Sergio goal eases strain

22 Mar 1995

Dundee United 1, Hearts 1

SERGIO helped Dundee United take a vital point at Tannadice last night as Gordon Wallace's side edged themselves up one place in the premier division.

The Brazilian scored midway through the second half as United struggled back into the match after Allan Johnston had put Hearts in front after 28 minutes.

While Tynecastle manager Tommy McLean was delighted that his injury-hit side had extended their unbeaten run to seven games, there was concern when defender Steve Frail was carried off with a nasty knee injury just five minutes from the interval.

McLean said later: "The damage does not appear to be as bad as was first feared.

It does look to be a ligament injury and that is bad enough.

But we will not know the extent of the damage until we get Frail back to Tynecastle."

Should the player escape a lengthy spell on the sidelines, it will be good news for the Tynecastle support, the majority of whom see the defender as a key figure in the club's bid for Scottish Cup glory early next month.

The result appeared to satisfy Wallace.

"There was a lot of commitment shown by the players," he said, "and in the end few would disagree that we deserved at least a share of the rewards."

However, Wallace must have been far from satisfied about his team's early performance.

Hearts keeper Craig Nelson dealt competently with what United could throw at him prior to Allan Johnston opening the scoring after 28 minutes, a goal best forgotten by United captain Maurice Malpas who was slack with an attempted headed pass back, allowing Johnston to lob the ball over the keeper.

United's half-time pep talk had the desired effect and Craig Brewster powered a 30-yard shot just wide early in the second period as Wallace's players dug deep, and in 66 minutes United's pressure paid off with a bizarre equaliser.

Nelson made a mess of a Billy McKinlay corner, Mark Perry nodded the ball back into the danger area, and Gordan Petric and Brewster combined to provide Sergio with the ammunition to volley in his goal from close range.

DUNDEE UNITED -- O'Hanlon, McInally, Malpas, Perry, Petric, Craig, Bowman, McKinlay, Gomes, Brewster, Dailly.

Substitutes -- Johnson, Nixon, Garden.

HEARTS -- Nelson, Frail, Leitch, Levein, Jamieson, Berry, Mackay, Bett, Johnston, Millar, Hagen.

Substitutes -- Cramb, Locke, Smith.

Referee -- M Pocock (Aberdeen).

Taken from the Herald