Neil Critchley explains Hearts' loss to Kilmarnock - and a message for Lawrence Shankland

Neil Critchley delivered an honest assessment of Hearts’ failings following their first defeat under his management. The head coach accepted that Kilmarnock’s 2-1 win at Tynecastle Park was a frustrating night for supporters and admitted his team did not do enough to win the game.

Alan Forrest’s first-half strike was overhauled by goals from Matty Kennedy and Kyle Vassell as Derek McInnes’ side moved into the top six in the Premiership. Hearts drop to the foot of the league after defeat.

“I thought we started the game very well, pushed them right back, had control of the game,” said Critchley. “Ironically, just as Kilmarnock and the flow of the game started to change a little bit, we scored a really good goal in a breakaway situation. It was a really good goal to be 1-0 up at half-time. I felt our play deserved that.

“I thought we started the second half quite well as well, and then just two really, really poor moments of defending have cost us the game. I felt after that there was more than enough time for us to come back, and I just felt there was a little bit of anxiety in our play and we lost our way a little bit, which was a big learning curve for me tonight.

READ MORE: Report and ratings from Hearts 1-2 Kilmarnock

Asked what frustrated him about Kilmarnock’s goals, Critchley replied: “Where do you want me to start? The first one is from the goalkeeper, he just kicks the ball long - first ball, second ball, third ball, we don't pick the ball up. Within a few seconds, the ball ends up in the back of our goal. It's far, far too easy.

“At the second goal, a long throw-in, the finer details are getting your positioning right inside the box. We don't stay in front of their first man. He gets first contact, they get second contact and we get out-muscled in the six-yard box and they score. It was just too easy.

“If you look at the goals we've conceded in the last two games, one is a wide free-kick against Hibs, a long kick tonight and then a long throw-in. It's something that we've got to eradicate from our game, otherwise we're going to find ourselves in those situations.”

Critchley also issued a message to the Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland as he strives to rediscover his goalscoring form. The forward has found the next just once in 15 appearances so far this season. “No, it's not going for him,” acknowledged Critchley. “In the last few performances, I’ve been really pleased with his all-round play and he's been so close to scoring. It's not just quite happening for him in front of the goal, but that's not for the want of effort.

“He's just got to keep believing in who he is as a player because he's bringing a lot to the team. He brings others into the game and I thought some of his play around the box was very good. The goals will come for him. He was close again on a couple of occasions tonight so it's important we make sure that he knows what his contribution is to the team and not just his goals.”

Seeing Hearts back at the bottom of the league will be jarring for supporters but Critchley is determined not to be fazed by the situation he inherited four games ago. “No, I knew what I was come into here from watching the games,” he said. “I knew the strengths and the weaknesses and I knew some of the things we needed to improve on. That's my focus.

“I just said to the players now: ‘You always learn more in a defeat than you do when you win. I learned a lot about the players tonight and I'll learn a lot about the players in the next few days. We have to go to St Johnstone [on Saturday], show character and show what we're about as a group.”

Kilmarnock’s gameplan under McInnes did not change and they were well served by striker Vassell. “Yes, that's the strength of theirs and you have to respect that,” said Critchley, who was frustrated by Hearts’ lack of quality in the final third of the pitch. “You have to be good in their moments and we weren't. That's what they're good at. We didn't cope with their moments well enough, which has cost us the game.

“I think it was the last half an hour of the game. Before that, I was pleased with some of our football and how we played. I thought we had good control and we moved the ball well and we created some good moments. Even at the start of the second half, we could have maybe gone and got the second goal. It was after we went 2-1 down. We've got to show more courage in who we are and how we're going to get back into the game with how we play.

“We lost our discipline in terms of what we were trying to do on the ball. It just became a little bit off-the-cuff type of football. I understand that in the last few minutes you're going to put a few more balls into the box and put a few more bodies up there. But before that, I say there's more than enough time. We just needed to reset, be calm and then work our way back into the game again. We didn't do that.

“We didn't do enough in the last period of the game, definitely. You know Kilmarnock are going to put men behind the ball and make it difficult for you. But in those moments, that's where you're relying on the quality of your players on the pitch - or that decision-making to make a difference. In the final period of the game, that's where we were lacking.”