Craig Thomson confident he can take his chance when it comes

BY THE time Craig Thomson joined the fray last weekend Hearts were already ahead but, as far as he's concerned, he still played his part. For those final six minutes of the match at Tynecastle Rangers laid siege and, as they had throughout the preceding 84 minutes, the home side stood firm to secure victory. Such is the togetherness in the Hearts squad these days that everyone takes pride in the wins, everyone shoulders the weight of disappointment when they lose.

"Even on the bench you're always part of the team, really, and even in the squad and in training. It's a squad game and the way we've been it shows the team spirit is all there," said the 19-year-old.

He hasn't had much opportunity to shine in any of them recently. Those minutes against Rangers were his first in seven games, and his appearances from the bench outnumber his league starts so far this term but there's little scope for griping. "I've been pretty disappointed, because I've not been playing that much recently. But, hopefully, if I get a chance I can take it. I couldn't fault the players on how they've been playing and I couldn't really get upset at not playing because the team's been winning. If I do get the chance to get into the team now I've just got to try and play how I started to play when I first came into the team, and hopefully that will happen."

Off-field issues and the possibility of a court appearance have been disconcerting for the teenager this season but the message from those around him has been to get his head down and focus on football. "And that's what I have been doing. Football's my life and I'll concentrate on that before anything. I have to get on with it and get on with life. It has been a learning curve.

"The gaffer, the management staff and the staff down at Tynecastle have been different class with me. That helps massively. I actually think that I've been concentrating on my football so much that my football's kicked on."