The Tynecastle crowd has been put through a wide range of emotions this past year as uncertainty of the club’s future and disappointment in the team soon turned to hope and expectation of a better tomorrow. With a new owner in place and a number of young first team players who grew up over the course of a trying campaign, there’s real belief that Hearts will make an immediate return to the top flight. But before we look forward we must look back and analyse what’s just been witnessed and those who were responsible. Joel Sked writes.
Goalkeeper
Jamie MacDonald – At times this season, MacDonald must have felt like one of those helpless fellas who are sent out each day in the caged cart to collect the golf balls from the driving range. On his arrival those on the driving range immediately switch to their driver and start taking aim. Except for J-Mac he didn’t have a cage to protect him. Or a defence. He faced a barrage of shots throughout the season: 165 of the 226 shots faced were saved, including two penalties. He faced on average 6.11 shots per game, saving 4.46 a game (thanks to STV’s Thom Watt). Despite taking some heavy beatings he emerged as the club’s player and players’ player of the year.
This writer was critical of him last season but he thoroughly deserved those awards. He still has his weaknesses, namely dealing with cross balls (you can say the same about most goalkeepers, and not just in Scotland) and being comfortable with the ball at his feet. This season he has added the spectacular save to his repertoire as well as a presence in the team, making those around him feel at ease. It hasn’t always been that way. It took until the very last day of the season for an error leading to a goal to be made. But following his heroics we can let him off with that one.
Somewhat harshly not awarded a new contract, this season he’s proven himself to be a Premiership goalkeeper and should have no problem finding a club (Motherwell?).
DEFENCE
Jordan McGhee – One of the many players who was clearly not ready for first team football. While many have grown as the season has gone on, the 17-year-old was rightly taken out of the team. Due to the club’s small squad it was a necessary evil to put him in there first of all. There were high moments, scoring the winning goal against Aberdeen, as well as low moments, the 7-0 thrashing handed out by Celtic.
But one thing which stood out was his composure when all around him was descending into anarchy. He showed enough in his 19 appearances that he will be back. More impressively was that he was played out of position at right-back and that showed in some of the positions he found himself in. Under the guidance of Craig Levein, Robbie Neilson and hopefully an experienced centre back McGhee has a bright future.
Callum Paterson – Such was the dearth of attacking options that fans had to suffer Paterson as striker for most of the season. Even Claude Anelka would have been able to notice that this was a player completely out of his depth in that position. There were numerous times when Ryan Stevenson shot him a death stare before unleashing verbals about Paterson’s inability to hold up the ball, release the pressure on the side and bring others into play. He would often try something overly smart and cede possession. Then there was the falling over or moaning at the referee. The Hearts physio was often getting great interval training each weekend as he came on to tend to Paterson’s needs.
But there was no questioning his aerial ability, making up for his composure in front of goal, to help him net 11 league goals. Since he moved back to right-back, where he belongs, he was a revelation. Some of the powerful runs from deep – exhibit A the goal against Partick Thistle – were like witnessing a thoroughbred which was good at football. His move back to his natural position increased the physicality in defence, adding extra height, albeit he needs to work on his distribution. In time, due to his brilliance in the air, this writer believes he could be a centre back.
Kevin McHattie – McHattie has been a near ever-present. However, that is more to do with being the club’s only recognised left-back rather than due to the quality of his performances. As Gary Locke searched for the formation which best-suited the team McHattie was often exposed at left-back and was giving some real going-overs by opposition wingers. One game that stands in mind was against St Johnstone at Tynecastle. The opposition seemed to take it in turns to have a go at beating him. Chris Millar was made to look like Frank Ribery.
One of the key problems McHattie faced was his recovery pace. Any time he ventured forward everyone was wary about the space in behind him, widening the team defensively if a midfielder and centre back had to come over and cover. Another who grew over the season, adding some common sense and street smarts to his game which helped him nullify some of the leagues better wingers as the club recorded some good results. He should be fine in the Championship next season but I worry that, unlike some of his young cohorts, Hearts will be about as far as he goes.
Dylan McGowan – A familiar sight this past season has been the Australian chasing after a striker like Wily E. Coyote trying to catch the road runner. But McGowan is no scientific genius, just a normal coyote. His sluggishness on the turn has seen a number of strikers take advantage of a ball in behind, race away and finish. McGowan is better nearer his own goal where he can defend and certainly not in the right-back position where even he admits he struggles.
There was an excellent performance at Celtic Park in the defensive midfield role but he has recorded most minutes in the centre of defence and put in a number of sterling performances, especially as the season neared its end with one memorable display being at Easter Road. He has not been kept on and with one defender targeted to play alongside Wilson, McKay is a better option to develop going forward.
Danny Wilson – The club’s best defender. However, he has not been exempt of criticism. Due to his reputation coming through at Ibrox and his subsequent move to Liverpool, he has been put on a pedestal and was expected to lead the defence, plus the whole team having been given the captain’s armband. Like everyone, barring MacDonald, there were a few nightmare performances, for example a 2-1 defeat to Dundee United at Tynecastle. On more than one occasion he has explicitly tried to step up and play opponents offside, yet his three fellow defenders remained in position. Remarkably someone still criticised the Terrace for ignoring for the 12 best centre backs in the league.
