Naismith on Hearts verdict, playing youth and Cammy Devlin

The Hearts head coach spoke about how the team is progressing, Cammy Devlin, Adam Forrester, blooding youngsters and much more.

Everything he had to say:

That's you played a full cycle of fixtures, what is your report card/assessment?

Inconsistent is probably the part that's screaming out the loudest to me. We've had good moments, at times we have had good results, we've had some good performances but not for the full 90 minutes but that is ultimately what has probably cost us a bit. The two games that are the biggest are probably Ibrox and the derby. Within those matches there were some really good performances, really good parts where you are in the lead, playing well and causing problems. Then for small things to happen, there are short periods of time where decision making has cost us. That's the part we need to get better because we would be looking a bit better if we did cut that bit of the game out.

What do you put that down to? Players getting used to the way you want them to play, new players coming in or a mixture of both?

I think it is a mixture. At times you have to take risks in your structure, where you are and what you want to do with the ball and it's learning that even though that is our main aim at certain moments in the game you have got to play the game and manage the game rather than go 'no, no, this is what we do'. I think there are elements within the game that can help you and we've not helped ourselves. That is earlier on in the season and I've consistently said it, we've found it tough with the European games and the domestic games. That only comes with experience and continually doing it. I don't think we were equipped well enough for that. So there has been a mixture of things that have contributed.

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Are Hearts seeing a Steven Naismith team or is there still a lot more to come?

There has got to be a lot more to come. I think in fits and starts you have seen it but with playing in Europe, with the change in personnel, with the injuries, it's not going to be plain sailing. It is never going to be plain sailing. Also, when you are asking the players to do some things that are different to what they have been before mistakes are going to be made. There are times they don't do it because they forget or they are in the moment of the game and their focus is gone but over time there are elements of it we have seen from players. Hopefully by the time we get to the end of the season we have hopefully had a successful season but also that part of it has moved on and developed. For a club like Hearts that's what has got to happen. The need for instant success 'we've got to do this' is good and great but is that good enough to last and I don't think it is so I think what we are doing is build everything so it gets to a point when everybody is available, everybody has been around the squad for a decent period of time then it is flowing much better than it has been in recent times.

In terms of asking the players to do different things to previously, what are the things you want them to do differently?

I think it is when we are risking the ball, when we are building up. You've got to trust that you can play some risky passes. It is easy to call them risky passes, higher risk than a safe pass that we've been culpable of quite a lot. You play these passes that actually don't develop the game, all it does is waste time in the game. We are bad for doing that. We need to be playing more penetrative passes but that is not 'we need to have a shot within five seconds' it is about progressing you up the pitch or moving a team who we come up quite a lot at Tynecastle that are structured in a way where they want to defend, you need to break that first before you start making chances. It's these small details. The players have to believe they can do it and also hope they get the backing from the fans that allow them to do that rather than feeling the heat which changes the mindset and makes those passes harder. When we attack we need to attack with numbers and pace. And sustain attacks. We are guilty of having a chance but when we have the time to keep the team defending we give it up a bit too easy at times. 

If you look at the next set of games, Motherwell, St Johnstone, Kilmarnock, are these games where the team needs to elevate itself a bit more and take what you are talking about and put it into practice?

This round of games, for sure, needs to be better and we need to have more consistency with that. That comes, first of all with performances but doing it for the full length of the match and then also results. Once you get a few of them everything becomes easier. We've had a few good results and then maybe a setback, a few good results then a setback, that's what you need to eradicate, get that out, and consistently know that minimum we are coming out with a draw here. We need to be the team coming off the pitch saying 'we're unlucky not to win or won' rather than say 'we held on for a draw'. That's where we need to get to which ultimately will get us the points we need to be challenging.

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There is a lot of talk about the fans and some of them being impatient. Do you feel a sense of patience from within the club as a whole?

For sure, yes. Every day we work we are very open with the players and we try to get as much feedback from them as possible. That part is really good, we are really happy with that. For the squad, for everyone internally, that is the hard part, to understand everyone is going to have their own opinion, everyone is going to expect things to be done in a certain way but when you have such a large fanbase it is going to be very, very rare if it all when you are going to get everybody to agree on what should happen, how we should play, how to get results, who should play. We need to believe within our group that we are one group that's pushing forward. At times you will play, at times you will be out the team and when you are out the team it is your job to push the guys in the team to get back in the team. Over the course of the season everyone will contribute for what will hopefully be a successful season.

What about conversations at boardroom level, how often do you have them because there was an article that suggested people further up the chain were getting a wee bit frustrated with the way things were going?

I’ve not heard that. I speak to the board every couple of months, we have a board meeting. Most weeks I’ll speak with somebody at board level, just to check in. And obviously Andrew [McKinlay] is about every week as well. It’s very calm and very comfortable. A lot of what we’ve discussed at the start, about what needs to change and what needs to get better has shown up. That’s part of the process. This need for instant success ain’t happening. If somebody can name me a team that from one week then boom, that’s it and they’ve been a successful team for the next 10 years, it very rarely happens, if at all. I’m comfortable with everything internally and what decisions we can make to make things better and get results and improve performances.

Fans will be frustrated but you will share those frustrations?

