"I know there will be stick from some quarters, I’m an Edinburgh boy, I’ve grown up within that derby environment.
"But Tony Mowbray is a manager who is clearly going places with Hibs and in the game at large. I wanted to stay in Edinburgh, and I’m delighted to have been offered this opportunity."
"I feel I gave Hearts everything and more they could have asked of me," he stated. "They were able to sign me for nothing, and while I can understand I again missed a fair chunk of the season through niggling injuries, I think I showed enough in the big games I played to merit more of an opportunity than I was given.
"However, that’s all behind me now – I’m just looking forward to working with a manager who believes in the game I want to play.
"Manchester United was never a monkey on my back – I played first-team football there, but started to miss out when they paid that enormous sum (a reported £24 million) for Juan Sebastian Veron. When a plc invests that amount in a player, he has to take to the field – although I don’t think too many at United would remember Seba the player particularly fondly.
"As for the rest, I really feel it’s all behind me now. Probably for the first time since Veron’s arrival, I feel I can enjoy my football. There’s been too much talk from Michael Stewart and not enough action over the last three years. But Manchester is now in the past, I just can’t wait to get started this week."
And on his time at Hearts:
"There were times I thought about giving it all up.
"It just seemed to be a case of ‘Michael Stewart, he never plays so we won’t play him this week either’. People said my attitude was wrong, and maybe my frustration did get the better of me. But that’s all gone now. I’ve cut the ties that bound me, and I’ll never be readier to start over."