Yet when he was in the defence it looked a whole lot more solid than when he was missing. One of my pet hates is the flowery clip ball to the striker. Wilson constantly did so towards Paterson. It was frustrating as he is a much better footballer than that and more than capable of dribbling out from the back. Still only 22, the signing of an experienced (and competent) centre back will see Wilson grow and represent Scotland again.
Brad McKay – A group of Hearts fans took to singing McKay’s name to the tune of the Imperial March. Staying on the Star Wars theme McKay has, at times, resembled how I’d imagine Chewbacca would play football. ‘Chewie sees ball. Chewie kicks ball. Chewie makes noise.’ He started the season well but then came a League Cup encounter with Queen of the South. A poor performance saw him barracked by both Jamie Hamill and Danny Wilson before being subbed by Gary Locke. It seemed to completely knacker his confidence.
In time however he seemed to recover from that evening and became a dependable back-up throughout the rest of the season. There are still moments which lead to heart palpitations as he’s still to discover when to attack a long ball and when to drop off and defend the second phase. Towards the end of the season he was somewhat bizarrely thrown on as an auxiliary striker.
MIDFIELD
Jason Holt – Unfortunately 2013/2014 will be put down as a slightly underwhelming season for Holt. The 21-year-old was seen as one of the most important players for this season. With Locke unable to make any signings, more responsibility was put on the shoulders of the young players who were ready to break through, the main one being Holt who was viewed as the most gifted footballer to come through the academy in some time.
The start of the season proved frustrating as he was moved around with Locke looking to stumble upon a system which worked. With the team expected to struggle it meant Holt was unable to get on the ball and influence the game as much as fans would have liked. There was a lot of nice touches and ball retention but there wasn’t the penetration or even goal fans were hoping for. A long injury lay-off then hampered progression. But on coming back into the centre of midfield as a starter against Hibs in the ‘relegation party derby’ he was excellent in a deeper position; keeping the ball, making himself available and even showcasing a tenacity which surprised many as he won the ball back time and time again. This season has shown that he’s unlikely to fulfil the early expectation of him as a number 10. Unlike Ryan Gauld he is not constantly threading passes in behind defences or troubling the score sheet. Instead, he’ll likely be a deep-lying midfielder who will be relied upon in possession and hopefully will add driving runs to his game.
Scott Robinson – The 22-year-old made more starts than he did in the previous five seasons combined. Yet, there is still little evidence of the prodigious talent which the fans heard about as ‘Pom’ became the club’s youngest ever player at a month and 14 days over 16. There were games where he was simply superb; dominating the midfield battle, industrious and a driving force. Then there were others when his passing was so poor that he could have learned a thing or two from Diana Ross in how to kick the ball. He didn’t help himself with comments that he felt he was a scapegoat for Gary Locke, plus criticisms of the way the team were playing. While he was spot on about the latter, his opinions lacked true conviction because he was playing poorly.
Unfortunately, due to his problems in ball retention, especially passing over 10 yards and his inability to trouble the opposition goalkeeper he is limited to putting his opponents under pressure with relentless running and safe passing making him replaceable.
Jamie Hamill – When news reached me that Hamill would be departing in the summer there wasn’t the expected adulation – that was left for Robbie Neilson taking over from Gary Locke. Instead, if I was in some terrible teen drama the soundtrack would have been U2’s With or Without You. Who is going to provide the funnies? Who am I going to cheer ironically?
From being a standard mediocre Scottish Premiership player, Hamill transformed into a dislikeable figure, first among the home support before the opposition support took offence to his tanned bald head, the rubbish tattoos, the goatee and the arrogance despite not being very good. Such is the fickleness of football supporters, Hearts fans responded with an attitude of ‘he may be a c**t but he is our c**t’. Then he won the ‘battle of the c***s’ in the ‘coming together’ with Derek Adams which endeared him further to the Hearts fans and many others around the country.
It was a long way from the nadir of his season: the club’s 4-0 embarrassing loss to Allan Johnston’s Kilmarnock (I repeat ALLAN JOHNSTON’S Kilmarnock). It was a culmination of his inept performances throughout the opening half of the campaign which the apologists said was Hamill trying to take on too much responsibility. The responsibility which obviously forced Hamill to constantly pass the ball out the park. The responsibility which ingrained an attitude of the player thinking he was better than he is. But as hope became lost, Hamill, like many others, emerged, putting in competent performances as he realised his limitations and played to his strengths. It is difficult to think of a better performance from the midfield than that of Jason Holt and Jamie Hamill against Hibs in March.
Through the storm we reach the shore, you give it all but I want more
ATTACKERS
Sam Nicholson – If you didn’t know already this Hearts team was young. There were SO many funny jokes about the player’s bed time and their parents. SO many funny jokes. Anyway, the biggest breakthrough of the season was 19-year-old Nicholson – a talent which has excited the Tynecastle crowd the most. In the last third of the season he has shown all the qualities that Hearts fans like in a player: work rate, pace, directness, bravery.
