A Scottish Football Association tribunal have rejected Hearts’ appeal against Yan Dhanda’s red card at Kilmarnock on Sunday. A fast track hearing took place on Tuesday as the Edinburgh club argued that Dhanda’s dismissal was incorrect and should be overturned. However, the original decision was upheld and Dhanda was hit with a two-match ban. Referee Dan McFarlane sent the Englishman off after 38 minutes of the match at Rugby Park after he caught the Kilmarnock defender Stuart Findlay above the ankle with his studs. Dhanda was in possession and advancing towards the opposition penalty area at the time when he was impacted by David Watson’s tackle from behind. That nudged him towards Findlay, but the fact he made contact with the centre-back with studs raised amounted to serious foul play. Referee McFarlane consulted a touchline monitor to review the incident and then issued Dhanda a straight red card. Given Sunday was Hearts’ final league match of the season, the midfielder must now serve a two-game suspension in the first two fixtures of the 2025/26 Scottish Premiership campaign. Ten-man Hearts went on to win 1-0 courtesy of Stephen Kingsley’s 88th-minute strike. That gave interim head coach Liam Fox a fourth victory from the last four games of the season as he helped ensure the Edinburgh club avoided the Premiership’s relegation zone. The following day, Hearts confirmed the appointment of Derek McInnes as their new head coach. McInnes did not attend Rugby Park on Sunday after tensions grew among Kilmarnock fans whilst he waited to take charge at Tynecastle Park. The switch was confirmed as coaches Paul Sheerin and Alan Archibald also moved from Ayrshire to Edinburgh. McInnes outlined how he intends to go about restoring Hearts to a challenging position following this season’s seventh-place finish. His main aim is to make Tynecastle more intimidating. “Sometimes I feel, when teams come here now, it's a bit sanitised,” explained McInnes. “Once the kick-off goes, teams enjoy it, bed themselves into the game. I'd like it to be the opposite. I'd like players to think that they don't like going to Tynecastle as much as they have previously, and it's such an intimidating place. For that, we need to have our players enjoying the atmosphere and thriving on that as well. You turn up at Tynecastle at 3pm and the fans are here, they’ve done their bit, so it’s up to us to give them a game to enjoy. “The Hearts teams I have played against in the past could hit you with intensity, hit you with aggression and the noise would get louder and louder. That’s something we have to tap into because I’ve come here as an opposition manager looking to quieten the crowd. We have to recognise the responsibility we have to bring the crowd with us in games, bring an energy and mindset to games. “Being too precise and slow sometimes with the build up gives teams confidence and the chance to take a breath. We want teams to feel they’re not okay coming here - that’s an easy thing to say but a more difficult thing to work towards. But it’s something I feel is important. Hearts teams when I was younger always had a strength about them, not people who would just kick you, but fitness and energy. You had to stand up to that. While you want to be technical and good on the eye with players who can handle the ball, there’s also got to be that other dimension. “Scottish football is the league we’re in and I do think we’re different to a lot of other leagues. In Scandinavia and the like, it’s all very technical, all very coachy and slower-paced. But in our country you have to play with an extra edge, passion and show that extra bit of determination in early parts of games. You have to have that fitness and wherewithal to deal with what’s expected of you. “The truth of the matter is: What’s expected of me and my team is to be successful. So I have to build a team that represents me and represents what Hearts should be. That’s energetic, fit and also have the confidence and personality to deal with playing here.” READ MORE: More Hearts transfers imminent