When Lawrence Shankland bundled the ball home to rescue a point for Hearts against Ross County at Tynecastle in late September, the roar which erupted from the out-of-form striker’s lungs told its own story.
Having failed to find the net during the opening eight games of what had been a miserable start to the season — on both a personal and collective note — the relief was palpable.
Drought over. Normal service resumed. Confidence restored.
Or at least that’s what the Hearts captain — and the rest of us — thought. And with good reason too.
After all, there was no cause to suspect last season’s Premiership top scorer wouldn’t kick on and rediscover the form which caused him to be linked with a lucrative move away from Gorgie for much of the summer.
Hearts supporters were thrilled, and more than a little surprised, to see him still turning out in maroon when the transfer window eventually closed. Funny how things change.
In the space of just a few months, the Scotland internationalist has gone from hero to zero.
It’s hard to believe that the man who played such a significant role in delivering European group-stage football for his club is now facing calls from Hearts fans to be dropped from the starting line-up altogether.
Their frustration was made clear against Cercle Brugge on Thursday evening, with a fair few of them hurling rather unsavoury chants in his direction after watching him balloon a late penalty — which, had he scored, would have drawn them level — into orbit.
It wasn’t his only chance squandered on the night either. But whether it’s down to misfortune or a dose of self-doubt, things just aren’t falling for him at the moment.
Either way, one goal in 20 games and none in 960 minutes of football simply isn’t good enough. And it’s why boss Neil Critchley should be considering if it’s worth sticking his captain on the bench for a few weeks.
The problem is that for all Shankland’s struggles in front of goal, he is still their best option at the top end of the pitch, and by quite some distance.
And that causes a major headache in itself for Critchley. Given his side are currently sitting joint-bottom of the Premiership heading into this Sunday’s home encounter against Aberdeen, Critchley needs a win as much as his captain needs a goal.
The Englishman now faces a huge decision this weekend over whether to stick or twist with his misfiring frontman.
The Dons have conceded 12 times this month already. Normally, that’s the kind of defensive fragility which Shankland would fully expect to take advantage of.
That, coupled with Aberdeen’s recent wobble — of sorts — should present an opportunity for the Scotland front man to get the monkey of his back. But he can have few complaints if he isn’t given that chance.
Hibs hope to have turned the corner at long last
It’s taken a while, but there are finally signs of life at Hibernian.
Tuesday’s utterly bonkers 3-3 draw against Aberdeen had a bit of everything.
After picking through the pieces in the aftermath of what was a frantic affair under the lights at Easter Road, one thing was glaringly obvious: David Gray still clearly has the backing of his players.
The under-fire Hibs boss has been fighting off questions about his future for months now. Not that he would expect anything less. Overseeing just one Premiership victory all season tends to invite such scrutiny.
Gray will have been delighted with the character and desire shown by his side to salvage a point at the death. The key is to make sure Tuesday’s fightback wasn’t an outlier. They can’t fall back into old habits at Motherwell this afternoon.
Tricky ties await for Championship sides
The Scottish Cup returns this weekend, as the 20 clubs across the Championship and League One get set to make their bow in this year’s competition.
It will certainly be interesting to see how the likes of Airdrieonians fare. Rhys McCabe’s men have won just once all season in the second tier, and won’t be relishing a visit to East Region Midlands League side Dundee North End.
Raith Rovers also face a tricky test at Linlithgow Rose, while East Kilbride will aim to spring a surprise against Championship leaders Falkirk on Monday evening in front of the TV cameras.
