What's going on here then

Ok, i have a question, it will take a while to formulate this question so read on.

Two games to cover since the fantastic demolition of Hibs, last Sunday. The cup final is tucked away in the back pocket so we can concentrate on the 2nd place and the shot at the champions league.
Whilst Hearts were having so much fun against the pathetic green fae Leith Rangers went up to Tannadice and won 4 - 1 to bring them to within three points of Hearts.
This meant that the game a Celtic Park last wednesday was double edged -
With a win Celtic would win the league on the earliest date in the history of the SPL. With the start we made and all the fuss that was made how could we have let this happen? - thats not my question but it is a bloody good one.
Rangers are now just 3 points behind us, we have a game in hand ofcourse but that game in hand is this one - away to Celtic who are just about to win the title.

I mentioned to a bloke in the work when asked what i thought about the game - i said, well i think there is a fair chance that Hearts could take something from the game but also i had a feeling that if Celtic got their noses in front - with the league in their grasp and Hearts may suffer a bit from Sundays exploits that - maybe Celtic could cut loose a bit and rack up a good few goals. Where the hell did that come from, i am ashamed of myself - the only time Hearts have been beaten by more than one goal this season was that aberration down at Easter Road in the wake of the Burley disaster, so why on earth should i think we would capitulate under Celtic - shocking.
Hearts were without Pressley who suffered a case of concussion during the semi final, and also Goncalves who suffered a mild case of de-capitation in the same game. Presley was missed immediately as zurawski knocked down for Hartson to strike a hopeful volley from 25 yards - Gordon was well out of possition but i think the miss of Pressley for the knock down was more telling. From that point the game changed - now answer me this, 17 points ahead at home to your closest challengers with a win needed for the title - would you go for it, would you put in a performance and give your faithfull fans a good reason to celebrate. Or would you turn in one of your most dour and dismal performances of the season. I thought Celtic were awful, two banks of four perpetually in their own half, they gave Hearts all the territory and all the possession and fought in their own third only. Mind you i think Hearts could still be there and not have equalised but that is not my point, aren't you supposed to entertain someone some of the time.
Hearts had the ball in the back of the net but Webster was offside.
Another Celtic supporter in the work tried to excuse the performance by bringing up last years final day disaster where they threw the league away with minutes to go - doesn't cut it for me, they were crap.
I thought, christ anyone can defend like that, we play Dunfermline at Tyney on Saturday and they could come and play exactly like Celtic - I really have no idea what i am on about do i.
Hearts seemed to command and control the game throughout this one, without really threatening too much they looked really pretty good.

Dunfermline turned up and the first thing of note was the reprise of 'Oh the Hibees are Ga..ay' oh how predictable, small minded and childish the Hearts support are, brilliant ain't it. The second thing of note was the first half, i haven't seen us play this well since either the start of the season or well for bloody years - it is true Dunfermline were awful but the fluidity and the movement of the Hearts team all over the park was fantastic i mean we were bloody brilliant. No Rudi Skacel, he has been on the wain for ages now and it is right he needs time off. No Webster either tho and that is not so understandable, mind you finding a place in your team for Goncalves is definitely a good thing. I think it was the midfield where it was really cooking tho Miko, Chesney, Hartley and Bruno Aguar were awsome really. Miko and Chesney would swap wings every couple of minutes leaving the Dunfermline defence chasing shadows ( actually they just sort of stood around looking dizzy ) - i guess there were a couple of times we were off balance when Fyassas would look up the left channel expecting to see Skacel but no one was there, but that is a very small gripe. I guess you could say that the goals we scored in the first half did not live up to the play we produced but thats just another small gripe. The goals were just too easy........
A long throw in from the right by Neilson, was met unchallenged on the half by Pospisil ( in for the injured Jankauskas ) and he slotted it home 1 - 0. Dunfermlines only tactic was damage limitation and at that they were rubbish.
A cross in from the right by Neilson was met unchallenged by Bednar who looped a header over the keeper, it took an age to come down but finally dropped in at the back post 2 - 0.
A short corner was cut back to Miko who slipped to the side 12 yards out and slotted the ball home 3 - 0
It was half an hour gone and the game was well and truly over and just far too easy.
The second half was a bit more of a snore really we were still in complete control and completely comfortable but had lost a bit of a cutting edge, it was more like a training session really - Fyassas had the ball on the right close to the touchline and the byline with two Dunfermline players covering - i swear he had half an hour to consider his options before he clipped the ball round the back of his right leg with his left to outfox the two of them - Fyassas is no spring chicken but he looked like he had to wind up his ankles before he could go for the ball he had knocked towards the box, he got there tho but his low cross was cut out. The rest of the Hearts front line ran up to him with high fives and congratulations - like i say, this was an exhibition match.
On came the two most expensive recruits in January - Makela for Pospisil and Beslija for Miko, still can't work out what Beslija is going to do for his 850,000 but Makela slotted away the corner very well for his goal, 4 - 0
Beslija seemed to offload the ball back the way every time he got it, maybe he needs to build a bit of confidence but on the whole it is good to see some of these guys settling down and getting fit and getting a game and making it better. I am beginning to get to the question i have.
Now i said earlier that Celtic were tripe and anyone even Dunfermline could defend like that, patently they couldn't so maybe Celtic's tripeness was down to Hearts just plain not allowing them to play. What if the last few months have been a self imposed mallaise that has fooled us all into believing that we really weren't that good. We would never play like this under Rix, it is like the shackles have been taken off and we can play football again. The only thing that carried Rix at all was the general decent quality of the players. All far too late now, but what if Rix had never happened? There are piles of other factors ofcourse but the last three games have seemed so much more like the start of the season, i have to wonder, what the hell did we do to ourselves?
Bednar wrapped it up for me in an interview in the Scotland on Sunday - "The last three games have been like the first 5 of the season" note, not the first 8 the first 5 and he is right we definitely dipped after those first fantastic games. Thats probably a lot of questions, too many.
It does fill me with hope for the run in, it goes

Hearts v Killie
Hibs v Hearts
Hearts v Celtic
Hearts v Aberdeen
Rangers v Hearts

So we go to Ibrox on the last game of the season and any slip between now and then could mean that 2nd place is up for grabs, even if it does, i would have no fear going to Ibrox if we play like we have over the past few games.