Frankie Kent chose his words carefully. The Heart of Midlothian centre-back was keen to stress just that. He was one of three players who got the closest to a visibly angry and frustrated visiting support in the Jan Breydel Stadium on Thursday night after the 2-0 loss to Cercle Brugge

He described the view of running out pre-match and seeing the packed away end, consisting of 3,124 Hearts fans, as “unreal”.

Kent, however, wanted to make a request following the change in mood at full-time of the Conference League defeat. He expressed the need for the players and fans to stick together. Only then will the team begin to start winning games, something they have not done enough of this campaign. A fact that contributed to the verbals that rained down from the away end. 

"Listen, I will be careful what I say," he said. "But one thing that we all appreciate is how much they love coming to our games and the support that they give us. We 100 per cent get that and understand that and we love it.

"We went into the town on Thursday and met a load of them, pictures and all this, and we know that they love it and everyone loves it when it's good. We're getting praise and this and the other, but we've got to suck it up and take the s**t that comes with it. They're entitled to their opinion, 100 per cent.

"All I would say and all I would ask is, for the changing room and for the club going forward, we've got to stick in this together. Be annoyed because we haven't won enough games this year and I appreciate that. Everyone appreciates that. Every player in that changing room understands that. We haven't won enough and we haven't done well enough.

"But in my opinion, if we stick in this together and they give us the support like they normally do, it doesn't turn, it doesn't go the other way. We get behind players who are not having the best of times at the minute, not getting the rub of the green, and players that have got us to this point where we are, then that will be a longer effect and a bigger effect.

"We take the responsibility for giving them something to cheer about and shout about but that's all I would ask."


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One of those players Kent alluded to is Lawrence Shankland. The Hearts captain was the target of 'get to f**k' chants from some within the away support.

He's not having the best of times, he's not getting the rub of the green and he did play a pivotal role in getting the team to where they are in terms of competing in Europe.

"As you can probably imagine, not in the best of ways," he said of the Hearts captain after the missed penalty in the Cercle Brugge defeat. "But again, I reiterate it, this team and this club wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him. And we know that. I hope the fans know that. He's going through a sticky spell. We're behind him.

"All I would ask is just if they get behind him because that geezer has put us where we are now. And even the year before, he put us into that position with the amount of goals he scored and how well he's done in play. So, no one's got anything against Shanks.

"I reiterate it, he's the main man. He's the geezer that got us to where we are. As a club and as a team and as players and as everyone, we need to get behind him and get behind the team to make sure it turns."

It does need to turn sooner rather than later.

Hearts now find themselves bottom of the Scottish Premiership. If they don't beat Aberdeen by three goals or more on Sunday then they will remain bottom. Yet, a win, any win, is the most important following four consecutive defeats.

Aware of the magnitude of the game, Kent spoke of the need to "suck it up and get on with it" after Thursday's loss. And, for all the talk around the issue of scoring goals, Hearts have kept just three clean sheets this season.

"It's everything," Kent said. "We're conceding s****y goals, crappy goals that either are lucky on their part or not good enough on our part.

"It's not coming off for us. I can't put a finger on it. It needs to change. The responsibility is on us to do that and we've got to do it. We've got to do it quickly.

"I've been in football long enough to know and understand that football can change very quickly. I know for a fact that it hasn't been good enough and it's not where we want to be. But it's on us to change that and I can't really say anything else in terms of that really."