Latest news with #LawrenceShankland
BBC News
4 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
'I learn so much from him'
Lawrence Shankland staying at Hearts is "one of the best things" for fellow striker James Wilson says he could have wished for. Wilson, 18, admits he was "buzzing" when "one of the best players in Scotland" ended a season of speculation by signing a new three-year deal with the Tynecastle club earlier this month."I learn so much from him day to day," Wilson said."I ask him so many questions. Getting to play with him, he's one of the best players in Scotland. So getting to play with him is one of the best things that I could have."Yes, I was buzzing when he decided to stay."Shankland marked his return with a pair of late penalties in last Saturday's Premier Sports Cup group stage opener against Dunfermline, while Wilson opened the frontman Claudio Braga, who made his debut at Tynecastle, followed that with his first goal in Tuesday night's win at Hamilton after teeing up Wilson for his second goal in as many games."He's a good figure in the group, he's enthusiastic, he really enjoys being here," Wilson said of his Portuguese team-mate. "I'm looking forward to playing with him more and he got the assist from me on Tuesday, so I was really happy for that."It's a good confidence booster for us. As a striker, you can play well, but if you don't score a goal, you're a bit disappointed."Whereas on the flip side, I didn't think I played very well on Tuesday, but I came away with a goal and I'm quite happy. That's just the life of a striker. You have to deal with that."
Edinburgh Reporter
14-07-2025
- Sport
- Edinburgh Reporter
Shankland pleased to be off the mark with a double
Lawrence Shankland hit the post in the build-up to James Wilson's opening goal after three minutes and then netted with two second-half penalties inside three minutes as Hearts beat Dunfermline Athletic 4-1 at Tynecastle in the Jambos first outing in the Premier Sports Cup, Group E. The second is against Hamilton Academical on Tuesday (kick-off 19.45) at Cumbernauld, and the skipper argued you cannot be too critical of players at this stage of the season. First and foremost, he told the media after Saturday's game, that it was good to get off to a winning start in the group. He added: 'It was a good day for us in that heat. It was the first game and it was competitive, but it is still pre-season season and the boys are still trying to find that match sharpness so these games can be over analysed. 'I believe we will get there and we had a good response on the bounce back (after Dunfermline levelled at 1-1). They (The Pars) had a good travelling support, and credit to them, and it had the feel of a cup tie and that helped.' Neil Lennon's men committed a few bodies forward during the second half and that is when Hearts were awarded two penalties (76 and 79 minutes) which swung the game in their favour but, sportingly, Shankland said: 'The scoreline was a wee bit harsh in how it reads, but it was good for us.' He acknowledged that the Premier Sports Cup, also known as the Scottish League Cup, allows players to get games and goals 'under their belt' and he added: 'When the penalties came about I thankfully put them away.' It was he said, instinct, which dictated where he was going to place the ball from the spot for the second award and he revealed: 'I took two steps towards the ball and thought: 'where am I going here'. I think when you are on a second penalty there is a bit of a mind game between you and the keeper. 'The guy knows me (Deniz Mehmet was a team-mate with Shankland at Dundee United) and he has obviously gambled. I even considered should I change and let somebody else take it (the second penalty), but the opportunity was too good to get a second (goal) and I was delighted to see it hit the back of the net.' Shankland reflected that it could have been his first penalties for the club after missing against Belgian outfit Cercle Brugge in the UEFA Europa Conference League in late November last year – Brugge won 2-0 – and he said: 'My brain reminded me of that when I put the ball down (for the first spot kick) so I was probably concentrating on keeping the ball down so much and I did not quite catch it right. It was in the corner and when they hit the net you are always happy.' Overall, Shankland said he was happy with his fitness and revealed that the newcomers, including Portugese-born forward Claudio Braga, were settling into the environment at Hearts. He added: 'It has been a bright start and, hopefully, they keep getting stronger.' For the record, Hamilton also got off to a winning start at the weekend, beating Stirling Albion 2-0 on the road at Forthbank Stadium with goals from Connor Smith and Kyle MacDonald after 52 and 59 minutes. Hearts are at Forthbank on Saturday (July 19, kick-off 17.15) SMILES BETTER: Lawrence Shankland pictured by David Mollison Like this: Like Related
