Hearts - Beating On

I guess my kits went down nicely

Well done on 100 as well!

Notes
Sorry I haven't update this for a couple of days. I haven't really been in the writing mood, however I shall update as soon as I am, probably tomorrow...

It is cool because I think you have a great chance of getting a sotm nomination

Two more players have joined Hearts as they add their final touches towards this seasons squad, both of the players have signed on free-transfers and will join up with the squad when they travel back from Holland. First off, defender Yann Sango'o has joined on a free from Blackburn. Secondly, defensive midfielder Tobias Schroek has joined after being released by Burghausen.

Last season Hearts were impressive going forward, however Neil Alexander focused a lot of his intention on trying to solidify the defensive. With the signing of Yann Sango'o, Alexander has brought in a big centre-back who, in his opinion, can add quality to the back 4. Songo'o was released by Blackburn at the end of the season after appearing 11 times for the Championship side.

"Songo'o was under-rated at Blackburn in my opinion," opened Alexander at his unveiling. "Yann has quality that he can bring to the squad and I am happy he has agreed to come. I hope that our defensive this season can be something we can stand up and be proud of and with Yann joining it shows we are certainly moving in the right direction."

Along with Songo'o, another player has joined after being released by their club. Tobias Schroek is a 22 year-old hard working Defensive Midfielder and his enthusiasm that he has shown at his past clubs will surely add something to the dressing room. Schroek played 32 games for Burghausen and impressed a lot of pundits with his performances, however the German club couldn't afford to keep hold of him and thus Hearts have been able to snap him up on a free deal.

Neil Alexander spoke highly of Schroek as he was unveiled to the press. "Tobias is a great talent and a great person to be round. His enthusiasm and work rate will see him make a lot of friends here at Hearts. Despite this however, he will need to train hard and hopefully he can develop right."

hey i felt the need to post. I love what you have done here to update people on your game. im a hearts fan myself so its especially pleasing to see you do just as well in your game as we are doing currently in real life. well done!!

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DUSSELDORF 0-1 HEARTS
REACH

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HEARTS 4-1 FK AUSTRIA WIEN
ROBERTSON, REACH, SONGO'O, CARRICK

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BARNSLEY 0-3 HEARTS
MCGHEE, CARRICK, REACH

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FLEETWOOD 2-1 HEARTS
KEATINGS

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HEARTS 3-3 RIVER PLATE
KEATINGS (x2), SOW

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Hearts have had wrapped up another impressive pre-season under Alexander. Throughout their 5 friendlies they have managed to win 3 and battle to a draw against a top south american side. The team have scored an overall of 12 goals and it backs up Alexander's claims that their attack is good enough. Their first game was a decent win over 2.Bundesliga side Dusseldorf at the ESPRIT Arena. This 1-0 victory was met with positive reactions from their traveling support in Germany as they kicked off their pre-season campaign.

Back at Tynecastle for the first time since the famous game against Rangers, Hearts whopped top
Austrian side Austria Wien 4-1. The visitors actually managed to score in the first minute of the game, but that really didn't last long when 16 hot prospect Kevin Robertson hit home his first goal for the Jambos in the 7th minute. Reach then claimed his second goal in as many matches as he tapped in a brilliantly worked move, and after that the Austrian side fell apart with new signing Songo'o and Dale Carrick both getting on the score sheet.

A travel down to Yorkshire was up next and another 3 goal victory as Hearts cruised past Barnsley. The Reds must hate 14 as they conceded 2 goals in 60 seconds, the first from centre-back Jordan McGhee and the second from Dale Carrick. To finish of the yorkshiremen popped up
Adam Reach just before half-time to grab yet another goal of his pre-season campaign.

At this point the team's morale was flying high as the squad really started to blend together. However, they were brought crashing down to earth as they were shot down by League 1 side Fleetwood. Antoni Sarcevic put 2 past Jake Kean in the first half and James Keatings goal on the 55th minute couldn't spark a comeback as Hearts suffered their first defeat. This will be one that the team would have wanted to forget as soon as possible.

