtures
editPre-Season Friendlies
edit| 16 July 2003 Friendly | Queen's Park | 1–2 | Hearts | Hampden Park |
Graham  |
Paul Hartley 8' King 91' |
| 17 July 2003 Friendly | Hamilton | 4–2 | Hearts | New Douglas Park |
| Corcoran Convery Convery Dunn |
Hamill Boyack |
Attendance: 709 Referee: Colin Hardie |
| 19 July 2003 Friendly | Lisburn Distillery | 0–4 | Hearts | New Grosvenor Stadium |
| Kirk Wyness Weir Hartley (pen.) |
Referee: E Aicken |
| 22 July 2003 Friendly | Ballymena United | 2–1 | Hearts | Ballymena Showgrounds |
| Campbell 37' (63) |
De Vries 83' |
| 26 July 2003 Friendly | Linfield | 1–0 | Hearts | Windsor Park |
| Murphy 51' |
Referee: Robert Penney |
| 28 July 2003 Friendly | Inverness | 2–1 | Hearts | Caledonian Stadium, Inverness |
| Paul Ritchie 36' (57) |
Wyness 72' |
Referee: Mike Ritchie |
| 30 July 2003 Friendly | Hearts | 2–2 | Sunderland | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Stamp 26' De Vries 37' |
Thornton 74' |
Referee: Ian Fyfye |
| 7 September 2003 Friendly | East Fife | 1–2 | Hearts | Bayview Stadium |
| Kisnorbo 82' (og.) |
Kisnorbo 38' Wyness 85' |
Scottish Premier League
edit| 9 August 2003 SPL | Hearts | 2–0 | Aberdeen | Tynecastle Stadium |
| De Vries 16' Kirk 92' |
Attendance: 14,260 Referee: Willie Young |
| 17 August 2003 SPL | Hibs | 1–0 | Hearts | Easter Road |
| Garry O'Connor 92' |
Attendance: 14,803 Referee: Stuart Dougal |
| 23 August 2003 SPL | Hearts | 3–0 | Dundee United | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Stamp 20' Wilson 21' (og.) De Vries 35' |
Attendance: 11,395 Referee: Iain Brines |
| 31 August 2003 SPL | Hearts | 1–0 | Dunfermline Athletic | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Wyness 61' |
Attendance: 11,934 Referee: Alan Freeland |
| 13 September 2003 SPL | Kilmarnock | 0–2 | Hearts | Rugby Park |
| De Vries 14' (40) |
Attendance: 6,925 Referee: Hugh Dallas |
| 21 September 2003 SPL | Hearts | 0–4 | Rangers | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Arveladze 45', 73' Lovenkrands 51', 89' |
Attendance: 14,732 Referee: Stuart Dougal |
| 27 September 2003 SPL | Motherwell | 1–1 | Hearts | Fir Park |
| Adams 29' |
Hartley 45' |
Attendance: 5,888 Referee: Charlie Richmond |
| 4 October 2003 SPL | Hearts | 2–2 | Dundee | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Weir 77' Pressley 81' |
Novo 16' Rae 64' |
Attendance: 11,348 Referee: John Underhill |
| 18 October 2003 SPL | Celtic | 5–0 | Hearts | Celtic Park |
| Miller 9' (50) Stamp 12' (og.) Larsson 36' Varga 42' |
Attendance: 59,511 Referee: Kenny Clark |
| 25 October 2003 SPL | Partick Thistle | 1–4 | Hearts | Firhill Stadium |
| Waddell 63' |
Kirk 13' (30) De Vries 27' Simmons 74' |
Attendance: 4,814 Referee: Willie Young |
| 1 November 2003 SPL | Hearts | 3–1 | Livingston | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Kirk 74' (85) Pressley 92' (pen.) |
Lilley 51' |
Attendance: 11,233 Referee: Stuart Dougal |
| 23 November 2003 SPL | Hearts | 2–0 | Hibs | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Orman 9' (og.) Smith 67' (og.) |
Attendance: 16,632 Referee: Hugh Dallas |
| 30 November 2003 SPL | Dundee United | 2–1 | Hearts | Tannadice |
