Beni Baningime update as Hearts explain what happened at Rugby Park

Hearts midfielder Beni Baningime was taken off after feeling light-headed near half-time against Kilmarnock. The Congolese felt unwell and had to be substituted during the goalless draw at Rugby Park, but coaching staff are hopeful he will recover quickly.

Baningime went down moments before the interval and was attended to by Hearts physios before he walked off the field and down the tunnel. Teenager Macaulay Tait took his place in a game Hearts dominated without finding a winning goal. They hit the crossbar through Kenneth Vargas and Cammy Devlin during the first half and head coach Steven Naismith admitted his team did everything but score.

“We should have had it won in the first half. Our performance today was brilliant,” said Naismith. “The only thing we missed was probably a few goals. We did everything but score, and that’s taking into account who we’re playing. This is one of the toughest places to come. I’m really pleased because of the chances we created but we just never got a goal.

“I think the players did well but their keeper did well with a couple of them. It was just one of those days. The players didn’t too much wrong and we hit the bar with Kenneth and Cammy. Maybe if this was September I’d be more frustrated but we’ve ticked a game off with a really good performance. The individuals will be kicking themselves because they didn’t score.

“I said after the [Scottish Cup] semi-final last week we were disappointed but we’re also driven. If we were five years down the line with this group of players coming to the end of a cycle with a demand to win a trophy - I’d be worried. We’re at the end of a very good first season. Today shows the drive we’ve got. We could have just turned up today because it would take an exceptional run from Kilmarnock to catch us. But we didn’t because we’re driven and it’s a great sign.

“The fans were great today and we want to enjoy this month because it’s so rare. Football is intense and demanding. You don’t enjoy these moments at the time. I won trophies and didn’t enjoy them until I looked back. Today has been a big step in getting us over the line because we’ve asked Kilmarnock to not drop a point until the end of the season against the best teams in the league. We’re in a really good place and we can enjoy this month before the challenges of next season.”

Asked about Baningime, Naismith explained what happened. “He is fine. He just had a light head and felt a bit unwell. That was it. He seemed to be fine by half-time. When we went in he was all right, he was up and talking and felt back to normal. It was disappointing to lose him but we ended up with two academy players on the pitch getting an opportunity [Tait and Aidan Denholm].

Hearts reinstated Zander Clark in goal after Craig Gordon played in the previous two matches - the Scottish Cup semi-final loss to Rangers and the league win over Livingston. “That’s the job of having two good goalies. Zander hasn’t played the last two games but was as solid as he’s been all season,” said Naismith. “I’m delighted for him but both of them are doing all they can to make the Euros squad with Scotland. We’ll see in the coming weeks but I might have an opportunity to give them both game time. They both want to be playing.”