JORDAN McGHEE is looking forward to a Hearts reunion at Rugby Park in a few weeks – as long as the Tynecastle team come out on top in the end. The draw for the third round of the League Cup sees the Premiership table-toppers take on a Kilmarnock side managed by ex-Hearts boss Gary Locke and featuring former Jambos Dale Carrick, Jamie MacDonald, Scott Robinson, and Jamie Hamill. McGhee is looking forward to catching up with a few familiar faces but stressed the most important thing was Hearts making it through to the quarter-finals.

He said: “I played under Gary for a couple of years at Hearts. He gave me my debut, bled me into the first team and I’m really grateful for that. It will be nice also to catch up with a few former team-mates at Killie, like Jamie MacDonald and Jamie Hamill, but once the game starts it will be full concentration on trying to win it. We can’t think about the pressure Gary has been under there. It’s a cup tie we want to win. They are all tough in this competition as we have already found out against Arbroath and Forfar. The cups are important to us this season. Last season was disappointing, we got knocked out early in both cups by Celtic. So we need to try and make up for it this year.”

Hearts have begun the season in great form, having won their first five league matches of the season. That led to former player Steven Pressley tipping them as potential title winners but McGhee didn’t want to look too far ahead.

He added: “The start to the season has exceeded our expectations a little bit. We always back ourselves to do reasonably well but it’s been a great start. It’s early days, though, and we can’t afford to get carried away. It’s obviously great to have that kind of backing from an old Hearts legend like Steven Pressley, saying we can win the league. It drives us on.

“It’s hard to say if it’s the strongest squad in my time at the club. It’s only five games into the league season. But it’s been a great start and the morale is brilliant. The Premiership is far more physical to the Championship, we need to try and get more experience of handling it.”

McGhee was the subject of a £250,000 bid from Ipswich Town earlier in the month that Hearts turned down. The player insists his sole focus at the moment is trying to force his way back into the starting line-up.

He added: I’m a Hearts players at the moment. I’m just trying to keep my head down and get back into the team.

“Robbie Neilson has brought in two really good signings, after Danny Wilson and Brad McKay left, in Igor Rossi and Blazej Augustyn. They are two experienced heads and it’s just down to me to try and get back in the team. Once I get the opportunity, I’m sure I can take it.”