| Archibald 12' McInnes 44' |
Severin 46' |
Attendance: 6,343 Referee: Alan Freeland |
| 6 December 2003 SPL | Dunfermline | 2–1 | Hearts | East End Park |
| Young 21' Wilson 62' |
Maybury 40' |
Attendance: 6,199 Referee: Charlie Richmond |
| 13 December 2003 SPL | Hearts | 2–1 | Kilmarnock | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Kirk 64' Stamp 79' |
McSwegan 92' |
Attendance: 10,154 Referee: Iain Brines |
| 20 December 2003 SPL | Rangers | 2–1 | Hearts | Ibrox |
| Arveladze 22' Burke 52' |
Kirk 11' |
Attendance: 49,592 Referee: Hugh Dallas |
| 27 December 2003 SPL | Hearts | 0–0 | Motherwell | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Attendance: 10,046 Referee: John Rowbotham |
| 6 January 2004 SPL | Dundee | 1–2 | Hearts | Dens Park |
| McLean 80' |
De Vries 46' Maybury 83' |
Attendance: 6,387 Referee: Craig Thomson |
| 18 January 2004 SPL | Hearts | 0–1 | Celtic | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Petrov 27' |
Attendance: 13,753 Referee: Kenny Clark |
| 24 January 2004 SPL | Hearts | 2–0 | Partick | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Wyness 41' (78) |
Attendance: 10,264 Referee: Mike McCurry |
| 11 February 2004 SPL | Hearts | 1–0 | Aberdeen | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Pressley 81' (pen.) |
Attendance: 11,236 Referee: Stuart Dougal |
| 15 February 2004 SPL | Hibs | 1–1 | Hearts | Easter Road |
| Riordan 24' |
Pressley 47' (pen.) |
Attendance: 15,016 Referee: Mike McCurry |
| 21 February 2004 SPL | Hearts | 3–1 | Dundee United | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Hartley 16' Wilson 65' (og.) McKenna 72' |
McIntyre 52' |
Attendance: 10,265 Referee: Charlie Richmond |
| 24 February 2004 SPL | Livingston | 2–3 | Hearts | Almondvale Stadium |
| Makel 4' McMenamin 56' |
De Vries 25' Kirk 47' McKenna 84' |
Attendance: 4,450 Referee: Ian Fyfye |
| 28 February 2004 SPL | Dunfermline | 0–0 | Hearts | East End Park |
| Attendance: 8,421 Referee: Ian Fyfye |
| 7 March 2004 SPL | Kilmarnock | 1–1 | Hearts | Rugby Park |
| Invincible 87' |
Webster 60' |
Attendance: 5,297 Referee: Mike McCurry |
| 13 March 2004 SPL | Hearts | 1–1 | Rangers | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Wyness 75' |
Moore 60' (pen.) |
Attendance: 14,598 Referee: Kenny Clark |
| 27 March 2004 SPL | Hearts | 3–1 | Dundee | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Hartley 52' Pressley 59' (pen.) Hamill 67' |
Milne 8' |
Attendance: 10,491 Referee: Hugh Dallas |
| 3 April 2004 SPL | Celtic | 2–2 | Hearts | Celtic Park |
| Sutton 88' Agathe 91' |
McKenna 21' De Vries 77' |
Attendance: 59,348 Referee: Dougie McDonald |
| 7 April 2004 SPL | Motherwell | 1–1 | Hearts | Fir Park |
| Clarkson 61' |
Wyness 27' |
Attendance: 5,500 Referee: Charlie Richmond |
| 10 April 2004 SPL | Partick Thistle | 1–0 | Hearts | Firhill Stadium |
| Thomson 49' |
Attendance: 4,043 Referee: Alan Freeland |
| 17 April 2004 SPL | Hearts | 1–1 | Livingston | Tynecastle Stadium |
| McKenna 18' |
McMenamin 73' |
Attendance: 10,352 Referee: John Underhill |
| 25 April 2004 SPL | Hearts | 1–1 | Celtic | Tynecastle Stadium |
| De Vries 74' |
