Sometimes, a jersey just seems to fit a player perfectly. James McFadden, for example, seemed to take on superhuman powers when pulling on the dark blue of his country. And for Ross Callachan, it is the maroon – or in this case, the navy blue and luminous pink – of Hearts that seems to bring out the best in him.
Since making the switch from Raith Rovers, where he experienced relegation to League One last season, Callachan has flourished for the team he supported as a boy.
His goal against Partick Thistle, if indeed it was over the line, was his second in three appearances after also netting against Hamilton last week and picking up the man of the match award in his debut against Aberdeen.
And his introduction has coincided with an upturn in the Jambos’ fortunes, as Craig Levein kept up his unbeaten record thus far with this draw against Partick Thistle. But Callachan isn’t resting on his laurels, and much in-keeping with his boss’s mantra, he feels that both he and the team as a whole have a long way to go.
And the fact that he is now in the position of being asked for his autograph by wide-eyed Hearts-supporting youngsters is also taking a bit of getting used to.
“It’s a bit surreal because it’s all new to me,” Callachan said. “I used to wait behind after games to get autographs of players and now Hearts fans are asking me for autographs. It’s a good feeling. You can be someone’s hero, like players were when I was young.
“When I was younger, I looked up to Paul Hartley. He played a similar position. He was brilliant to watch. I also liked Rudi Skacel and I played with him last year at Raith Rovers.
“Being a Hearts fan you want the club to do well. I think it shows on the park that I’ve got a bit of passion. I want to do well for the fans in the stand and it’s good for them to recognise that.”
When you are flying high like Callachan, things can seem to just go your way, and when you are desperate for your first league win of the season, it can seem the opposite. So it was with Callachan’s goal on the day, which cancelled out Blair Spittal’s earlier strike for Partick Thistle.
Assistant referee Joseph Lawson was seemingly the only person in Firhill who was certain his header had crossed the line.
Still, Thistle did have their own slice of fortune with their goal from Spittal, another player who has taken to his new club like a duck to water.
His sixth goal in Thistle colours owed much to poor Hearts defending, and a great deal to the butter fingers of young goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin, who let the ball squirm through his hands and his legs en-route to the net.
Danny Devine was full of praise for teammate Spittal after the game, and he was just as strong in his views that the Hearts goal shouldn’t have stood.
“At the time, I didn’t think it was a goal, and I still don’t think it was,” he said. “There’s no way that the whole of the ball was over the line, but you can’t do anything about it and you have to move on.
“If we keep positive then we know our luck will change.”
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