Hughes: ‘Joker’ Kyle will have last laff on critics
TALKING JAGS
NHEARTS stalwart Aaron Hughes still fondly recalls how Kyle Lafferty thrived when the weight of a nation was on his shoulders on the road to Euro 2016.
So the Northern Ireland legend has no doubt the Jambos’ marquee summer arrival will handle the pressure of being their new attacking talisman.
Tynecastle No.2 Austin MacPhee has backed him to be the first man in maroon to hit 20 goals in a single season since John Robertson in 1992.
Rather than be cowed by the hype, Hughes is certain Lafferty will be buoyed by being the main man following three years of being a fringe player at Norwich and being farmed out on loan.
“Kyle thrives on that responsibility,” said Hughes. “He enjoys that challenge and that’s when you see the best of him.
“Drawing on that experience at international level, is a manager that has that faith in you, and the manager trusted me when I didn’t have a whole lot of experience last year,” Keown said.
“I really enjoyed playing under him and that is such a key factor when a player is making a decision on where he wants to play his football.
“I think people are probably aware that there has been quite a lot of interest in the manager, but he’s still at the club and I don’t see any reason why he won’t be there for the foreseeable future.
“That was definitely a big factor in me signing for the club.
“But it wasn’t a difficult decision. I really enjoyed my time at the club last season, I got on really well with all of the players and really enjoyed working with all of the staff.
“I loved working under the manager and the fans were great with me too. It was a very successful season last there have times when he has been that lone striker, someone who needs to do a lot of work for us and make the transition from defence to attack.
“You only have to look at his quality and, speaking from my experience with Northern Ireland, some of the goals he has scored and the contribution he makes to the cause – not just in terms of goals, but what he gives to the team – is immense.
“Of course Kyle is a year. When it came to making a decision at the end of the season and I went back to Reading, it was clear to me that I wasn’t going to get the opportunities that I felt I was ready for.
“So, I’m very excited to return to Firhill and build upon that very successful season that we had.”
Keown is disappointed that he won’t be teaming up again with Liam Lindsay, who left the club for Barnsley earlier in the summer.
But while he is sure that his former team-mate will be a good laugh, but he knows when to be the joker and when to play.
“Sometimes I think he gets unfair stick because everyone always sees him as the joker. When he is on the pitch, he is focused and wants to do well.”
Lafferty’s arrival is an undoubted coup for Hearts, given the former Rangers man could have earned double the salary by staying in England or seeking to pursue the tentative interest in his ser- success in the English Championship, he is equally certain that Thistle can cope with his departure from their defence.
And he says that the fact Lindsay earned such a move while playing for Thistle is a massive feather in the club’s cap, and may persuade other young players to join in the future. vices from big-spending Azeri outfit Qarabag.
“When I heard that we were interested, I was thinking ‘that would be a great one, I hope it comes through’,” said Hughes.
“I dropped him a couple of texts and, when it was ongoing, said to him ‘any chance of you just signing this deal?!’
“The club have worked hard to make this happen and Kyle is excited to be here. It is a place that he knows he can do well at.”