PREVIEW | Hearts v Ross County

Following the summer break and Premier Sports Cup group campaign all eyes now turn to Tynecastle as we open our cinch Premiership campaign away at Heart of Midlothian.

Form

County come into the game on the back of an unbeaten Premier Sports Cup Group campaign, finishing it with a flourish with the demolition of East Fife in Dingwall. Victor Loturi opened the scoring before Ben Purrington doubled the lead in the second half, whilst a five-goal second half via strikes from Jordy Hiwula, Owura Edwards and Kazeem Olaigbe saw the Staggies run riot. It backed up wins over Alloa Athletic and Dunfermline in the seven days previous.

Hearts have fleshed out a strong pre-season campaign with victory over Stoke City at Tynecastle. New signing Lawrence Shankland struck twice in the victory over EFL Championship opposition in the capital. They took on a host of English opponents this summer including Preston North End, Crawley Town and Tranmere Rovers – whilst they also faced East Fife earlier in the break, beating them 7-0.

Key Players

County have a host of players in line to make their top-flight debuts having signed in the summer. Striker Hiwula has three goals in his last three games and could be in-line to feature. The former Coventry City and Doncaster Rovers striker has shown fine form in the cup.

For Hearts, striker Shankland was a real coup this window signing from Beerschot in the Belgian top-flight. The forward scored 32 league goals for Dundee United between 2019-2021 earning his move to the continent but following a disappointing campaign last term, returns to Scotland with the Jam Tarts.

Head-to-Head

County met Hearts four times last season as both sides battled hard in the top six. Our last meeting came in Edinburgh back in April with both sides failing to make a breakthrough. Four weeks earlier we’d met at the Global Energy Stadium with the score ending 1-1, Alex Iacovitti scored for the Staggies.

County will be looking to put the record straight having not recorded a win over Hearts in the league since March 2017, where Alex Schalk’s second half effort was the difference at Tynecastle.

Away-Day Guide

For full details on the match for supporters, click here.

Keep Up

For supporters unable to attend you can keep up with live updates via the club’s social media feeds, whilst Hearts TV will be broadcasting internationally.