As the season neared its end there was an expectation when he was in possession, driving forward taking opposition full-backs on. Then doing it again. And again. All while having a smile on his face. There were electric performances brimming with confidence which suggest there will be a fair few full-backs in the Championship leaving the game early. Having mainly played on the left it allowed him to keep his opponent guessing where he was going to go, his nimble footwork allowing him to work in tight spaces. An exciting future lies ahead.
Billy King – King made 32 league appearances but only seven were starts, five of which came in April and May. Up until April there were fleeting showings of the raw talent which King possesses. A player capable with the ball at either foot – I still don’t know what his strongest foot is – but while there were moments of quality there were longer periods where he would not impact the game to the point where you were just waiting for him to be subbed.
But in the remaining games there were goals and excitement, none better than the ferocious strike against Partick Thistle. Unlike the wide men he was vying for a place in the team with, King showed the capacity to get into better goal scoring positions with the correct runs coupled with a deadly finish even if he sometimes looks awkward when hitting the ball.
Jamie Walker – Due to the form of the last two players while he was recovering from injury, Walker found himself on the bench towards the end of the season. The fact he found it difficult to get back into the team highlights just how well King and Nicholson were playing. But during the first half of the season Walker acted as a one-man attacking force. Locke’s team talk must have consisted of ‘that round thing, get it to Jamie. If it fails try it again.’ The fact he only scored three league goals suggests the fallacy in relying on the 20-year-old.
But that is not a slight on Walker. Even though he can look disinterested or fail to protect his full-back, for me he is the most exciting player at the club. When he gets the ball on the left there is a sense that something is about to happen as he glides inside, striding away from the opposition. His goal at Firhill in the opening weeks of the season epitomised everything that is good about him. He should be far too good for the Championship and should reach double figures.
David Smith – While his fellow wide men conjured up memorable moments during the season it is hard to pinpoint a game or even a moment where Smith terrorised his opponent. He is big, powerful and a strong runner who will work hard. But he lacks the same inventiveness as Nicholson, King and Walker. Numerous times he got into good positions down the right only to not lift his head which resulted in a poor cross. Even his goal against Hibs at New Year owed a great deal to luck.
For me his best performance was the 45 minutes he played up front against Inverness back in August. Using his physical qualities and better technical attributes than Calum Paterson he lead the line well, working across the back four and linking play. Exactly what you want from a lone striker. Bizarrely he was moved back to the wing at half-time.
Ryan Stevenson – When it was announced he would be leaving in the summer, it appeared to me that fans were over playing his importance and quality. But that is not to say he will not be a miss. He is as close to a talisman as the club have had in the last season to 18 months. His versatility has helped in times where there has been shortages in certain areas but he has been best played centrally in an attacking role. Usually a number 10, Stevenson isn’t the intricate type, his game is around his mobility and his power. In games where it is tight and he only sees the ball for seconds rather than minutes he struggles to influence proceedings – check out his nothing performance at Easter Road in the last derby.
But throughout the season, from the knockdown to Carrick in the March derby to the single handed obliteration of Kilmarnock, he has had moments of excellence. He seemed to enjoy playing behind Carrick more, his five goals while doing so testify to that.
Let’s just hope he can find a club soon before those car payments are due.
Dale Carrick – Let’s start by going back to last season. Dale “Speedy” Carrick finds himself in a promising position in the left-hand side of the box attacking the Gorgie End. Attempting to go across the goalkeeper with his left foot he somehow transpires to hit the hoarding directly in front of him. It wouldn’t be the last time he conjured up a moment of footballing incompetence that left you scratching your head, asking yourself why you gave up football. I admit, I was rash in writing him off as having no chance. But out of everyone in the team the transformation of Carrick has been most notable.
Fast forward to the March derby and a Ryan Stevenson knock down arrives at him in an awkward position but he readjusts his body position to knock the ball down in front of him and fire confidently into the net. Or how about a few weeks later when the side break at home to Ross County, Scott Robinson rolls the ball into the feet of Carrick rather than in front of him but again Carrick shows the ingenuity to push the ball in front of him, barely breaking stride, when most would get it caught underneath their feet. The finish was emphatic. It’s not just his instinctiveness and finishing which has improved but he has proved an able lone striker, occupying defenders, running in behind and holding up the ball before playing others in.
The others
After a nightmare couple of years with injuries Mark Ridgers was the regular number two and had a couple of outings where his presence between the sticks was notable but he appeared clumsy with the ball at his feet. There is a good goalkeeper in there but he needs games and will depart Tynecastle to look for game time. Another who will be departing is Calum Tapping. Neat and tidy, Tapping has never really showed more to his game than that. He can be overpowered but a technically good footballer who hasn’t proved that he is good enough for the Hearts midfield going forward (in time, not on the pitch). Fans did not get to see the best of Adam King before he moved to Swansea. Forty five poor minutes against Kilmarnock followed a more respectable showing in a 1-0 defeat at Celtic Park. Gary Oliver is one to keep an eye on; diminutive striker who is a good footballer with his back to goal or dropping between the lines. His finishing may not be there but is being offered a new deal and rightly so. Paul McCallum? Mince.
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