Back at Tynecastle, Hearts managed to put their defeat behind them as they battled to a goal-filled draw with top South American and Copa Libertadores side River Plate. James Keatings and Osman Sow started up-front together for the first time this game and boy did they deliver. Keatings grabbed a brace and Sow also grabbed himself a goal in a match which really drove optimism into the management staff and supporters.

Hearts will be looking to continue their pre-season form into their first league game which is up against Celtic at Tynecastle. Not the easiest of matches to start off with, however Alexander is confident after their League Cup Final victory last season. "Yes, we know it's going to be a tough game," spoke Alexander prior to the big game. "However, you have to remember we've beat them before, and I will want to beat them again. They will want revenge and they will know how we play, but they have a new manager in McClaren and we have strengthened. It will be a different match to the Final I can tell you that."

Players To Watch Out For

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Adam impressed so much last season that Hearts begged Middlesbrough to let them keep him on for another season, and Boro accepted. The young winger has felt a connection with the fans ever since his arrival and his performances have helped. With 3 goals being scored from the wing in pre-season and 1 in Holland, you can see why there is a lot of buzz around him at the moment.

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Dale never really grabbed his place in the squad last season due to the form of Keatings and Sow, however this season he is clearly out to clutch onto his place. As with Reach, Carrick also scored 4 goals in pre-season and looks to be really putting everything into his games, however he will need to play at his very top to grab a place if Keatings and Sow continue their form from last season.

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Kevin has been hyped up by a lot of the youth staff at the club and seems to have an incredibly bright future. The lad managed to grab a goal for the senior team in pre-season as well and may feature in 1 or 2 games this season. His finishing off the ball is outstanding and he really looks to have a superb Poacher into him. He just needs to focus on his game and he will soon break fully into the team.

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Yann has been superb at the back since his move. He has blocked out countless opposition attacks and really looks like he will be a rock in the Hearts defence this season. Alexander has often spoke about how much they need to stop leaking silly and sloppy goals and hopefully this no-nonsense centre-back will help out in that department. With McGhee and Songo'o, Hearts look to have an outstanding centre-back partnership. Danny who??

In you update you said you lost to Rotherham but in your little summary thing you said you lost to Fleetwood? Anyway, not a bad preseason, bodes well for the upcoming year

After a long summer of changes at Hearts, it was finally time to get their SPFL return season rolling. The day had plenty of the summer sunshine and the stands at Tynecastle were bathed in sunshine as the players ran out onto the freshly laid pitch. It was show time and the stage was set beautifully.

Hearts Starting XI (442): Keane - Paterson, Songo'o, McGhee, Kavanagh - Nicholson, Holt, Coke, Reach - Sow, Keatings
Celtic Starting XI (433): Fasan - Pecnik, O'Connell, Reynolds, Mulgrew - Veloso, Brown, Jones - Grealish, McGregor, Scepovic

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The game started off in the best possible way as Hearts pushed for an early opening. This came when Adam Reach had a fantastic 20 yard shot on goal, in which was tipped over the bar by Fasan. Sean Kavanagh whipped in the resulting corner low and hard into the box and it just needed the faintest of touches by someone to direct it into the net. This faintest touch came from on rushing Adam Reach, of whom pounced up on the ball and crashed it into the net to put the new boys 1-0 up.

Jermaine Jones fell awkwardly in the 20th minute and had to be replaced by Stefan Johansen, this ended up being a fantastic move by McClaren as on the 22nd minute the champions hit in an equalizer. Pecnik found the ball out on the wing and he hit a cross into a packed box. This was headed out by Songo'o, however it landed straight to Johansen and he smashed it at goal. Keane dived and managed to slightly touch the ball, but it was too little and the ball smashed into the back of the net.

Hearts went into half-time a lot happier than Celtic, as they didn't expect much out of the game in the first place. The lads had put in a fantastic performance in the first half and at that point they were looking good for a good draw and a well earned point. During half-time Alexander made his one and only change as he brought Dale Carrick on to replace Osman Sow. There was also a change for Celtic, Kris Commons came on for Callum McGregor.

