Hearts left to sweat over Aaron Hickey and Clevid Dikamona injuries

Duo were forced off during 3-0 defeat by Kilmarnock

Aaron Hickey picked up an injury against Kilmarnock. Pic: SNS

Hearts defenders Aaron Hickey and Clevid Dikamona were both substituted with groin complaints during Saturday’s 3-0 defeat at Kilmarnock. The club are now waiting to assess the extent of the injuries following a demoralising trip to Ayrshire.

Hickey was withdrawn at half-time for Jake Mulraney after the 17-year-old left-back suffered a difficult time against Chris Burke. The veteran Kilmarnock winger scored two and assisted Eamonn Brophy’s goal as the hosts secured a 3-0 lead inside 16 minutes.

Dikamona then went down in the second half and trudged off to be replaced by Sean Clare. Interim manager Austin MacPhee explained that both players suffered injuries in similar areas during a defeat which leaves Hearts joint-bottom of the Premiership alongside St Mirren, Hamilton and St Johnstone.

“Aaron had tightness in his groin and I wanted to get Jake Mulraney on the pitch,” said MacPhee. “Aaron didn’t train on Thursday last week because he had a tight groin. We still had Aidy White, who has played a lot of his career at left-back and left-wing, so he went back into defence. Clevid felt his groin so we hope none of the issues are serious.”

Craig Halkett was named among the Hearts substitutes after two months out with knee ligament damage. He wasn’t risked when Dikamona came off but could come into contention for a starting place this Sunday when the Edinburgh club travel to Rangers.