Hearts manager Gary Locke today backed his young guns to come good after successive defeats in the SPFL. The Jambos head to the Highlands on Saturday to face a Ross County side who have themselves been struggling of late.
“It is a lot to ask of these young players to perform, week in week out, but that’s the demands I’ve put on them” admitted Locke. “We know it’s going to be a difficult season, but they’re playing for a big club and some have been here a number of years now. I certainly expect big things from them and at the moment, they’re showing that they’re good players.”
Having lost to league leaders Inverness Caledonian Thistle and to League Champions Celtic, Hearts will be looking to make inroads on the points deficit imposed on them at the start of the season.
“We’ve had a couple of bad results so it is important now that we try and get back on track and get a few wins.”
Despite Ross County’s poor home form – at a venue where they were so impressive last season – Locke expects a tough encounter in Dingwall. “It hasn’t been the start that Derek Adams has been looking for this season but they’re still formidable,” he said. “I’ve seen them two or three times and they’re still a very good side. It’s never easy going up to Dingwall and we’ll certainly have to be on our toes.”
Another huge Hearts support is expected to head north with many looking forward to making a weekend of it. While the Maroons’ record in Dingwall isn’t brilliant, the Tynecastle side know a win coupled with a favour from city rivals Hibernian who face St. Mirren at Easter Road, will cut the gap at the bottom of the league to just six points – with the Paisley Saints heading to Gorgie in a couple of weeks.
Hearts will be out to rank up the pressure that wee bit more.
Author of The Team for Me - 50 Years of Following Hearts. Runs Mind Generating Success, a successful therapy practice in Edinburgh. Contact me if you want rid of any unwanted habits. Twitter @Mike1874
