Heart of Midlothian began the Derek McInnesera with a 4-1 victory over Dunfermline Athletic at a sun-drenched Tynecastle Park in the Premier Sports Cup group stages.

It wasn’t as simple as the scoreboard suggests, with the game tied at 1-1 for a long time and the visitors outperforming the hosts in sections of the second half.

Hearts, on the other hand, found a way to win, with Lawrence Shankland scoring his 70th goal for the club after signing a three-year contract extension.

James Wilson opened the scoring as Hearts surged out of the blocks. He scored after Shankland’s shot hit the post.

Josh Cooper would equalise before halftime, capitalising on some careless play by Hearts.

After the break, the home side had to be patient before gaining two penalties, both of which were converted by Shankland, who now has 70 goals for the club.

Stephen Kingsley added a fourth in stoppage time with a fantastic volley from a Harry Milne corner. Joel Sked and Craig Cairns recap the action at Tynecastle Park.

Off to a winning start

There was a lot of excitement and anticipation leading up to the match, with Hearts under new management, new recruits, and Tony Bloom’s shareholding announced. With over 13,000 fans in the stands, Hearts got off to a fast start, just as McInnes had hoped.

He stated in his programme notes that he wanted fans to like going to Tynecastle to watch the team and visiting teams to dislike it. That worked brilliantly early on, as Hearts came close to scoring in the first minute before jumping ahead a few minutes later.

The team didn’t quite take off from there. Chances and openings were created but not taken, allowing Dunfermline to regain control of the game.

There were periods in the second half when McInnes got an introduction to what Tynecastle can be like when things don’t go positively. A couple of backward passes were booed and the frustration from the stands could be heard.

Of course, this is a Hearts side that are very much a work in progress. Much of the squad that finished bottom six remain and new signings are slowly being introduced with more to come.

The important thing was to get off to a winning start while recognising that there is plenty of room for improvement. That should come with more new signings and more time in training and on the pitch in the coming weeks.

Shape and starting XI

After a lot of build-up, Derek McInnes finally named his first Hearts starting XI in a competitive fixture.

There were only two players included who were not on the books last season: Claudio Braga and Oisin McEntee. It meant nine of the team were leftovers from last season.

McEntee, somewhat unexpectedly, began at right-back. However, at the start of the game, he would sit back and effectively form a back three with Craig Halkett and Frank Kent.

On the left, Harry Milne was more likely to drive forward, overlapping Braga, who was instructed to play narrowly from the left wing and join the assault. On the other hand, Alan Forrest played a more typical wide role. He was discovered twice early on, during Hearts’ first two attacks.

The first was a long pass flicked on by Lawrence Shankland, who took the return and forced a save, while the second was Kent’s long ball to the flank.

Hearts played when they had to but went direct when there was an opportunity. At one point McInnes shouted to Halklett to send it earlier.

The direct nature of their approach backed up the comments made by the head coach during pre-season and Hearts deservedly took the lead in the third minute when Shankland cracked the post and Wilson was there to follow in the rebound.

A lot of the forward balls were targeted towards Shankland and on a number of occasions, he found Forrest but the final ball was lacking – for one especially when he failed to pick out either Braga at the back post or Wilson in the centre.

James Wilson

The teenager was the only player to start both halves in the first pre-season friendly against St Mirren. He has also drawn praise from McInnes on a number of occasions since the head coach took charge.

Here, he made clever runs and linked well with the likes of Shankland and Forrest.

One of the traits his new boss likes is his intelligence in knowing where to be and he was in the right place at the right time to guide home a rebound to open the scoring.

After a breakthrough 2024/25 campaign, Wilson looks in a great position to kick on even further. His body has filled out more and he is now involved in the senior dressing room from day to day after only being allowed in after his 18th birthday earlier this year.

However, it may be elsewhere. Just like James Penrice, if the proper offer comes in for the striker, he will sell. After Wilson’s goal, Hearts’ main concern, and a worryingly repeated pattern this year, was controlling the ball only to concede from one of the opposition’s few attacks.

New signings

As the half progressed, McEntee made more forays down the right, at one point popping up to snatch at a rebound, but he was put off sufficiently by the Dunfermline defence.

He was more involved in attacking play as the half progressed, at one point sending in an excellent back-post cross from deep.

Though it was a mixed opening 45 minutes as not everything came off for him and he conceded possession a couple of times. Hearts as a whole weren’t bothered too much defensively, McEntee included, but they did concede from Dunfermline’s only shot of the half when Cooper finished low.

Braga had a quieter half. Given Hearts’ start, you could be forgiven for believing he’d have a full evening.

However, despite roaring out of the blocks, Neil Lennon’s side kept the home team in check. It took the Portuguese some time to adjust to the intensity of the game.

He demonstrated great touches and a quick change of pace but was unable to find a shot on goal. He did, however, set up Forrest for a shot that required a save from Deniz Mehmet.

Blair Spittal took over for Braga just after the hour, while Christian Borchgrevink made his debut in place of McEntee.

This resulted in a change of shape, as Forrest moved to left-wingback in a back three. with Milne tucking inside. 

Forrest’s mixed bag

The winger’s inclusion in the starting lineup may have raised the greatest eyebrows among certain supporters. He was frustrated from the stands last season, but was brought back into the team near the end by temporary manager Liam Fox and was productive as Hearts finished strong.

Derek McInnes acknowledged a desire to add to the diverse alternatives, and it was assumed that Forrest would fall down the pecking order. However, because Alexandros Kyziridis was not yet ready and no one else had arrived, Forrest was given a head start.

He almost had an assist in the first minute, setting up Lawrence Shankland. And again at the start of the second half, when he went scampering down the right but his ball to Braga found the Portuguese forward in an offside position.

In between, there was a mix of danger, near misses, and irritation. Hearts were occasionally effective in getting the ball down the right, particularly when placed into Shankland’s feet and around the corner. He got into good positions in the final third a few chances, but either his decision-making was poor or Dunfermline’s defence played exceptionally well.

Others in his situation would have received greater support from the fans, and he was not helped by a moment when he stumbled over the ball when there was room to attack.

Following a shape change in the second half, he moved to left wing-back, where he contributed positively. A driving run resulted in a foul and a yellow card before he slid a wonderful pass into the underlapping run of Harry Milne, creating a decent opportunity.

He went on to have an even larger moment when he raced through on goal, passed Mehmet in the Pars goal, but was hauled down, allowing Shankland to score from the penalty spot. It was a team performance that emphasised the need for increased pace and quality in a variety of areas.

However, Forrest demonstrated that he is still a valuable member of the team.

Lennon pantomime

One of the pre-game stories was about Lennon in the Dunfermline dugout. He did not disappoint.

Fans near the Pars dugout paid him a lot of attention, including one who said he should pack it in at East End Park because he is better than that. As was the case with the audience as a whole, a number of songs had words that could not be published.

One of the most humorous instances occurred when he made a sobbing gesture to fans just as Forrest was about to set up a goal for Hearts. Moments thereafter, Dunfermline scored. He turned to face the audience and clutched his ears.

Towards the conclusion, one fan enquired as to where his snus was. He pulled it from his pocket.

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