No Overtaking

Absolutely convinced i was, that all would be OK, that Hearts would win the game this week against Aberdeen and put 1 point between us and real pressure on them. I was really looking forward to the game, full of anticipation without the sickening nervousness to get in the way of the run up.
Larry Kingston, as expected picked up a ban for his racist slur against the referee the last time these two teams met - a 3 game ban sounded like poetic justice given that there were exactly 3 games left of the season and may well have wrapped up Larry's career in a Hearts shirt and packed him up and off to somewhere else - The SFA are a shower of barstewards.
Who knows i sincerely hope that Larry sticks around to see out next season at least, without UEFA football for Hearts we may not be his choice however. As for the ban it was of course immediately appealed .. rant time

A good few dour Aberdonians picked up the blower to various football phone in's to bemoan that the phone in host will have had his tea then! and also that Hearts had no right to appeal the ban on Larry, Hearts should just take their medicine and get on with it. One caller even had the bare faced North Eastern doom-mongery to ask if this was Hearts reaching a new low!?
Well to these punters i state ....

This was as i am sure we will all agree, a tactical appeal to allow Larry to play in as many of these important last few games as possible, with the full understanding that it may result in a harsher sentence being bestowed ( that is the risk taken ). Furthermore every manager of any club would have done exactly the same thing and if not, as a supporter of the club who didn't appeal under those same circumstances i would definitely have asked questions.
My point is not that the appeal is morally just. My point is that this is not something intrinsic or peculiar to Heart of Midlothian Football Club that only we would lower ourselves to make such an appeal, i mean, get real!

Tynecastle was as expected full to capacity and the crowd were expectant of a real battle and willing to play their part in the fight for 3rd spot. Convinced and still am that a win for Hearts would have put too much pressure on Aberdeen, they would crack before the end to allow Hearts to nip in and steal the UEFA cup place. So this was do or die for us, time to put up or shut up. A draw would be a lot more use to Aberdeen than it would be to us so i had prepared myself for a hard slog trying to break down a well organised and hungry Aberdeen side intent on taking their 4 point advantage over us into the last two games. I suppose given those last two games for Aberdeen are against the ugly sisters i can see now why the play for a draw and hope for a win tactic was not their favoured option.

I was entertained by the banner over in the Aberdeen end which had the logo ...

along with the respective points totals and current league positions, well once i had worked it out any roads. For a while i pondered - christ have Aberdeen finished 3rd 61 times and Hearts 4th 57 times no way! and even if they had what anal mentalist would have had the compulsive disorder to work it out and paint a banner about it. DOH !

Now that i have taken account of what the Hearts do rather than the bloody huddle we used to do, i am not so sure the huddle is such a bad idea. The players danced around the centre circle in some broken square dance attempting to double handedly high five each and every one of each other. Tell me what is wrong with the good old fashioned - take up your position on the park, shout encouragement at your team mates and scream threatening abuse at the opposition?

After some early pressure from Hearts Aberdeen settled into the game and dominated the midfield for most of the first half, during this time they created a number of decent chances and must have been aggrieved to go in at half time without scoring never mind a goal down!
But that is how it was, Aberdeen had a great cross and header crash off the post, a shot just over and a whole load of other chances that may have come to more than they did. A lot was coming down their left wing where Karipidis was getting skinned every time, he did not look comfortable at all. Kancelkis was inside of him and was enduring his own crisis. A crisis mostly self induced mind you as he set about making an enemy of the ref for not much reason at all. After his booking and post booking talking too from the ref Gordon was desperately signalling to the bench to get him subbed off before he got sent off. This appeal was ignored by the bench until half time when he was replaced by Tall. With Tall inside him Karapidis had a much happier second half. No explanation for that just how i seen it?
You couldn't really say that Hearts goal was against the run of play, it just sort of came out of no where. A plus for us was the return of Bednar up front to accompany Velicka, a minus however was a return to a more arial game with lots of long balls aimed up to the front two. Was this something to do with Bednar up front, i hope not because it is not the best part of his game, not by a long shot. Nevertheless it was one of those arial launches that, not dealt with allowed Velicka to slip through the left channel and in on goal, still with lots to do, under pressure and with the angle tightening he managed to crash the ball under the keeper. Very like the second goal at Easter Road earlier in the season to steal that 2 - 2 draw against Hibs. So similar in fact that a round of "are you Zibby in disguise" belted from the Wheatfield Stand. Much more a round of our euro anthem engulfed Tynecastle, the first time we have heard that one for a good few months now and a sure sign that belief was in the air. We needed another goal in this encounter though and that's where the trouble starts.

Half Time
HMFC 1
Aberdeen 0

Aberdeen must have been pretty gutted at going in a goal down but you wouldn't have known from the second half, it was pretty much role reversal. Hearts the more dominant, with the lions share of possession and chances. A fair shout for a penalty as Driver drove into the box, defender sprawling under his feet he clearly handled the ball as Driver attempted to round him. Referee unimpressed and neither were the Tynecastle faithful. A few more chances, efforts on goal but the clear cut chance just was not coming, a combination of decent defending and the wrong ball at the wrong time meant that as the game wore on it became ever more nervous, that nervousness osmosis like drifted up the stands as the game entered it's final stages.
A break down the right and a cross far to the back post opened out a clear opportunity for Aberdeen, a well struck shot just over the bar - That was their chance i muttered under my breath!
Brewster had come on and as is his want he set about setting about the Hearts defence, with only a couple of minutes left he created the opening - again down the right for another cross to the back post, this time crashed into the top of the net for the all important equaliser. The Red Ultras as they like to call themselves enjoyed that one. I am beginning to fail to remember the last time Aberdeen did not get it right up us in the last few minutes of a game at Tynecastle - oh aye, the same fixture this time last year!

Funny old game but i am not so sure that it really makes that much difference - Aberdeen still need to take 2 points from their two remaining games, assuming Hearts win both ours mind you.
With Celtic horsed by Her Royal Ugliness and a Scottish Cup final coming up surely they will need to start playing football again and i just don't see Rangers doing them any favours. We might yet just sneak it.
Brutally honest here - Aberdeen deserve their UEFA spot it will surely be a steal if we manage to wrestle it from them - get the tights over yer heads and swag bags at the ready.

HOOOO ON THE JAMBOS