7th March 2020 Hearts v Motherwell 1-1
Another very important game for Hearts today. surprisingly after Hearts won the Edinburgh Derby on Tuesday to move of the bottom of the SPL, Hamilton beat Rangers 1-0 at Ibrox the following night to move back above Hearts. This was only the second time Hamilton have won a league match at Ibrox for ninety-four years. I had been out in the morning and did not get home for lunch until 13.00. After lunch I did some tidying up on my Mac and then left for Tynecastle . Arrived around 14.15 and then went for a coffee. I got to my seat around 14.25 and met Eric. We had a long chat about Hearts recent upsurge in form. He was not at Easter Road for the Derby but had watched it on television and agreed with me that the first goal had been crucial.
Hearts made one change to the starting eleven at Easter Road. Captain Steven Naismith came back into the starting eleven with Liam Boyce moving to the bench. The substitutes bench comprised goal-keeper Joel Pereira and six attacking players with no natural defensive cover. Uche Ikpeazu was not included in the squad despite being called up for the Ugandan national side in mid-week. I am not convinced that his playing style suits Daniel Stendel planned formation although I do think he makes a good impact substitute. Motherwell, under manager Steven Robinson, are currently third in The SPL. Motherwell are not what I would call a side with an attractive style of play. However their manager seems to have a wide range of contacts enabling him to bring in good players as replacements when others move on. In today’s side Christopher Long has been brought in to replace Curtis Main, now at Aberdeen with Newcastle loanee Rolando Aarons replacing Devante Cole who had returned to his parent club, Wigan Athletic, on expiry of his loan spell.
Hearts started slowly and after the performance on Tuesday I expected a better start. Sean Clare who had been injured earlier in the game had the first chance in around fifteen minutes. Conor Washington chased a through ball and Motherwell keeper Mark Gillespie rushed out of the penalty area on the right to kick clear ahead of the forward. The clearance went straight to Clare standing just inside his own half and,with the keeper out of the goal, he shot towards the empty net. With Gillespie stranded and running back towards the goal the ball was cleared by defender Alan Campbell who chested the ball down on the six yard line and cleared upfield. Motherwell went ahead in twenty-one minutes when Craig Halkett hesitated over a clearance about thirty yards from goal. His eventual clearance was charged down by Long who raced goal-wards with Halkett unable to stop him for fear of giving away a free-kick and receiving red card. ‘Bobby” Zlamal appeared to hesitate before rushing from his goal but Long took the ball past the keeper and shot into the empty net. Hearts then substituted Clare who was struggling with his earlier knock. Jamie Walker came on in his place and took up position on the left while Lewis Moore moved across to the right. I was surprised at this as both players are normally more comfortable on the opposite sides of the pitch. A break by Naismith ended with a low ball across goal but there was no one was in position to touch the ball home from the edge of the six yard box.
Hearts made a second change at the interval with Boyce coming on for Oliver Bozanic. I thought that Loic Damour would have been the player replaced as he appeared to be hampered by a knock he had taken early in the first half. Give Damour his due though ,as he had a good second half as the cover in midfield allowing others to support the front two. Naismith moved into midfield with Boyce partnering Washington upfront. Th change paid dividends with an equaliser in forty-nine minutes. A corner was cleared and then played forward to Walker about twenty yards from goal on the left. He fed the ball forward to Naismith in the penalty area and he sent a low ball across the six yard area for Washington to shoot home at the near post. Hearts were now on top and pushing forward for a second goal. Aaron Hickey who had a tough time in the first half in opposition to the speedy Aarons came more into the game and was pushing forward well. Boyce had a good chance from a Washington lay-off but shot wide. As the game moved into the later stages Motherwell came more into the game and Zlamal made a great save diving across goal to push a Jermaine Hylton shot from the edge of the penalty area away for a corner. Zlamal is not as good on the ball as Pereira when it comes to making clearances and his decision making on when to leave his goal area can be questionable but a keepers main role is to stop goals and Zlamal far ahead of his rival in this regard. Boyce and Walker had both received treatment on the pitch for head injuries, with Boyce now sporting a head bandage, before the fourth official signalled six minutes of added time. Washington attempted to cut the ball back to Naismith after a run to the byeline but the ball fell slightly behind the Hearts captain and he was unable to get a shot on target. As the match entered the final seconds Michael Smith had an opportunity but his shot from eighteen yards flew high over the bar. The game ended with a point apiece although it was disappointing the Hamilton picked up another win with a late goal at Kilmarnock.
I walked home pleased with Hearts performance but disappointed with the result, While the side played well against strong opponents, and would have probably lost the game if they had shown their early season form, there is still a lack of a cutting edge. With three international strikers in Naismith, Washington and Boyce the side need to convert more chances into goals. Hearts play St. Mirren in Paisley on Wednesday night and this now looks to be a ‘must win’ fixture to allay relegation fears.
