Hearts player sets new Tynecastle contract target as transfer steps taken to clinch ultimate Jambos objective
The Hearts player is spending the season out on loan from Tynecastle.
He’s got a year left on his Hearts contract - and academy product Callum Sandilands hopes time at Greenock Morton pushes him towards a Tynecastle extension.
The midfielder has joined the Scottish Championship club on a season-long loan and debuted in last Saturday’s Premier Sports Cup defeat to Linlithgow Rose. He arrives at Cappielow off the back of 18 months with League One side Montrose, winning Loan Player of the Year, Fans’ Player of the Year and Players’ Player of the Year last term. He also split the top goalscorer award with Ewan Loudon as Sandilands steps into a first team changing room on a full-time basis.
Last season was spent going back and forth between training with Hearts at the Oriam and third tier action in Montrose but communication will be largely through the phone this time around. Turning 21 in September, the attack-minded midfielder knows he is exiting the youngster phase, and this term will be key if he’s to earn a chance at Hearts or elsewhere should his Tynecastle objective not come to pass.
What club has Callum Sandilands joined this season?
“Minutes and games are massively important for me this season to hopefully return to Hearts at the end of the season,” Sandilands told the Evening News. “Ultimately, I want to become a better player, and show myself in the Championship. Hopefully, alongside that, my numbers can come and help Morton. I know my age. I know I’m getting towards branching out of the young boys age. I want to hopefully go and play for Hearts which is my goal. I have to be realistic. Hopefully there's other options in case that doesn't happen.”
Saturday’s cup defeat against lower league opposition proved disappointing but overall Sandilands has enjoyed his time in Greenock so far. Former Hearts left-back Lee Wallace, who works with emerging talents at Tynecastle, and technical development manager Shelley Kerr are Sandilands’ go-to people for feedback from Gorgie. His focus will be on learning from those around him, including ex-Jambos midfielder Harry Cochrane who broke into the capital team as a teenager, and Bobby McLuckie who he came through the Hearts youth ranks with.
“It's been really good,” said Sandilands. “The boys have been really accommodating. It's a good group and a good set of staff as well. I've really enjoyed the past week or so and I'm just hoping to keep going. It'll just be a lot more communication over the phone, with meetings every now and then with the staff, Lee Wallace, and Shelley Kerr. It's more that compared to last season when I was getting to speak to them Monday mornings, Tuesday mornings, Friday mornings quite regularly. It's just a wee bit less but still keeping on top of things.
“Me and Bobby will hopefully get to show on the pitch over the season the connection we had. Obviously, not so much last year with the pair of us being out on loan, but the four years beforehand we created a good connection. You've got the older boys who are always accommodating so they're always good at helping the younger boys coming in the building, especially when it's on the first full-time loan, or a first loan. So that all put together is hopefully a good recipe. Harry had a real good breakthrough. Alongside Harry as well, we've got Grant Gillespie and Iain Wilson, the pair of them good pros. Then playing behind Eamonn Brophy, who's had international experience. So, all together, hopefully it helps me a lot when I go back to the building.”
Sandilands was in and around Derek McInnes’ Hearts first-team as they came within minutes of winning the Premiership title last season. It’s been all change this summer with Wouter Vrancken now head coach and a new-look senior squad in place but Sandilands got some sessions under his belt with the Belgian prior to joining Morton. He’s now hoping to bring experiences from Montrose and Hearts with him to his latest loan club.
What communication has Callum Sandilands had with new Hearts manager?
“I got a few days in with the new manager at Hearts,” the 20-year-old added. “There were three or four days I got to be in the building and be around it. It was more of a club situation with this loan than just the gaffer. It was different people that we were speaking to, maybe a bit more centralised to the loan department. Everybody was really keen on this opportunity. I feel as if I've done well over the last year. It was a different challenge to the first six months at Montrose because I had a fresh slate. Maybe from about November time I got to play a bit higher, which personally I prefer, and that showed on the pitch with getting better numbers than the season before. I was getting numbers more like myself.
“It's another challenge. Obviously, it's a step into the Championship, which was my main aim. Full-time football was a big factor as well because it's a different challenge. Going into a changing room full-time is a lot different to being there two or three times a week. It's something that I was really looking forward to. The loan maybe happened maybe a wee bit quicker than I first thought, but ultimately, it was going to be the final destination.
“With the manager change especially, It made it a lot quicker of a situation, as far as I was led to believe. But to be honest, getting in, getting through, getting amongst the boys is another positive. Last season was incredible for everyone at the club, so to be around that and experience it was really nice personally. Obviously gutted at the ending but yeah, all together, it just went hand in hand.”