Daily Record
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Record
Lawrence Shankland admits horror Hearts moment reared it's head as No9 resumes Jambos penalty duty
The Tynecastle skipper opened his accouit for the new season with two perfect spot kicks to sink the Pars in Premier Sports Cup Lawrence Shankland admits his spot kick shocker in Brugge flashed through his mind as he shaped up to hit the crucial penalty in Saturday's victory over Dunfermline. That awful Euro night in the Jan Breydel Stadium saw the Hearts striker balloon his effort from 12 yards high into the travelling support who turned on their skipper on a brutal evening in Belgium last November. Time's a healer though. So are new contracts. And more than anything, so are goals. All three came together as Shankland held his nerve against the Pars to bury his first penalty since that night in Belgium - and with it any lingering doubts over his ability from the spot. His two perfectly dispatched penalties in the final 15 minutes helped secure a 4-1 win to get the Derek McInnes era off to a strong start. By the end Shankland's song was ringing round Tynecastle to the tune of 'Glad All Over'. That pretty much summed up the feeling of the punters, the player and the manager over the end of his seemingly endless contract saga. And the striker, who turned down more lucrative offers from the Middle East and down south to commit to another three years in the capital, said it all confirmed he'd made the right decision to stay put. He said: 'Aye, definitely. I made my decision a couple of weeks ago now, and I said at the time I stand by it. It's the right thing to do. So as long as I know that, that's the main thing. 'Obviously this competition gives you that opportunity to try and get games and goals under your belt, so I knew I could do that on Saturday. I had a chance right at the start but I hit the goalie and there wasn't too much happening apart from that. 'When the penalties came about I was keen to hit them and thankfully I put them away. 'I think the last penalty I hit was in Brugge - and my brain kindly reminded me of that when I put the ball down! 'So I was probably concentrating on keeping the ball down so much for the first one that I didn't quite catch it right. But it was right in the corner. 'It's never been something I would say no to, hitting a penalty. It's obviously disappointing when you miss them, but the one in Brugge wasn't the first I've missed. 'It was just the whole thing around that night and the season, how it was going at that time. That blew it out of proportion. 'But I've no doubt my record overall is a good record from the penalty spot, and I'm always confident to step up.' McInnes played a game of patience over Shankland and ultimately came up trumps as the 70-goal striker committed for another three years. The skipper is confident the Tynecastle hierarchy have played their cards right too in appointing his former gaffer at Aberdeen after a season that saw Steven Naismith and Neil Critchley sacked and the club finish in the bottom six. Already he feels a positive vibe in the dressing room and says a line has been drawn under last season's flop. 'I do,' Shankland said. 'Obviously there's been a lot of change from the end of the season last year. 'It was disappointing it didn't go how we wanted it to go, but it's important you draw a line under that and you move on and I feel we've done that. 'We're in a good place, we've got a good pre-season behind us, and hopefully we can go and finish this group stage strong and then go into the league in a good place.' Shankland's double was sandwiched in between James Wilson's opener and Stephen Kingsley's injury time volley which put the icing on a hard-fought victory. McInnes gave debuts to two of his summer signings, Claudio Braga and Oisin McEntee. And former Aalesunds winger Braga caught the eye with a strong performance wide on the left. The skipper said: 'He's been good, he's looked sharp in training. You have to give these boys time, they're getting used to playing in this environment. But it's been a bright start for him and hopefully he'll just keep getting stronger. 'I've been there myself and I've walked into a foreign changing room and it can be daunting at times initially when you first go in, but we've got a really good group here, a really welcoming group. 'So I'm sure the boys will settle in no bother. I'm sure they're looking forward to it.'
