Lawrence Shankland in confident Hearts vow as skipper cuts summer break short and opens up on his future

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Lawrence Shankland cut short his summer break to team up with his Hearts mates midway through their Spanish training camp for fear of missing out.But just over a fortnight ago it was his missus with the dread of missing out - on their own Spanish sunshine break - as she sat at a drenched Hampden watching biblical rain throw Scotland’s clash with Georgia into doubt.

The Tynecastle skipper admits partner Nicole was frantically scanning her phone for alternative flights as news broke through that the Euro qualifier might have to be abandoned and restarted 24 hours later - exactly when they were due to fly to Majorca.Of course it all worked out well in the end as Steve Clarke’s men splashed their way to victory and team Shankland flew out for a well-earned Spanish holiday.

But just two weeks later the hitman was heading back to the sunshine with fellow Hearts and Scotland colleague Zander Clark despite still having almost a week left to relax.And it’s all down to a desire to be in the best condition and better than last season.

The agony of letting third place slip from their grasp still gnawing away at the striker whose own performances could hardly be called into question after a 28-goal season.Shankland was back in action as Hearts rounded off their pre-season trip with a 1-0 friendly defeat to Plymouth on Thursday.