There will have been a few sore heads in Bruges on Friday morning but hopefully some of those Hearts fans sinking eight per cent proof Belgian bevvies woke up with a serious dose of the fear.
The ones who gave it tight to Lawrence Shankland over there should have been riddled with embarrassment and regret. It’s OK to be frustrated but dishing out abuse was miles offside. Neil Critchley is still trying to win folk over so had to be careful with his words. But he was spot on when he said Jambos wouldn’t even have been on these European jollies if it wasn’t for their frontman. Yes, things are not going great for Shankland right now. The football gods have the magnifying glass out and are torturing the guy like an ant in the sunshine.
Six months ago he was Scotland’s Player of the Year, a Tynecastle legend and had a nation urging Steve Clarke to make him our first-choice striker for the Euros. There was almost constant talk of his future and if Shanks had a quid for every time his name was mentioned with Rangers, he could have retired early and bought an island in the Bahamas.
At the moment he can’t buy a goal and the transfer chat wouldn’t fund a ferry to Dunoon. That doesn’t give punters the right to put the boot in though. Surely the sane ones realise this is what happens when the poor guy has been carrying the club on his back for so long. Think about it. No one at Hearts can score. Outside Shankland, the closest to top scorer last season was Own Goal.
If Shanks didn’t score, Hearts didn’t get points. But instead of others being grateful for last year’s win bonuses and stepping up this time, it’s been more of the same –only Shankland isn’t scoring and Hearts are not getting any points. The striker shouldn’t be getting stick though – he should be getting support.
It’s clear this situation is getting to him. It was like he was walking up to the gallows rather than the penalty spot against Cercle the other night. No one should be surprised folk are still waiting for his penalty to re-enter the stratosphere. It’s almost like the easier the chance, the harder it gets. He needs to clear his head – but the last thing he needs is grief from the stands.
Strikers and goal droughts are nothing new. The best in the world have gone through periods when they couldn’t bother a cow’s backside with a banjo. After 60 goals in two seasons, this is Shankland’s time to curse the fates. But how does he get out of the funk? If it was an easy answer you could bottle it and sell it for fortunes. It would help if Hearts recruited back-up in January to take at least some of the pressure off him.
He just needs to hope one bounces off his bahookie and finds the target to get him up and running again. In the meantime, Jambos need to get off his back – as he’s already carrying enough of a load.