Hearts explain Finlay Pollock's situation and what should be a priority for the teenage midfielder

The Riccarton academy graduate has made only one first-team appearance so far this season.

Teenage Hearts midfielder Finlay Pollock has been told to prioritise this summer’s pre-season campaign rather than force himself to play through a minor injury in the final five games. Discussions with coaching staff took place recently, with the player advised to ensure he is fully fit and recovered when he reports back to Riccarton next month.

Pollock, 19, has managed only one first-team appearance this season and that was six months ago. He came on as a substitute in Hearts’ final Europa Conference League group match against Istanbul Basaksehir in Turkey, helping create Nathaniel Atkinson’s late consolation goal in a 3-1 defeat.

A niggling injury has hindered his progress of late, although he is training and played for Hearts B in their final Lowland League match of the campaign against Bo’ness United last month. Steven Naismith, the club’s interim manager, wants Pollock to focus on preparing himself for pre-season now.

“Finlay has got an issue which is being managed. It's a difficult one because he is desperate to push on,” Naismith told the Evening News. “He understands how I work because I've worked with him a lot this season [with the B team]. He feels he could come in and make a difference but, as short-term as all this [managerial situation] is at the moment, he really needs to consider where he will be come the summer.

“He can't just keep pushing on and then be broken by the end of the season. Then he can't do pre-season because it's important he is bang-on for that. He has trained with the first team every day, so have Macaulay Tait and Adam Forrester.”