Cole Stockton unfazed by managerial uncertainty at Hearts

Hearts' striker Cole Stockton. Picture: SNS

But the striker has spent the past few weeks wondering who will replace Ian Cathro. “I worked under a few managers at Tranmere when we went through a bad spell,” he said. “I’m used to it, as bad as that sounds. We had five or six managers over about five years, which is quite a lot of managers to get settled in with.

“It’s always in the back of your head [that a new guy might come in again] but with Jon [Daly, the interim boss], Foxy [Liam Fox] and Austin [MacPhee] in charge, you’ve just got to enjoy it for the time being.

“That’s three boss fellas to work with and with Jon being a centre-forward, that can only help me. He’s approachable, he’s easy to get along with and you can have a laugh with him.

“With any manager, you’ll always have that boundary of respect. There is a good  cut-off point but he is a good fellow with us.

“It’s still fresh in his head from when he played. I’ve spoken to loads of people who say they miss the banter when they stopped playing. Jon’s still got that. He’s got respect from the lads but he can still have a laugh.”

Hearts yesterday completed the signing of Edinburgh-born goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin from Burton Albion.

The 29-year-old, who won two successive promotions with the English Championship club, having previously been a League Cup runner-up and promotion winner with Bradford City, told Hearts TV: “I’m really pleased and really looking forward to signing for a massive club like this.

“It’s my home town so it’s a fantastic feeling and its been great to be training with the lads for a few days, and I’m now just looking forward to getting on with the serious work.

“You always want to be at clubs where you’re competitive and you’re looking to achieve things.”

McLaughlin is available for today’s match against Motherwell, subject to international clearance.”