HEARTS striker Roman Bednar has broken his silence on the "cheat" storm that enveloped him following his sending-off against Partick Thistle last weekend.

The Czech forward has been angered by claims that he deliberately dived in an attempt to win a penalty against Thistle, an incident that saw him issued with a second yellow card by referee Craig Thomson for simulation.

And Bednar, who was only introduced to the game as a second-half substitute, today took time out from his preparations for Sunday's trip to face Livingston at Almondvale to protest his innocence.

"He touched me," insisted Bednar. "You must remember I was fresh because I had just come on and I was playing at full speed. I wanted to score a goal so I was angry. I changed my movement a little bit as I went past the goalkeeper and he did touch me. Some referees would have given a penalty but I got a yellow card and then a red.

"It was the first red card of my life - unbelievable.

"Everybody is speaking and joking about me now. Maybe some people think I am bad because they think I dived but I think clever people know about football."

Bednar concedes that his offence for his first yellow card, when he prevented Partick from taking a quick free-kick, was justified, but his disbelief at being ordered off has not dispersed.

"I spent last Saturday night thinking about this in my head because it was a very bad incident," he said. "Partick scored a goal after I went off and it could have been a bad situation for us, so I feel that is my fault but now it is past.

"For my first yellow card, I had to stop the ball at the free-kick because their player would only have had to turn and score if he had received the ball. I accept that, but I shouldn't have had a red card."

Hearts will be without Paul Hartley and Julien Brellier who are suspended for Sunday with Lee Johnson and Bruno Aguiar expected to play in central midfield.

There is also a doubt over Takis Fyssas, the Greek internationalist playing two games in two days while away with his country.

Hearts coach John McGlynn today admitted the situation was "not ideal" and revealed the defender would be assessed when he reported for training today.

"We'll have to see how Takis is but it's not ideal that he played two games in such a short period of time," said McGlynn. "We have other options in that area so we'll make a decision nearer to the game."

One player who will definitely feature, though, is captain Steven Pressley. The defender was forced to sit out Scotland's 3-1 defeat by Switzerland in midweek as he recovered from a virus but he trained yesterday and will lead the side out on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Hearts and Scotland star Neil McCann has targeted a return to action for the Jambos when Rangers visit Tynecastle on March 19.

He is expected to return to training soon, possibly next week, after suffering knee ligament damage.

Taken from the Scotsman