Smith can’t wait to start moving in right direction

“We had known who it was going to be for a wee while and I’m excited to see what he brings. “I watched Barnsley a few times when they won promotion last season

BY GORDON PARKS g.parks@dailyrecord.co.uk and they looked like a good side, playing with a high press.

“If he can instil that in us then maybe we can go out there, perform and get results.

“We definitely needed a clean break and some new ideas. We’re capable of going on a good run quite quickly if everyone buys into his philosophy and we get it going. Let’s hope so anyway.

“We’ll be working hard on the training ground with him to try to put all of his plans into place.”

Smith wouldn’t be drawn on whether he felt the sporting director role should now be offered to caretaker boss Austin MacPhee. But he admitted everyone at the club needed some reflection over their role in this season’s disastrous start.

He added: “That’s not for me to comment on. It’s probably down to Ann Budge and the new manager whether or not he stays at the club.

“Austin’s one of the good guys. He was the one who sold me on the club and brought me here so I haven’t got a bad word to say about him.

“Every single one of us needs to take a long, hard look at ourselves. We have young guys in the team and this is a learning curve for them but this is professional football, it’s a man’s game.

“It’s tough but if they find themselves in the starting XI they need to step up and perform.”

The loss at Fir Park was a familiar story for a Hearts side shorn of selfbelief. Smith said: “There aren’t many positives you can take from getting beat every week.

“We had a few little chances around the edge of the box but didn’t look like hurting them.

“They’ve been a good team this season, we’ve been up against it and they’ve come out on top.

“When you’re in our position, it can be hard for players to put their foot on the ball and pass it.

“We tried to do that a bit on Saturday and we did manage to get down the flanks and put some crosses in but we need to do that a lot more.”