Stephen Kingsley: Steven Naismith sacking sent shockwave through Hearts dressing room

Hearts defender Stephen Kingsley says news of Steven Naismith’s sacking sent shockwaves through the dressing room and believes the players must take responsibility for the situation.

Naismith was sacked as head coach last Sunday, following a 2-1 defeat at St Mirren that stretched the team’s losing run to eight games.

Kingsley admitted the start to the season had not been good enough and said it was the nature of football that meant Naismith carried the can for failures on the pitch.

“It was obviously a devastating day,” he said. “It’s been a disappointing few months that’s led to this and it’s something that I think definitely sent shockwaves around the changing room when it did.

“It’s the nature of the game, unfortunately.

“No one feels more responsibility than us, the players. It’s not just the coaching staff that have to deal with it. It’s us as well.

“The manager has lost his job at the end of it but it’s us that have to share that responsibility and be better.”

After a successful season that saw the team finish third in the league and guarantee group stage European football, Hearts have endured a difficult time this term. An opening day draw against Rangers earned their only point in the league so far, while Viktoria Plzen ended any hopes of reaching the Europa League.

Kingsley conceded that the players had talked about what needed to be done to reverse their grim run of form. He believes the team need to show a response at home against Ross County on Saturday.

“We’ve had those chats for a number of months now and it’s so disappointing that things haven’t turned for us,” he said. “It’s a horrible situation we’ve found ourselves in on Sunday with Naisy and the coaching staff leaving.

“When we cross the white line we’re the ones that have to do it. It’s happened and it’s a clean slate now.

“Foxy’s come in and training has been good. We’re looking for a positive result on Saturday to try and kickstart our season.”

Fox has stepped up from his job as Hearts B team boss to take temporary charge while the club looks externally for Naismith’s replacement. The former Dundee United manager says he wasn’t thinking about having any chance of taking the role on a permanent basis right now, and reflected on the demands and stresses of management.

“If you’re lucky, you get 18 months, that’s the nature of it,” he said

“Everybody wants success today.

“I’ve been there, I’ve went through it. The timelines are so short and the game is so ruthless, so I can see why a lot of people are happy being assistant managers or coaches because they’re maybe a wee bit safer.

“At some point in the future, I would like to have another shot at it but I am in absolutely no rush to do that because of the things I’ve just said.

“I need to make sure I’m ready and I need to tidy up on a few wee bits and pieces, which I feel I’m doing but that’s a process. You never know what the future will hold.”