Scotsman
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
Hearts exorcise a European ghost as Lawrence Shankland explains mind games
Premier Sports Cup win helped banish the memory of Belgium Sign up to our Hearts newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Placing the ball on a sun-bathed penalty spot inside Tynecastle Park on Saturday evening, Lawrence Shankland's mind instantly took him back to a freezing night in Bruges more than seven months earlier. The striker will never properly forget seeing his penalty-kick soar over the Cercle Brugge crossbar with Hearts 1-0 down in the UEFA Conference League. He certainly won't forget the brutal criticism emanating from the away end in the aftermath before Cercle went on to win 2-0. Shankland waited months to exorcise that particular European ghost. There has been a managerial change at Tynecastle and the player's well-publicised contract saga in between, but finally the moment arrived as season 2025/26 began in the Premier Sports Cup. The scoreline was 1-1 against Dunfermline when visiting goalkeeper Deniz Mehmet was judged to have fouled Hearts winger Alan Forrest inside the box. Shankland put the ball down, eyeballed his former Dundee United team-mate Mehmet and picked his spot. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad There was a brief chill down the spine when realising this was his first penalty since that fateful night in the Jan Breydel Stadium. However, he retained composure to slot the ball confidently into the bottom corner of the net. Just to confirm he was back as Hearts' chief penalty-taker, he did precisely the same thing minutes later with a second spot-kick. There was palpable relief after the 4-1 win. No-one should be in any doubt that Shankland would take the responsibility, though. 'No, no, not at all,' he said. 'I think the last penalty I hit was in Bruges, and my brain kindly reminded me of that when I put the ball down. So I was probably concentrating on keeping the ball down so much for the first one. I didn't quite catch it right, but it was right in the corner. When they hit the net you're always happy. It's good to start with a win in the group-stage first and foremost. I got a couple of goals and four goals for the team as well, so a good day out for us. The fitness is beneficial in that heat and a good result most importantly. 'This competition gives you that opportunity to try and get games and goals under your belt, so I knew I could do that on Saturday. I had a chance right at the start but I hit the goalie and there wasn't too much happening apart from that. There were a couple of moments where the last bit just let us down, but obviously when the penalties came about I was keen to hit them and thankfully I put them away. 'It's never been something I would say no to, hitting a penalty. It's obviously disappointing when you miss them, but it's not the first one I've missed. It was just the whole thing around that night and the season, how it was going at that time. That blew it out of proportion. I've got no doubts that my record overall is good from the penalty spot. I'm always confident to step up, so no issues.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Placing two penalties in the same spot just minutes apart is always risky, but Shankland trusted his own inclination as Mehmet dived to the opposite side. 'Instinct,' he explained. 'It just felt right at the time and, if I'm being honest, I took two steps towards the ball and I was kind of thinking: 'Where am I going here?' I think when you're on a second penalty it's a wee bit of a mind game between you and the keeper. 'I've obviously played with Mehmet at Dundee United as well, so he kind of knows me. He has obviously gambled on me opening up twice and I just managed to wrap my foot round it at the last minute, so it's just good to see it hit the net. I even considered should I change and let somebody else hit it because it was the first game, but the opportunity was too good to get a second goal. I'm just delighted to see it hit back in the net.' More Hearts transfer business after Premier Sports Cup group tie There is plenty for both teams to improve upon in the weeks ahead. Neil Lennon was, as usual, pantomime villain at Tynecastle and played to the crowd. The Dunfermline manager's celebrations involved turning to Hearts fans and jokingly rubbing his eyes before the interval when Josh Cooper equalised James Wilson's early Hearts opening goal. The scoreline remained 1-1 until Shankland converted that first penalty on 77 minutes. He repeated the feet two minutes later, and substitute Stephen Kingsley's sublime cushioned volley completed the scoring in stoppage-time. Hearts need more pace and threat out wide, plus extra creativity in central midfield, ahead of the Scottish Premiership season starting next month. Wingers Sabah Kerjota and Pierre Landry Kabore are in Edinburgh to finalise transfer moves, and their captures should help address some of those issues. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'It's really early stages in the season,' Shankland pointed out. 'It's the first game and I know it's competitive, but there's still a pre-season feel for boys and they're still trying to find that match sharpness and fitness. These games can obviously be over-analysed because they are competitive and they're good to have that competitive edge, but you can't be too critical of people at this stage of the season. They're still trying to find that fitness and sharpness as I said. I believe we'll get there, it was a good response to bounce back [from 1-1]. 'Dunfermline brought a big crowd with them and credit to them. It gave the game a bit of a feel of a cup tie as well, so that helped. Of course, there were a couple of moments where they felt a wee bit on top and the crowd was right behind them. I think, probably due to that, they committed a few bodies forward and that's where we managed to punish them and get the break through the penalties. That swung the game in our favour. The scoreline may be a wee bit harsh in terms of how it reads, but a win is most important and we can be happy with that.' Portuguese and Irish signings start for Hearts as new faces welcome in Edinburgh Portuguese forward Claudio Braga and Irish midfielder Oisin McEntee were the only two of Hearts' six summer signings to start Saturday's tie. Braga lined up on the left of a four-man midfield and McEntee was deployed at right-back. Braga was instructed to drift inside to link up with Shankland and Wilson. 