No love lost as 10-man Hearts take the spoils

TWO teams left the ground feeling slightly aggrieved at the end of this one but they only had themselves to blame.

The visitors spent 60 minutes harbouring a grudge at the sending off of Michael Stewart but the midfielder's moment of petulance merited the punishment and while their hosts were annoyed that they were denied even a share of the spoils, the fact is, having secured their extra-man advantage, they didn't show enough zip and ingenuity in attack to create the chances needed to get goals.

In the end Eggert Jonsson's 78th minute header was enough to give the Tynecastle side their first win in six matches and elevate them to fourth place.

That outcome had looked a forlorn hope when Stewart was dispatched just before the interval. On a run forward in the 37th minute, his heels were clipped by Hugh Murray but, having released the ball and with a corner having been won, he then lost his temper, lashing out at Murray off the ball and then pushing him to the ground.

Confusion ensued as referee Mike McCurry, who had missed the incident, spent the next three minutes having words with Murray and Bruno Aguiar and then tried to sort out some jostling in the St Mirren goalmouth. It was only after fourth official Bobby Madden intervened that he sent Stewart packing. It provoked fury in the away ranks, with captain Christophe Berra running half the length of the pitch to confront Madden, while the Hearts coaching staff were still arguing with him as Stewart disappeared up the tunnel.

It was another blow to Hearts who had started with a makeshift defence, with Jonsson filling a central defensive berth in the absence of Zaliukas and young Jason Thomson coming in at right-back. They had also lost Saulius Mikoliunas early on with an apparent knee injury and he was replaced by Robbie Neilson on the right wing. It was the full-back's first appearance of the season due to his own injury woes.

It was St Mirren who had started the most creatively and had pieced together a few passing moves which took them within shooting range of Janos Balogh's goal but every time the move either broke down or the final shot was blocked before the Hearts keeper had to get involved. But at least the home side were seeking a way to goal. It took Hearts until midway through the half to find their rhythm and venture forward with any purpose. For a spell they did apply some pressure, raining free-kicks and corners into Mark Howard's box, but following Stewart's dismissal it got tougher.

At the start of the second half, and with neither side having managed a shot on target, Andy Dorman was sent on to try to carve out more openings for the home side. But given the fact Jonsson has only ever played centre-back on a few occasions in the reserves, he and Berra were an immovable force at the heart of the capital side's rearguard.

In an increasingly niggly match, direct shots on goal were still a rare commodity and while Hearts had to weather a bit of a storm, they eventually got their reward.

A free-kick in from the right flank was delivered into the St Mirren box by Andrew Driver and it was Jonsson who capped a splendid personal performance and let Stewart off the hook by timing his jump perfectly to get a head to the ball and power it low into Mark Howard's goal.

The celebration represented a surge of relief from a Hearts side, who had picked up only two points from a possible 15 in recent weeks and had spent most of this game on the back foot. But football is all about taking chances when they present themselves.

A rueful Gus McPherson admitted as much afterwards, disappointed that his side had not managed to capitalise on their numerical advantage. He has set his men the target of a top ten finish this season but this defeat left them sitting second bottom of the league, just one point above the relegation spot.

For Hearts, though, it was a valuable three points. The reshuffled side had been made to battle hard for them but the way they greeted the final whistle suggested the effort had been worthwhile.


MAN OF THE MATCH

Eggert Jonsson. He showed remarkable composure in an unfamiliar centre-back role and having contributed defensively, he then popped up to score the only goal.

QUICK FACT

The last time the two teams met at Love Street, John Potter had to go off injured after being accidentally kicked in the head by Saulius Mikoliunas. Yesterday the same two players came together early in the first half but this time Potter resumed play and it was the Lithuanian who had to be replaced.

TALKING POINT

Michael Stewart's sending off had tempers rising but the Hearts man was silly to have a go at Hugh Murray, not once but twice.