McGeady 17' |
Attendance: 12,112 Referee: Kenny Clark |
| 1 May 2004 SPL | Dundee United | 0–2 | Hearts | Tannadice |
| De Vries 4' Webster 72' |
Attendance: 6,620 Referee: Mark Ritchie |
| 8 May 2004 SPL | Hearts | 2–1 | Dunfermline | Tynecastle Stadium |
| De Vries 42' (81) |
Tod 11' |
Attendance: 10,846 Referee: Kevin Toner |
| 16 May 2004 SPL | Hearts | 3–2 | Motherwell | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Wyness 5' (68) McKenna 75' |
McDonald 37' Clarkson 45' |
Attendance: 11,619 Referee: Iain Brines |
Uefa Cup
edit| 24 September 2003 Uefa Cup round 1 First Leg | Hearts | 2–0 | Željezničar Sarajevo | Tynecastle Stadium |
| De Vries 28' Webster 58' |
Attendance: 15,830 Referee: Jack van Hulten |
| 15 October 2003 Uefa Cup round 1 Second Leg | Željezničar Sarajevo | 0–0 | Hearts | Olimpijski Stadion Kosevo |
| Attendance: 15,000 Referee: Anton Stredak |
| 6 November 2003 Uefa Cup round 2 First Leg | Girondins de Bordeaux | 0–1 | Hearts | Stade Chaban-Delmas |
| De Vries 78' |
Attendance: 15,536 Referee: Kristinn Jakobsson |
| 27 November 2003 Uefa Cup round 2 Second Leg | Hearts | 0–2 | Girondins de Bordeaux | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Riera 8' Feindouno 66' |
Attendance: 17,587 Referee: Grzegorz Gilewski |
Festival Cup
edit| 2 August 2003 Festival Cup | Hibs | 0–1 | Hearts | Easter Road |
| BBC SPORT | Webster 17' |
Attendance: 10,090 Referee: Tom Brown |
League Cup
edit| 29 October 2003 League Cup round 3 | Hearts | 2–1 | Falkirk | Tynecastle Stadium |
| De Vries 54' Kirk 86' |
Latapy 58' |
Attendance: 8,687 Referee: John Rowbotham |
| 3 December 2003 League Cup Round QF | Dundee | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Hearts | Dens Park |
| Linn 107' |
Attendance: 7,130 Referee: Willie Young |
Scottish Cup
edit| 10 January 2004 Scottish Cup R3 | Hearts | 2–0 | Berwick Rangers | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Cowan 28' (og.) Hamill 65' |
Attendance: 8,516 Referee: Willie Young |
| 7 February 2004 Scottish Cup R4 | Hearts | 0–3 | Celtic | Tynecastle Stadium |
| Petrov 3' (33) Larsson 95' |
Attendance: 15,372 Referee: Willie Young |
Final league table
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celtic (C) | 38 | 31 | 5 | 2 | 105 | 25 | +80 | 98 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Rangers | 38 | 25 | 6 | 7 | 76 | 33 | +43 | 81 | Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round |
| 3 | Heart of Midlothian | 38 | 19 | 11 | 8 | 56 | 40 | +16 | 68 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[b] |
| 4 | Dunfermline Athletic | 38 | 14 | 11 | 13 | 45 | 52 | −7 | 53 | |
| 5 | Dundee United | 38 | 13 | 10 | 15 | 47 | 60 | −13 | 49 |
Source: Scottish Professional Football League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions
Notes:
- ^ Teams played each other three times (33 matches), before the league split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six) for the last five matches.
- ^ As Celtic, the 2003–04 Scottish Cup winners, qualified for the UEFA Champions League via their league position, the place in the UEFA Cup was passed onto Dunfermline Athletic, the cup runners-up.