'He's been good, he's looked sharp in training and stuff,' said Shankland. 'You have to give these boys time as well, they're getting used to playing in this environment, this football as well. We'll give them time to settle in, but it's been a bright start for him and hopefully he'll just keep getting stronger. 'It's obviously up to me [as captain] but it's up to all the boys to make these boys feel welcome. I've been there myself when I've walked into a foreign changing room and it can be daunting at times, initially when you first go in. We've got a really good group here, a really welcoming group and that's been the case for everybody that's come to the club in the time I've been here. I'm sure the boys will settle in no bother. The boys that have just come in now, they feel a part of it already. It's a good changing room, so I'm sure they're looking forward to it.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Shankland completed the 90 minutes despite missing nearly two weeks of pre-season due to protracted contract negotiations. 'You'd need to ask the manager but he asked me how it was throughout the half and I felt strong,' explained the forward. 'I've got a general fitness that I'm happy with and I believed I could play on, so I felt fine and I'm happy with how the game went. I made my decision [to sign another Hearts deal] a couple of weeks ago now, and I said at the time I stand by it. This is the right thing to do, so as long as I know that in my brain that's the main thing.' The feeling around Tynecastle is that this is a fresh start with the Derek McInnes era now underway. Whilst Saturday wasn't scintillating, it seldom is when a new-look team plays its first competitive match. Six new faces, with at least two more to come, need time adjust to different surroundings in another country. 'There has been a lot of change from the end of the season last year,' commented Shankland. 'It was disappointing it didn't go how we wanted it to go, but it's important you draw a line under that and move on. I feel we've done that. We're in a good place, we've got a good pre-season behind us, and hopefully we can go and finish this group stage strongly and then go into the league in a good place.' READ MORE: Hearts transfers move on
Scotsman
13-07-2025
- Sport
- Scotsman
The Hearts 226-day wait to exorcise a lingering demon
Shankland scores from the spot for first time since blazing over in Bruges Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Lawrence Shankland had faced a long wait - 226 days, to be precise - for the chance to exorcise some Hearts demons. Cast your mind back to November 28, 2024 on a late autumn evening in Belgium. Hearts were trailing Cercle Brugge 1-0 in the Conference League when they were awarded a penalty. Shankland stepped up and blazed it over Maxime Delanghe's crossbar into a baying mob of travelling fans behind the goal. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Shankland was told politely where to go by those supporters as Hearts went on to lose 2-0. It was a difficult period in the captain's Tynecastle career, out of form and seemingly set to leave when his contract expired eight months later. Lawrence Shankland netted two near-identical penalties as Hearts overcame Dunfermline 4-1. | SNS Group A lot has changed since then. Neil Critchley has left as head coach, replaced by Derek McInnes. The mood has improved at Tynecastle, helped by the arrival of new shareholder Tony Bloom and Jamestown Analytics. And Shankland remains. Hearts finished last season poorly in seventh place in the Premiership but optimism is growing already of a far better 2025/26 campaign. Since that fateful night in Bruges, Shankland has not hit a penalty since. Jorge Grant assumed duties - even he missed a big one at Aberdeen - but the midfielder left last month. A new era, an old marksman from 12 yards. Hearts were awarded not one but two penalties as they opened their Premier Sports Cup campaign with a 4-1 win over Dunfermline on Saturday and Shankland made no mistake with either of them to mark his new three-year deal. 'No, no, not at all,' said Shankland when asked if there was any doubt he would hit the first penalty, with the score tied at 1-1. 'I think the last penalty I hit was in Bruges, and my brain kindly reminded me of that when I put the ball down! So I was probably concentrating on keeping the ball down so much for the first one, I didn't quite catch it right, but it was right in the corner. When they hit the net you're always happy.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Facing a keeper he knew from before He had another opportunity to beat Dunfermline keeper Deniz Mehmet from the spot a couple of minutes later. He mimicked the first effort, low to his left. 'I just felt right at the time and if I'm being honest I took two steps towards the ball and I was kind of thinking where am I going here?' explained Shankland. 'But I think when you're on a second penalty it's a wee bit of a mind game between you and the keeper. 'I've obviously played with Mehmet at Dundee United as well, so he kind of knows me and he's obviously gambled on me opening up twice and I just managed to wrap my foot round it at the last minute, so it's just good to see it hit the net.' Plenty more are likely to come Shankland's way this season and he will get more chances to make up for Bruges - although it is worth remembering he also missed a penalty in an Edinburgh derby. It happens to all takers. Lawrence Shankland blazed this penalty over the crossbar against Cercle Brugge last season. | SNS Group 'It's never been something I would say no to, hitting a penalty,' added Shankland. 'It's obviously disappointing when you miss them, but it's not the first one I've missed. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'It was just the whole thing around that night [in Bruges] and the season, how it was going at that time. That blew it out of proportion, but I've no doubts, my record overall is a good record from the penalty spot, and I'm always confident to step up, so no issues.'
