Lawrence Shankland confesses pure Hearts anger saw him smash SPFL record as teammate gets an earful.

The Tynecastle captain’s goal against Falkirk put Derek McInnes’ side up 2-0, becoming him the SPFL’s all-time leading scorer.

Lawrence Shankland went to the top of the SPFL goal scoring charts, but he was even more pleased to see Hearts reach the Premiership peak. The Jambos captain became the highest scorer in the 12-year SPFL period with his strike in the 3-0 win over Falkirk, passing Rory McAllister and reaching 163.

Shankland was unconcerned about the feat and was more emotional when describing his excitement at being a member of a Hearts squad that is presently setting the league pace.

Derek McInnes’ team has 16 points from a possible 18 heading into next Saturday’s Edinburgh derby, and the Scotland marksman admits life in Gorgie is perfect. He said:

“I was made aware of the goal record, and it’s always wonderful to get some credit; obviously, that’s also long-term. “It’s a good record to have, but it’s not something I’m too concerned about, though it’s always nice.

But it’s a pleasant feeling to be at the top of the league; it builds on a strong start to the season, and we definitely deserve to be there based on our performance thus far.

“It’s only a good start, we’re so early in the season and we just need to keep building momentum, keep building on performances and if we keep playing like that we should win more games than we lose.” Hearts fans were treated to fantastic offensive play against the Bairns, and Shankland admits everything is going well just now.

He went on to say, “When we back it up on the pitch and get results, Tynecastle is a great location to play football. “We’ll need their help along the way, and they’ll need to stick with us even when things go tough. “There will be bumps in the way, but with their support, we are confident that we will be very strong.

It is up to us to get there and keep them on board. “Performances and winning games are always beneficial.

“It’s always good to be there, but don’t get caught up in it. “It’s another massive game next week obviously, everything around it adds to it a wee bit.” However, Shankland believes that this makes no difference to the pressure they place on themselves to win football games.

He continued, “I don’t think we’ll be under any pressure to stay at the top. It’s clearly simply a position we’re in right now, but there is pressure to go out and win football games. “If we keep doing this, we will be in a good situation.

We won’t get too caught up in a league table, but if we keep producing and getting results week after week, we’ll eventually find ourselves there.

“The most important thing is to win games.” Shankland buried a powerful effort from outside the box past Scott Bain after pushing Henry Cartwright off the ball. And the forward confesses he utilised his shot to vent some pent-up anger.

He went on to say, “The purpose was pure fury, to be honest; I was so frustrated. “I had a horrible couple of minutes before that, and then Harry (Milne) missed me with a pass, so I told him off.

“Then I simply spun around, chased the ball, and booted it into the net out of frustration.

I had to apologise to Harry afterwards, but I’m sure everyone was relieved when I struck the net. “I just shifted it from my feet and thought, ‘I’m going to hit this.'”

“As I previously stated, it was pure wrath, and if I were out there now, I doubt I would have hit it, but I’m delighted I did, so fair credit to Harry.

We kissed and made up soon after, so that’s football.” Shankland’s score shortly before the interval was good, but it didn’t overshadow teammate Alexandros Kyziridis’ opener.

The Greek winger hit the top corner with a spectacular 25-yard drive in the 22nd minute.

Craig Halkett added a third immediately after the break with a powerful header from Kyziridis’ corner.

Kyziridis and fellow attacker Claudio Braga were plenty of trickery and flicks as Hearts celebrated, and Shankland admits they are a nuisance. He added:

“Kyzi and Braga, who have started the previous few games, are coming into their own and adjusting to playing at Tynecastle. “It may be surprising, which is both wonderful and bad because you never know what they’re going to do.

“I believe Claudio attempted a rabona in the second half but failed to pull it off, and a few of the boys were giving him a hard time.

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