Liam Boyce has explained why he, Peter Haring and Craig Halkett had a frank exchange of views during the second half of Saturday’s in at Peterhead.
Goals in either half from Gary Mackay-Steven and Boyce got Hearts off to a winning start in the Premier Sports Cup at Balmoor.
However, there was a point in the second half when the trio weren’t shy in coming forward with each other, with Boyce unhappy that the Jambos had slowed the tempo for a spell and felt standards needed to go up again.
“It happens every ten minutes in a football match but you probably don't hear it,” he said.
“For five minutes, we were staying on the ball a bit long. It wasn't even his [Haring’s] mistake. I think he won the ball and three guys were round him so he turned the wrong way and ended up passing.
“I didn't want to pick on one person so I said to two people. We played a square ball and the next one needs to go forward. Peter thought he did the right thing and I said: 'I'm not just saying it's you. We all need to do it.'
“Sometimes you need to shout at certain people. Your captain will be shouting during the game, or if I have a bad touch someone will say to you 'come on' to get you going. For five minutes we were a bit sloppy on the ball so you need those moments to get everyone going again.
“We were in the Championship last year and we were all demanding more from each other,” added Boyce. “You are going to end up arguing. We all just need to learn and bring the best out in each other.”
The 3-4-3 system deployed by Robbie Neilson isn’t one that’s been seen much before, but Boyce is all for it.
He explained: "Northern Ireland used it a couple of times but it's different the way we play,” he said. “As a forward, I had to stay up and give us a platform. I had to always be in the penalty box and wait for a cross coming in. That's what I'm good at so it's perfect for me.”
The number 10 got off the mark for the season with Hearts’ second goal.
Usually, scoring early is exactly what a striker wants, but Boyce revealed that given what usually happens during pre-season, he had been a bit concerned heading into competitive action.
He added: “Usually I don't score in pre-season, then I start scoring when the season begins. This time I had been scoring all through pre-season so I was a bit worried it would flip round.
“It's just good to get a goal in the first game. I thought we could have had more if we took care of our final pass. It takes people a while to get used to competition, pace, games. It's good to start with a win and clean sheet.”
