Laryea "LARRY" Kingston today vowed to repay the Hearts supporters who have backed him through thick and thin by turning Tynecastle into an SPL fortress, according to the Scotsman.

The Ghana internationalist missed the opening two games of the campaign against Hibs and Aberdeen as a result of a two-match suspension incurred after being accused of calling referee Steve Conroy a racist following his red card at Pittodrie last season.

An initial three-match ban was reduced to two by an SFA appeals panel just over a fortnight ago, leaving him free to face Gretna this weekend and the 26-year-old can't wait to get back to what he does best.

The midfielder was an instant hit with the Tynecastle supporters following his loan move from Terek Grozny, before putting pen to paper on a permanent deal in the summer, and he's desperate to run out in front of them again after his enforced absence.

He has been impressed by Hearts' new-look midfield and believes that it can be a profitable season for the Jambos if they can take advantage of the support they receive on their home ground.

He said: "My suspension is over now and I am just looking forward to starting my season at last, I can put it behind me and I thank god for that.

"I just hope now that I can go out there and play more good games for Hearts this season.

"I am really looking forward to getting back to playing football again and to playing at Tynecastle.

"It is great for me to play at Tynecastle, it is our home ground and I love to play in front of our supporters because they have been very good to me.

"In my head right now, I want us to win all of our home games. If we can do that its gives us more encouragement and more points on the board. We should take advantage of our home games and the support that we get and make it count by putting more points on the board.

"I feel like I have not played for a long time and it has been difficult for me to watch from the sidelines but I think that the team has been playing well and I hope that when I come back into the squad that we manage to maintain that standard because that is very important.

"Okay, people can look at the results and say that we lost the first game of the season but I didn't think we did too badly in that match and in the second game I thought that we did quite well.

"I watched the Aberdeen game again yesterday morning and I was impressed by the way that we played at Pittodrie.

"We held the ball up well and passed it around in midfield I think that is a good sign for the rest of this season."

In Kingston's absence from the Hearts side young Icelander Eggert Jonsson has made something of an impression, both in the SPL and in the club's pre-season tours of Austria and Germany.

The 18-year-old was singled out for praise from assistant coach Stephen Frail after last week's 1-1 draw with Aberdeen and Kingston has been suitably impressed by the player, who can also play in defence.

Michael Stewart and Ruben Palazuelos are the other new faces in the middle of the park and Kingston is looking forward to the prospect of teaming up with them for the first time in a competitive match.

He added: "Eggert is a young lad but I think that he has done particularly well. He held the ball up well and is always looking for the right pass to make. It is a different midfield to the one that I played in last season but that is okay.

"We have brought a couple of new players in to that area of the pitch and I think we are quite strong in there now. I think that has boosted the team morale.

"Michael Stewart is a good player, as is Ruben and both of them will help the team very much. I am looking forward to playing in the same team as them."

Kingston is likely to do just that when Hearts play host to Davie Irons' side tomorrow afternoon, but far from expecting an easy ride against the Raydale outfit, he insists Hearts must give the SPL newcomers the same respect that they would show to the Old Firm, or risk dropping points.

"I respect every new team in the league because I think that they are more difficult to play because we don't know so much about them," continued Kingston.

"They are always very anxious to do well and to make a good impression in the league, especially early on in the season. I think that Gretna are a good team and we know that we must give them the same respect that we would show to teams like Rangers or Celtic.

"We are determined to get the three points and if we are going to do that then we cannot have it in our minds that they have just come up from the First Division. We cannot think of that, we must just think of winning the game."

While Kingston is desperate to get back to playing football, the final piece of the jigsaw off the park will finally slot into place later this month when his wife and three young children make the move to Scotland from their current home in Ghana. And the midfielder says that he will be 100 per cent content with life at Tynecastle when his family are back by his side.

Speaking as Hearts announced a continuation of their partnership with the David Lloyd Fitness Centre in Edinburgh which will see the first-team squad use the facilities for recovery and rehabilitation sessions, he admitted: "I am looking forward to it, for me family is the most important thing in life and it will be good to have my wife and my children here with me.

"It will help me to concentrate and stay focused because sometimes I can't help but think about them back home. When they are over here with me I will be 100 per cent happy with the situation and ready to do well with the club."