McAllister knows he must bide his time

Defender targets starting spot

PAUL KIDDIE

JAMIE McALLISTER made his long-awaited competitive debut for Hearts as a substitute against Kilmarnock - but knows he may have to bide his time before laying claim to a regular starting place.

The former Livingston star has been forced to cool his heels on the sidelines after injuring a hamstring in last month’s friendly at home to Fulham.

Ruled out of the SPL curtain-raiser against Dundee at Dens Park, the left-back’s absence opened the door for Robbie Neilson to start the season and the 24-year-old has seized the opportunity with both hands.

With Alan Maybury shifting to the other flank to accommodate the right-sided Neilson, the pair have played a key role in helping the Gorgie outfit launch its league challenge with three clean sheets, Hearts proudly sitting in joint second place in the table alongside Rangers with seven points from a possible nine.

Defensively sound in the games against Dundee and Aberdeen, the Jambos made Killie pay the penalty for failing to make the most of their first-half openings with an impressive second-half display on Saturday, goals from Ramon Pereira and Steven Pressley (penalty) adding to Graham Weir’s 18th-minute header as the home side eased to its first home win of the campaign.

With the hosts cruising to victory, McAllister’s big moment came 14 minutes from time when he replaced Joe Hamill - and he was quickly into the thick of the action.

His first touch was a well-weighted pass which saw Weir launch an attack down the left and minutes later he demonstrated his defensive qualities with a crunching tackle on Stevie Murray.

Although he clearly relished his first brief taste of top-team action, the Scotland internationalist knows the manner in which his fellow defenders have started the season spells bad news for him in his attempt to force his way into Levein’s plans for the moment.

"I was itching to get on as I hadn’t managed to play in the first two games and it was nice to get the last 15 minutes or so against Kilmarnock," he said.

"I trained on the Friday before the opening game of the season against Dundee but didn’t think it was worth the risk. The gaffer had already picked the team in any case so I was on the bench.

"To be fair, though, the guys have done a tremendous job. That’s three clean sheets in a row and I’ll just have to bide my time and wait for my opportunity, then try to take it when it does come along.

"I’m happy getting the results but it would be nice to be involved.

"It was good to get an early touch on Saturday and get into the game the way I did.

"It was great to at last make my debut and it was a good time to come on with us coasting at 3-0.

"The gaffer just told me to go on and enjoy myself and that’s what I did."

Pereira opened his account for his new club with a well-taken header which put Hearts 2-0 up on Saturday.

With Mark de Vries out with a hamstring injury also picked up against Fulham, the Spaniard has looked Hearts’ most potent weapon in the early-season exchanges, Levein labelling his weekend display as his best so far for the club.

There appears much more to come from the former Raith Rovers front man as he becomes more familiar with the requirements of the SPL. And McAllister is confident the goal will provide Pereira with the ideal platform from which to showcase his talents.

"We didn’t take our chances against Aberdeen the previous week and the only thing which has been lacking in the opening games was goals," he said. "But the strikers got two good headers on Saturday. Ramon took his effort well and he has adapted well to the SPL. That’s the goal he needed and it’s the same for Graham Weir.

"That will have helped their confidence and hopefully they will now have the confidence to have more pops at goal in the matches ahead. Ramon’s link-up play has been excellent and he just needed the goal to get him going."

Capped for his country for the first time in the win over Trinidad and Tobago in May, the 26-year-old McAllister was on stand-by for Scotland’s clash with Hungary at Hampden Park last week.

However, he knows his fortunes at Tynecastle will have a direct impact on his international prospects, hence his focus is on the domestic scene for the time being.

"I first have to concentrate on club football and everything else will take care of itself," he said.

Taken from the Scotsman