Bleeding Hearts are mended as Stamp sets about United

GARY SUTHERLAND

HEARTS 3
DUNDEE UTD 0

IT was third time unlucky for Dundee United, who remain rooted and pointless in the Premierleague after three weeks, following this gentle going over from the revivified Hearts who did all they could to expunge pained traces of last weekend’s late capitulation to their city rivals.

Three was actually the relevant - and in Hearts’ terms - magic number for the bustling home side who had engineered a 3-0 lead with barely a third of the match gone. That two of their strikes came from two of their best performers in man-of-the-match Phil Stamp and arch-marksman Mark de Vries was entirely fitting.

It was an ill-fitting kind of afternoon for the visitors, whose new team were some way from establishing the cohesion prevalent in Craig Levein’s established Hearts ensemble. All the essential business was conducted by Levein’s men before United had an opportunity to seize a foothold in the game.

Both teams would have held residual memory of recent sore defeats, Hearts coming off the back of an Edinburgh derby reverse, United having received their Celtic Park pummelling. Within the first-half hour here Hearts were to ensure that it would be they who were bouncing back, by which juncture their opponents were seeking the road north to Dundee.

Alan Maybury served early warning of the home side’s intent with a flashed drive past Paul Gallacher’s post, but it was a Stamp free-kick which got the better of the visiting keeper in the 19th minute in a sweet dead-ball exchange from Hearts 25 yards out.

Scott Severin touched the indirect award to Joe Hamill, who killed the pace of the ball before Stamp injected no end of venom to send a rasping attempt careering low past Gallacher for an early lead. If this was troublesome for United, not two minutes later the signs were ominous for them. The second goal was especially cruel on defender Mark Wilson.

It was Stamp who had pinged a high ball in the direction of De Vries, but Wilson chose to intercept with a header, designed for safety but in reality an accident, as the ball floated over the figure of the onrushing Gallacher and into an empty United net. There was nowhere for Wilson to hide his considerable embarrassment, as the match PA loudly credited him with the goal.

The first 15 minutes had a certain equilibrium in terms of the two teams competing with each other, but suddenly the game was lurching alarmingly to one side. As United, with some refined touches from Mark Kerr in midfield and an on-target but saved effort from Collin Samuel, were trying to get back into the game they fell completely out of it when De Vries decided to register his second strike of the season soon after the half-hour mark.

Not quite as dramatic as his opening-day solo effort against Aberdeen, but not bad either. Collecting with confidence inside the United penalty area the towering Dutchman bamboozled the retreating Danny Griffin twice before thrashing a firm attempt beyond the by now no doubt demoralised Gallacher.

Half time came and went and United didn’t leak early second-period goals, but this remained a distinctly uncomfortable ride for Ian McCall’s team with Hearts dominating in terms of possession and their seemingly superior strength. Typical of their formidable attitude was Stamp.

In the first half he had sent Barry Robson spinning towards orbit with a shuddering but expertly-timed tackle in the middle of the park. You had to keep looking to see where the United winger landed. Billy Dodds could not see anything later when Stamp thundered the ball off his face. Accidental but Dodds shortly afterwards was withdrawn from proceedings.

John Carew of Valencia could not get the better of the obdurate defensive partnership that is Steven Pressley and Andy Webster in Oslo on Wednesday night, so it stood to reason that United were perhaps going to find it tougher still.

Robson tried his luck from distance with a valiant drive, but Hearts were still the more likely to add to their already healthy tally. Robson’s ex- Inverness team-mate Dennis Wyness came close to a fourth, then De Vries nearly walked the ball into the away net despite close attention from two United defenders.

When United substitute Charlie Miller committed his reckless tackle on Severin, he could not escape the referee’s attention. A booking swiftly followed as did a tirade from Stamp who was furious at the challenge.

A Miller incursion into the Hearts penalty box with Tepi Moilanen diving at his feet ended with the former claiming a penalty to no avail. Before he was removed to rousing applause, De Vries almost had the ball tucked in the United net but with Wilson clearing off the line. Some redemption for the early own goal but the loss far outweighed the gain.

Back to business for Hearts. Meanwhile United worryingly are still finding it hard to get off the ground when pre-season confidence had been so high.

Taken from the Scotsman