Definitely. For me, I’m someone who through my whole career has been desperate to have things perfect and be winning. But what I’ve also learned in my career is that very rarely happens and you need to have some setbacks and you need to understand the lessons that need to be learned and then move forward. There would be nothing better than coming into this job and you’re flying and competing at the top of the league and you’re in the group stages [in Europe] and near-enough qualifying from that. But I understand that’s not real football. I’ve had loads of moments in my career where I’ve had challenges and I’ve got to get better, and I’ve risen to those challenges most times.

Fans have been querying the decision to not play Cammy Devlin against Rangers in both games. What was the thinking behind leaving him out of those two games?

At Ibrox, I don’t know if he can complain about the players who were playing in that match. I think the team we picked was very good and it showed in the performance and showed that for 90 minutes we were winning the game. But every player in the squad is going to have points where they’re playing and where they’re not playing. If we win, people don’t mention things about starting selections or subs. If we lose, people will mention them. One week, I was getting praised for Alex Lowry coming on against Killie, the next week I’ll have been getting criticised for not picking somebody. It’s part and parcel, it’s going to happen. When you’ve got such a big backing, not all of the 20,000 Hearts fans would be picking the same team in every game. That is what it is. The job I’m in, I’m the guy who picks it and, over time, hopefully I pick the right team that gets us results.

Adam Forrester was on the bench against Rangers, can you tell us a wee bit about him?

Odel is going to be out for the foreseeable future and Adam is somebody who I’ve worked with closely at 18s and in the B team. He’s developed over the last few years really, really well. He’s still got a lot to learn, but I think what it shows is we’re willing to put them in. Fortunately for me in my previous role, I know most of the kids in the academy and I know these players and what they can do. There’s always risk playing a young player, but as a club we need to give them an opportunity. He was somebody who was around the squad on Sunday. First of all, it would have been a great occasion for him and great for him to experience that. He’s somebody who has done really well for the B team. He had an injury lay-off at a point, but he’s probably been one of the most consistent players for the B team this season. He’s trained with us quite a bit, so it’s not as if he’s not been with the first-team. He’s been around the first-team and it just so happened he was on the bench this week, which was a semi-final.

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How do you decide when to put them into the starting XI? I suppose it is a balancing act?

There are so many dynamics to it. Over my time at the club, if I can get as many youth players into the first-team, who are good enough, that will be my biggest achievement, I think. For a club like Hearts, that needs to be the future and the way forward. Aidan Denholm’s come in and been trusted to play in two European games that were massive for the club. In one, he came on as a sub and had an impact and then started the next one. But there’s also that period where they’re involved in games and there’s parts of the game that he will look at internally. He might have given the ball away on the opposite six-yard box and we might have had 10 tackles and lost them all. If we concede a goal, he will go away and think he was at fault for that. Any young player does that, they always think, ‘oh no, I could have done that better’, even though all this has happened between it. So, it’s working out when to just let them be involved in training, because they’re learning all the time on the training pitch. The quality of our first-team training sessions compared to the 18s and B team is massively different, so that’s a great learning environment. If we can get to a point where we’re comfortable in a lot of games then it’s much easier to bring a player on and they feel more comfortable. And it’s also down to their position. So, there are loads of dynamics to it, but we’ve tried as much as we can to get as many around the first-team and get them in squads when those opportunities arise. We’ve had four or five of the boys from the academy in and around the first-team, on the bench and trying to get them on the pitch when we can.

Did it surprise you to see Lawrence Shankland had not been included in the Scotland squad?

I'm looking at the fixtures that he's played in from the last camp to this camp and I think he's given himself a really good chance. His performance levels have drastically increased and he's been scoring goals. I think that is what the manager [Steve Clarke] will have been asking him to do. It won't go unnoticed even though he is not in this squad. I think the manager has an understanding of what Shanks can do. I think Shanks will be disappointed - inevitably - because there's a Euros coming up, but, all he can do is perform at Hearts and make sure he gives himself the best chance to be in the next squad.

READ MORE: The six key lessons from Hearts' start to the season

From a selfish point of view are you quite happy for him to get some rest?

The last one [break] was the bigger one because he went away in the summer, didn't get much of a break, wanted to come back pre-season and be involved and it's a tough toll to be constantly involved and constantly playing, so that rest was needed. This break. I think he'll be more disappointed and I think he'll work hard. He needed that break, he needed to recharge, I think it was important for him, but he still needs to work and make sure he's on top form for this run of games all the way through to the next camp. That determination is what will be driving him on.

What's the latest with Odel?

He's gone back down the road because he's got some health issues that we need to make sure are resolved before he gets back involved in the intensity of what we are doing. It's as simple as that. We'll see how that plays out in due course. For stuff to happen more recently, it changes the dynamics of it. That needs to be checked out and with him not being our player, we're not willing to take any risks.

Do you think there will be extra attention and pressure on Zander Clark in a game against Liam Kelly with both in the Scotland squad?

Every week there will be a narrative for every game with these guys, but just playing for Hearts, Zander has got a lot of pressure. He is somebody who I spoke about when he got his debut for Scotland, he's done, over his whole career, the apprenticeship you need to as a goalie. He had to go on loan at times, he then established himself as a No 1, got success, came to a bigger club and stayed in the international scene. He'll deal with it fine. He's somebody that's performed well for us this season and we've relied on him at moments. But, like them all, every goalie that's got a chance of being in that Euros squad will do all they can to be in it and for Zander, it's the exact same.

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