Hearts feeling referee takes aggrieved as centre stage

SATURDAY’S league clash between Livingston and Hearts was supposed to be about two teams battling it out for third place in the SPL and the chance of European football next season.

Unfortunately, the Almondvale showdown was overshadowed by one man, referee Dougie McDonald taking centre stage after a performance which left both sides utterly bemused.

In a match which never approached being dirty, the official saw fit to flash eight yellow cards in addition to the controversial sending off of Hearts defender Alan Maybury.

Two of the bookings were ridiculous cautions for Ricardo Fuller and Barry Wilson, McDonald deeming the pair had attempted to win penalties by diving in the box.

The Jamaican looked as if he had simply lost his footing and stumbled over the ball as he broke into the area in the second half, while the Lions winger was clearly brought down by Roddy McKenzie as he raced in on goal in the closing minutes.

Tynecastle boss Craig Levein described as a "worrying trend" the reaction of referees to players going down during games.

But it was the 33rd-minute dismissal of Maybury which left Levein fuming and had the biggest bearing on proceedings.

And if Hearts are ultimately unsuccessful in their quest to prise third place from the grasp of Livingston - they now trail by nine points having played a game more - his early bath could be a key moment.

The Jambos had looked the more dangerous team up until then but with a man down were always going to struggle.

The defender was desperately trying to close down David Fernandez after the Spaniard had raced clear of Scott Severin after a superb turn on the halfway line.

The challenge from the former Leeds United player sent him tumbling to the turf on the near touchline right in front of the visitors’ dugout, Fernandez ending up on the ground next to the ball with the Hearts bench appealing for hand ball.

Thinking the action was continuing, Maybury proceeded to try to thump the ball out for a throw despite the presence of his opponent. Despite catching it flush in the midriff, to his credit Fernandez did not make a great deal of the incident.

McDonald, who had been toiling to keep up, saw things differently and raced in to pull Maybury away as both sets of players became embroiled in an almighty fracas.

The flashpoint also prompted extraordinary behaviour from home boss Jim Leishman, who charged up the track to launch a verbal volley at Hearts assistant Peter Houston, the furious Lions chief having to be ushered back to his own technical area by coach John Robertson and assistant referee Martin Doran to prevent him being banished to the stand, too.

Presumably, like McDonald, Leishman thought that Maybury had taken a vicious swipe at Fernandez as he lay on the ground. Television evidence, however, backed up Levein’s assertion that his player had in fact made contact with the ball.

Once the dust had settled, the whistler clearly thought he had no alternative other than to flash the red card at Maybury to leave Hearts nursing a real sense of injustice.

Perhaps McDonald was not at the best angle at which to see exactly what happened but if he has since viewed the incident on TV he may feel inclined to alter his opinion.

And with the Gorgie club proceeding with plans to launch an appeal in defence of their player, such footage can only help their case.

In the heat of battle it is debatable whether Maybury heard the whistle just moments before his second challenge and Levein said: "I saw what happened and Alan kicked the ball. Whether the Livingston player was lying behind the ball or not, it isn’t a sending off. Had Alan gone through the player then yes, I’d agree he had to go. But he didn’t. He kicked the ball and you can’t be sent off for kicking a ball, whether it’s lying next to an opponent or not.

"It doesn’t matter how hard he kicks it, either. Alan says he didn’t hear a free-kick being awarded . I was only a few yards away and didn’t hear anything either and in my opinion the referee made a mistake."

Both camps agreed the dismissal was the turning point, the visitors having looked more than capable of registering their first win over Livingston after two previous defeats.

The Jambos could have been a couple of goals ahead before Maybury’s departure, the impressive Nick Culkin doing well to save Steve Fulton’s drive and Steven Pressley heading just wide from the midfielder’s free-kick.

Despite Gary Wales being sacrificed for Stephen Simmons as Levein opted for just Fuller in attack, Culkin again had to produce a fine save to tip over a looping header from the substitute on the stroke of half-time.

The home side’s only effort of note in the first half was a Tosh volley which flew inches wide but after the break chances were always going to be more forthcoming.

David Bingham’s 54th-minute header broke the deadlock and although Hearts enjoyed more possession they couldn’t carve out clear-cut openings.

Culkin again saved well from Fuller moments later and it was somewhat against the run of play that Livingston made the game safe with Fernandez heading home after a lightning break by Brinquin down the right in the 65th minute.

Pressley the shot wide from an excellent position and Culkin saved from Adam as the Jambos battled valiantly to the end. Their efforts appeared to be rewarded when Fuller won a penalty in injury time but Simmons’ weak spot-kick was easily saved by Culkin to round off a miserable afternoon for Levein.

"The players feel robbed about the result," he added. "I was disappointed with the goals we lost but pleased with the way we responded in the second half.

"They had opportunities but you would expect that with an extra player but I was happy at the way we kept fighting and forced their keeper to make some good saves."

The fact Culkin was named man of the match is testimony to Hearts’ contribution to a thrilling afternoon’s entertainment but that will be of little consolation to those of a maroon persuasion.

The Hearts fans who had started to dust down their passports in anticipation of another adventure into Europe following the Jambos’ recent resurgence will have to store them away again after the defeat, the West Lothian side now firmly in the driving seat to clinch third place.

They are now nine points ahead of their nearest rivals with a game in hand, albeit against Celtic. And it will take a comeback of Lazarus proportions in the remaining three months of the season if the men from Tynecastle are to successfully bridge that gap.

It is not impossible, although there is no denying that Saturday’s reverse came as a hammer blow to such ambitions.

Taken from the Scotsman