Hearts fans send 'Budge over' message to board with bridge banners as pressure mounts on Steven Naismith

Angry Hearts fans have taken aim at the club board following a poor start to the season, with hommade banners appearing over a bridge on Gorgie Road.

Steven Naismith takes his team to former club Kilmarnock this evening for their Viaplay Cup quarter-final clash on the back of a dismal 1-0 defeat away to St Mirren on Saturday. Naismith appeared to have eased the pressure on him with an impressive 2-0 home victory over Aberdeen the previous week, but it was piled back on as the capital club were well beaten in Paisley.

Now some fed up punters have publicly turned on the board and chairman Ann Budge, making their feelings clear to passers by with a couple of bedsheet banners draped over the railway bridge that crosses Gorgie Road, just around the corner from the stadium. The two banners read "sack the board" and "Budge over". Punters are now unhappy at the appointment of Naismith, who previously took the Hearts B team before replacing Robbie Neilson last April.

That was initially until the end of the season, but he was given the gig permanently in the summer. However his lack of a UEFA Pro Licence was problematic when it came to the Jambos' Europa Conference League campaign. As a workaround, Naismith was given the title of technical director, with Frankie McAvoy named head coach.

However, Naismith assumed that role during the recent international break. That came after PAOK thumped Hearts in the playoff round by an aggregate score of 6-1. Performances have not been to fans' liking this season and their away from in particular is a concern.

Defeat in Ayrshire would crank up the heat on Naismith, who takes his team to Dingwall this Saturday. Then it's into an intense run of games against Hibs, Celtic and Rangers either side