Young Accies ensure Hearts hit rock bottom
Their manager has bemoaned their dreadful luck.
But Hamilton Accies didn’t need good fortune to dismantle hapless Hearts.
Second half goals from Mickel Miller and Will Collar earned Accies their first win in 11 games – and sent the Jam Tarts to the bottom of the Premiership.
Brian Rice’s hard-working side were well worth their victory.
But Hearts’ dismal second half performance should spark real concern in Gorgie.
The Jam Tarts looked a side devoid of both creativity and confidence.
A side in real danger of relegation. Accies, to their credit, took full advantage.
“I thought we thoroughly deserved to win the match,” said their manager.
“Our second half performance, I thought, was outstanding.
“I was looking at the team just there and that’s the youngest Hamilton team there has ever been in the Premiership.
“Alex Gogic, at 25, was the oldest player in the team.
“We had a 20-year-old goalie, a 17-year-old centre half, 19-year-olds, 18-year-olds… they put a shift in. “I’m delighted for my lads today. “After everything they’ve been through in the last few weeks, grinding out performances without getting results, today, we deserved to win.
“I’m a firm believer that you win as a team and lose as a team. You get individual performances, but you need everybody to contribute, and today, especially in the second half, everybody contributed to a deserved win.”
Hearts gaffer Daniel Stendel rang the changes after losing to Celtic, with five new faces in his starting line-up.
With a win so desperately needed, it was an understandable move – and things started promisingly.
Michael Smith fired a long-range effort just over the bar early on as Hearts struck out in search of their first win in seven.
With Stendel cajoling from the touchline, Aaron Hickey, Steven Naismith (twice), Glen Whelan and Craig Halkett all came close before the break, with
Halkett striking the bar with a header on the stroke of half time.
But Accies had their moments too, and should have taken the lead when Aaron Mcgowan found George Oakley with a cross, only for the striker to miss the target with a header.
Hearts had been the dominant team in terms of possession, with Accies reduced to hitting them on the break.
But as the second half wore on, Stendel cut an increasingly frustrated figure in his technical area.