Teams
Hearts: Zlamal, Smith, Hickey, Dikamona, Bozanic, Halkett, Clare, Damour, Washington, Naismith, Moore.
Subs: Walker, Boyce, Meshino
Motherwell: Gillespie, Tait, Grimshaw, Hartley, Campbell, Long, Hylton, Aarons, Polworth, Gallagher, O'Hara.
Subs: Maguire, Turnbull.
Hearts made one change to the starting eleven at Easter Road. Captain Steven Naismith came back into the starting eleven with Liam Boyce moving to the bench. The substitutes bench comprised goal-keeper Joel Pereira and six attacking players with no natural defensive cover. Uche Ikpeazu was not included in the squad despite being called up for the Ugandan national side in mid-week. I am not convinced that his playing style suits Daniel Stendel planned formation although I do think he makes a good impact substitute. Motherwell, under manager Steven Robinson, are currently third in The SPL. Motherwell are not what I would call a side with an attractive style of play. However their manager seems to have a wide range of contacts enabling him to bring in good players as replacements when others move on. In today’s side Christopher Long has been brought in to replace Curtis Main, now at Aberdeen with Newcastle loanee Rolando Aarons replacing Devante Cole who had returned to his parent club, Wigan Athletic, on expiry of his loan spell.
Hearts started slowly and after the performance on Tuesday I expected a better start. Sean Clare who had been injured earlier in the game had the first chance in around fifteen minutes. Conor Washington chased a through ball and Motherwell keeper Mark Gillespie rushed out of the penalty area on the right to kick clear ahead of the forward. The clearance went straight to Clare standing just inside his own half and,with the keeper out of the goal, he shot towards the empty net. With Gillespie stranded and running back towards the goal the ball was cleared by defender Alan Campbell who chested the ball down on the six yard line and cleared upfield. Motherwell went ahead in twenty-one minutes when Craig Halkett hesitated over a clearance about thirty yards from goal. His eventual clearance was charged down by Long who raced goal-wards with Halkett unable to stop him for fear of giving away a free-kick and receiving red card. ‘Bobby” Zlamal appeared to hesitate before rushing from his goal but Long took the ball past the keeper and shot into the empty net. Hearts then substituted Clare who was struggling with his earlier knock. Jamie Walker came on in his place and took up position on the left while Lewis Moore moved across to the right. I was surprised at this as both players are normally more comfortable on the opposite sides of the pitch. A break by Naismith ended with a low ball across goal but there was no one was in position to touch the ball home from the edge of the six yard box.
Hearts made a second change at the interval with Boyce coming on for Oliver Bozanic. I thought that Loic Damour would have been the player replaced as he appeared to be hampered by a knock he had taken early in the first half. Give Damour his due though ,as he had a good second half as the cover in midfield allowing others to support the front two. Naismith moved into midfield with Boyce partnering Washington upfront. Th change paid dividends with an equaliser in forty-nine minutes. A corner was cleared and then played forward to Walker about twenty yards from goal on the left. He fed the ball forward to Naismith in the penalty area and he sent a low ball across the six yard area for Washington to shoot home at the near post. Hearts were now on top and pushing forward for a second goal. Aaron Hickey who had a tough time in the first half in opposition to the speedy Aarons came more into the game and was pushing forward well. Boyce had a good chance from a Washington lay-off but shot wide. As the game moved into the later stages Motherwell came more into the game and Zlamal made a great save diving across goal to push a Jermaine Hylton shot from the edge of the penalty area away for a corner. Zlamal is not as good on the ball as Pereira when it comes to making clearances and his decision making on when to leave his goal area can be questionable but a keepers main role is to stop goals and Zlamal far ahead of his rival in this regard. Boyce and Walker had both received treatment on the pitch for head injuries, with Boyce now sporting a head bandage, before the fourth official signalled six minutes of added time. Washington attempted to cut the ball back to Naismith after a run to the byeline but the ball fell slightly behind the Hearts captain and he was unable to get a shot on target. As the match entered the final seconds Michael Smith had an opportunity but his shot from eighteen yards flew high over the bar. The game ended with a point apiece although it was disappointing the Hamilton picked up another win with a late goal at Kilmarnock.
I walked home pleased with Hearts performance but disappointed with the result, While the side played well against strong opponents, and would have probably lost the game if they had shown their early season form, there is still a lack of a cutting edge. With three international strikers in Naismith, Washington and Boyce the side need to convert more chances into goals. Hearts play St. Mirren in Paisley on Wednesday night and this now looks to be a ‘must win’ fixture to allay relegation fears.
Teams
Hearts: Zlamal, Smith, Hickey, Dikamona, Bozanic, Halkett, Clare, Damour, Washington, Naismith, Moore.
Subs: Walker, Boyce, Meshino
Motherwell: Gillespie, Tait, Grimshaw, Hartley, Campbell, Long, Hylton, Aarons, Polworth, Gallagher, O'Hara.
Subs: Maguire, Turnbull.
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