Five minutes after they walked back out for the second half and Hearts were yet again in-front. An inspired ball by Coke found Adam Reach in acres of space down the wing. Reach took the ball down and as he advanced down the wing he whipped in an early cross towards Keatings. Leo Fasan then made an awful mistake, he came to try and grab the cross before it fell to Keatings but James managed to hold his ground and head the ball over behind a bewildered Fasan. The ball didn't go straight in, but it slowly rolled along the box and ended up having to be smashed home by Sam Nicholson.

It was then all wrapped up when Coke found James Keatings lingering on the edge of the ball. After a short pass Keatings curled the ball on his first touch and it flew around Fasan and into the top corner, it was a fantastic finish by Keatings and it ended the scoring in an incredible game for the team. Keatings proceeded to run towards the corner flag with his arms outstretched and the whole of the team dived on top of him in celebration.

At the full time whistle Alexander leaped up, off the bench and punched the air before running towards Adam Reach and high fiving his star man. As they walked off the fans were chanting Alexander's name, what a way to start the season. Before he went down the tunnel Alexander went over to shake McClaren's hand, and as they shook he caught his opposite manager's ice cold glare.

Not a bad ways to kick things off! CELTIC SUCKS!

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BERWICK 2-4 HEARTS (League Cup 1st Round)
SOW (x2), MCKAY, NICHOLSON

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PARTICK THISTLE 5-1 HEARTS (Championship)
NICHOLSON

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HEARTS 0-1 ST MIRREN (Championship)

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HEARTS 4-3 DUNFERMLINE (League Cup 2nd Round)
ROY (x2), MCKAY, SOW

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ABERDEEN 0-3 HEARTS (Championship)
SCHROEK, NICHOLSON, SOW

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Hearts' first month back in the SPFL has passed and it has already proven a lot tougher than the Championship. During the 4 league games this month the club have picked up 2 wins and 2 defeats. Also this month they progressed to the 3rd round of the League Cup after wins in two relatively easy draws. With this start fans will be hoping that their team can push on.

Their first game following on from the opening victory over raining champions Celtic, was a victory in the first round of the League Cup. This is a competition that Hearts currently hold and they will be hoping to retain it again this year. Berwick were the first team that stood in their way and Hearts managed to dispatch them, despite conceding 2 goals, easily enough. Osman Sow opened up his scoring record this season with a brace.

A return to league action saw a heavy defeat to Partick Thistle. An early goal in the 3rd minute saw the Jags go in front, however Sam Nicholson popped up almost straight away with an equalizer. Things seemed to get better for Hearts from then on, but in the 38th minute Partick grabbed another goal to go ahead and then the Jambos fell apart. The final score was 5-1 in a bitterly disappointing display at the back, and you can be sure that Alexander made sure his team knew how disappointing this was.

Another defeat, yet less embarrassing, followed when St Mirren visited Tynecastle. The game was end-to-end stuff, which is clearly not what Alexander wanted as he seemed visibly frustrated on the touchline throughout the game. Chances were missed either end of the pitch until Songo'o brought down Andy Halliday inside the box and a penalty was awarded to St Mirren, Yann was shown a yellow card. Kenny McLean dispatched their penalty and Hearts couldn't grab an equalizer.

Hearts quickly broke out of their 2 game losing streak before it became a problem, with a victory over Dunfermline in the second round of the League Cup. The victory was not as comfortable as Hearts would have preferred, however a win is a win and the club are still in the cup. It was a big game for 18 year-old Alistair Roy, he scored 2 goals and played a massive part in the game. Alistair played 5 games last season and fans are starting to get excited about his future.

The club followed this up with an impressive 3-0 victory over Aberdeen. Last season Hearts played Aberdeen in the League Cup Semi-Final, and claimed a win after a penalty shoot-out. This season Hearts proudly showed off their strengthened squad as Tobias Schroek grabbed his first goal for the club. Osman Sow grabbed another goal and Sam Nicholson has continued his run of form. If he can keep himself from picking up a long term injury this season, as he did last, then he will clearly be a massive part of the team coming in from the right.

League Table

Currently the club lay in 6th position, although the league table really doesn't mean anything 4 games in.

tut tut tut. It all matters

Fantastico!

Decent start to the league. Some good quality updates here mate keep it up

Quality updates, enjoyed reading this.