HEARTS LATE SHOW STUNS STEELMEN
Tynecastle men come Haring back to clinch late glory
FOR Hearts, the fairytale start to the season continues, but they needed to delve into the deepest reserves of their character to finally kill off cup specialists Motherwell.
Down to an early Curtis Main penalty and not firing on all cylinders, Craig Levein’s men roared back to turn this breathless tie on its head with goals either side of the break from Steven MacLean and Peter Haring.
Yet with just ten minutes to go, a screamer of a strike from Ryan Bowman had the match heading towards extra time.
Then up popped Olly Lee and Steven Naismith with late goals to give the winning margin more gloss than a close contest deserved.
Unbeaten in the league, with a five-point cushion at the top, Levein’s men now have a Betfred Cup semi-final with Celtic to savour next month.
The last time these two sides met — at Fir Park 11 days ago — it had also been a close, albeit far lower-scoring, affair in favour of the visitors.
On that occasion, Hearts triumphed through a lone Naismith goal following a hefty 50-50 tackle between Uche Ikpeazu and Trevor Carson. Carson was fit last night but Ikpeazu did not make it back in time for the rematch.
Motherwell boss Stephen Robinson had urged his side to rediscover the ‘nasty’ streak that saw them reach both domestic finals last season, losing both to Celtic.
He was able to field strikers Bowman and Main together in his starting line-up for the first time since a 5-0 Betfred Cup win over Edinburgh City in Lanarkshire on July 17.
Main’s first contribution in a frantic opening was to head Naismith’s goalbound effort from a Lee corner off the line.
Lee’s second corner was met by Haring and his header was also cleared off the line, this time by Chris Cadden. After surviving the double scare, Motherwell went on to take the lead.
Gael Bigirimana flighted in a free-kick onto the head of Liam Donnelly, whose effort struck Jimmy Dunne’s hand.
Willie Collum pointed to the spot and Main stroked the ball confidently home. It was the striker’s third goal of the season, all of which have come in the Betfred Cup.
The home side almost levelled after a fine move down the right, with Callumn Morrison feeding Michael Smith, whose cutback was clipped agonisingly over the bar by MacLean.
Within seconds, Hearts keeper Zdenek Zlamal had to claw away an angled drive by Main after the striker broke free and cut in from the left flank.
With ten minutes of the first half left, Hearts finally got themselves back into the match. After Bigirimana was dispossessed, Morrison sent over a fine cross to the back post.
Naismith headed back across goal and MacLean was there a yard out to gleefully ram the ball into the net. It was the veteran former St Johnstone striker’s fourth goal of the season.
Levein’s men should have taken a lead into the break when Naismith somehow headed a Demetri Mitchell cross over from close range.
Main then thought he had scored right on the whistle but his header from Cadden’s cross flew into the side netting.
Haring thought he had put the hosts in front early in the second period but his header from Morrison’s dangerous centre flashed fractionally wide.
The Austrian midfielder would enjoy better luck moments later.
John Souttar’s low ball across the face of the goal from the right left Haring staring at an empty net and he slid in to convert.
Morrison could have put the game beyond doubt when he raced through on goal. If he had squared to Arnaud Djoum, the Cameroon international would have had an open goal. But the youngster elected to shoot and Carson made an important save.
That moment could have proved costly when Bowman cracked home a 25-yard shot to set up a thrilling finale.
However, with two minutes left, Haring played in Scotland international Naismith and his cutback was cracked home by Lee. Tynecastle erupted again when Naismith put the result beyond doubt. It meant Hearts had reached their first semi-final since losing on penalties to Inverness Caley Thistle in the League Cup in 2014.
HEARTS (4-4-2): Zlamal; Smith, Dunne, Souttar, Mitchell; Morrison (Dikamona 86), Haring, Lee (Bozanic 90), Djoum; Naismith, MacLean (Amankwaa 90). Subs not used: Doyle, Garuccio, McDonald, Mulraney. Booked: Mitchell. MOTHERWELL (3-5-2): Carson; McHugh, Aldred, Donnelly; Tait, Campbell (Johnson 75), Bigirimana (Frear 66), Grimshaw, Cadden; Bowman, Main. Subs not used: Gillespie, Taylor-Sinclair, Mblulu, Turnbull, Maguire. Booked: McHugh. Man of the Match: Peter Haring. Referee: Willie Collum. Attendance: 14,377.