The Hearts fallout continues after Hibs humbling - 'we're not exactly a brilliant team'
“Hearts, Hearts, glorious Hearts…” Even in the bad times, these words can form a touchstone for disillusioned fans of the Tynecastle club.
The sentiments at the root of Hector Nicol’s club song will always ring true. Hearts are glorious – history tells us that. But right now? Skipper Lawrence Shankland came up with an alternative lyric for the much-loved anthem. “We are not exactly a brilliant team,” he admitted following the Boxing Day defeat by Hibs.
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Hide AdHearts, Hearts, not-exactly-brilliant-Hearts. It has taken a lot of money for them to look this poor. A first loss at home against their rivals for five years had the added sting of compounding the Tynecastle side's problems near the bottom of the table. They can’t just seem to find a way to start moving away from the drop zone and it’s getting serious. Senior players are now lining up to challenge CEO Andrew McKinlay’s contention, voiced earlier this month following the club’s agm, that no one is thinking about the r-word in Gorgie.


“You need to be realistic,” stressed Shankland. “We're in a position where the league would tell you that we're not exactly a brilliant team.
“I think the season would tell you that. Right now we're not performing like a good team. We are where we are in the table because we deserve to be there and that's the truth.
“I think if anyone shies away from that, they're telling themselves a lie. We are where we are and now we're going to a huge game at Ross County next week that we need to go and win.”
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Hide AdThe boys in maroon are the talk of the toon all right. The debate centres around whether Hearts really are too good to go down. It’s nearly new year and Neil Critchley’s side, despite having shown some evidence of improvement in certain matches, remain in a relegation play-off position. They are two points off the bottom with that tricky trip to Dingwall to come on Sunday.
Just over a week ago, more optimistic Hearts fans were looking at the immediate schedule, which showed home games against Petrocub, St Johnstone and Hibs, and predicting three morale-boosting victories. Why not? They were all winnable matches. How much better things would seem with six points added to the then total of eleven with an extended run in Europe to relish after Christmas. One draw, one win and one defeat later, the pressure has only intensified. There is no Conference League knockout stage assignment to look forward to. Relegation, meanwhile, is no idle talk.
Shankland is alert to all this. Not so long ago one subject dominated in conversations with the soon to be out-of-contract striker: his future. Now it feels like a bit of an afterthought amid the current issues.
Credit to the skipper, who is in the firing line as much as anyone else, perhaps more so. He refuses to hide. Footage of him taking part in a sponsors’ post-match question-and-answers session in a function suite humming with discord has been circulating on social media following the Hibs defeat. First question? Hibs wanted it more, didn’t they? Scott Wilson, the redoubtable MC, demanded respect for the skipper as he struggled to answer amid the rowdy clamour. This can't be any fun for anyone.
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Thursday was set up to be a special day for Shankland, whose daughter Eva was one of the mascots. Shankland carried her off the pitch in his arms before kick-off. He planted a kiss on Eva's cheek before turning to take his position.
From the warmth of family to the merciless scrutiny of a fan base currently a misplaced pass away from erupting with anger. Shankland himself seemed permanently on the edge, at point booting the ball high into the Gorgie Stand after he had allowed the ball to run out from a throw-in. He’s as hard on himself as he is on others.
What’s the main issue, he was asked afterwards? Not enough quality in the final third came the answer. Talk about implicating yourself. Shankland is part of the problem, he knows that too. Two goals since September is not good enough. That ten-minute double against Dundee looks more and more like being an isolated purple patch rather than the signal the floodgates had opened again.
Another striker to take the load off him - providing he himself does not move elsewhere - seems a non-negotiable this transfer window. It’s clear Shankland is shouldering too much of the burden during games. Against Hibs, while struggling to find his own scoring touch, he was also expected to help inexperienced fellow forwards James Wilson and Musa Drammeh acclimatise to such a high-octane occasion. Wilson, remember, is just 17-years-old.
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Hide Ad“We're not putting enough pressure on the opposition goal for how much ball we have,” said Shankland. “We're not doing that, we're not producing that. That comes down to the individuals and levels of quality that we're putting together.”
Shankland understands the fans’ unhappiness. Although the reaction has been vicious at times, most notably when he missed a penalty against Cercle Brugge, he felt it did not cross a line on Thursday. “There's obviously frustration and I understand that,” he said. “At the end of the game they (the supporters) showed that frustration. That's fully acceptable on my part.”
The days are ticking down to the transfer window opening. Rather than his own future, bringing players in appears the more urgent consideration. “It can help, aye,” said Shankland, although it’s not about signing players for the sake of signing players. They must be able to make Hearts better.


“Obviously you need quality,” said Shankland. “You need to recruit quality players that can bring a level that's expected to perform at the football club.”
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Hide AdIt's not about being glorious at the current time. Hearts just need to be good enough to ensure there are two clubs - at least - sitting below them come the end of what is proving such a traumatic season.
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