'Blow football' does the job as Hearts edge out the Bairns

HAVING savoured the Continental delights of a French Cup tie the night before, Craig Levein was subjected to an evening of "blow football" at Tynecastle.

Hearts huffed and puffed and eventually knocked Falkirk down when Andy Kirk’s strike deflected off the head of Bairns boss John Hughes and found the net just four minutes from time.

It wasn’t pretty but the Jambos were just about worth the 2-1 victory which earned their passage to the quarter-finals of the CIS Cup.

Kirk’s moment of luck prevented the need for extra-time on a cold night when Levein couldn’t help but contrast with what he had seen just 24 hours earlier.

The Gorgie boss had flown to France to watch UEFA Cup opponents Bordeaux in action and was impressed by the flowing football he witnessed as Michel Pavon’s side triumphed 1-0 over Strasbourg.

Clearly, the French adopt a different approach to cup football than in this country.

Last night was all about grinding out the result for the Jambos and bearing in mind the 4-0 beating they received at the hands of the same opponents in the Scottish Cup in January they would probably have settled for the slender winning margin before kick-off.

Fair play to the First Division side, though. Manager Hughes got his tactics spot on and managed to strangle the life out of the game in the first half.

Lining up alongside Kevin James at the back, the Bairns boss knew there was a danger of the defence being caught out by the pace of Kirk if they stepped too far up the park. So they didn’t.

Falkirk sat in and invited Hearts on to them, forming a near impenetrable barrier which the Jambos found tricky to break down.

In such circumstances you would look to the likes of Jean-Louis Valois to provide the skill and invention to open up the opposition.

He was out of sorts last night, however, and one presumes the winger’s skills would have been more suited to the contest his manager savoured in his home country.

Nevertheless, Valois was involved in the incident which led up to the opening goal in the 54th minute. The wide-man won a free-kick a couple of yards outside the box as he attempted to wriggle through a couple of stiff challenges.

Paul Hartley stepped forward to strike the dead ball and, although keeper Alan Ferguson saved it, Mark de Vries was there to knock the ball over the line as Hughes and a team-mate tried manfully to intervene.

The loss of the opener scuppered Hughes’s game-plan. Cue Plan B, which was simply to give the ball to Russell Latapy.

The former Hibs playmaker was jeered in the early stages and after a couple of enterprising moments drifted right out of the game.

But when his team most needed a moment of inspiration he provided it, picking the ball up in midfield and then proving deceptively strong to hold off the challenge of Stephen Simmons before lashing in a low 25-yarder with his left foot.

The shot should have been saved, but youngster Craig Gordon - making his competitive home debut - let the ball squirm through his grasp and into the net. His reaction said it all as it took him several seconds before he gingerly climbed to his feet, clearly annoyed at himself.

The 20-year-old had been challenged by Levein to prove himself worthy of a permanent place between the sticks but the error might just delay his elevation to first-choice status.

Gordon had actually started the game well, denying first Latapy then David Nicholls with impressive blocks in the opening ten minutes, but his inactivity thereafter seemed to have had affect on his concentration.

Surprisingly, a smiling Latapy was withdrawn immediately after the equaliser, and the Bairns reverted to their original tactic which seemed to have worked until Kirk intervened.

The Irishman cut inside from the right before lashing in a left-foot effort which struck Hughes and was diverted high past Ferguson.

The goal brought relief to Levein who was happy to have purged the memory of that painful defeat in January.

He said: "I never thought we were likely to get beat 4-0 again but it was a really, really difficult match. I didn’t think we were in danger of losing but Falkirk were brilliant defensively.

"When you put so many good, experienced players together in the heart of your defence and midfield you are going to have a chance. These guys might be coming to the end of their careers but on one-off occasions like this they are still capable of top-class performances.

"We found it hard to break them down and we could also be critical of our final ball.

"Kirky did well to come up with the goal at the end, even if we got a wee break. He got a chance, just one chance, and he scored with it which is what you’re looking for from your strikers."

Hughes was full of praise for his players’ attitude and appetite for the fray and challenged them to reproduce it in the league.

He said: "I think we got our tactics right and frustrated Hearts, but in the end we were frustrated ourselves.

"The goal was hard to take as Fergie was ready to throw his cap on the shot until it bounced off my head and flew in. But I’m delighted with the attitude of the boys. Our team has a lot of big names in it but sometimes you don’t get the commitment from those names.

"We got it from them at Tynecastle and now they need to show it week in, week out, in the First Division."

Hearts face a resurgent Livingston in the SPL on Sunday before travelling to Bordeaux for their European clash next Thursday.

Levein admits the game will prove a complete contrast to last night’s meaty affair but he believes that although the French may prove technically superior, his side have enough qualities of their own to cause them problems.

He added: "I thoroughly enjoyed the match and it’s fair to say they play a different style of football.

"It was more a game of chess than the blow football we play here and it was great to watch.

"Technically, Bordeaux are excellent and they will be a very tough side to beat. However, I hope we have strengths that they won’t come up against in that league.

"What we’re looking for is a result which will give us a chance to come back to a packed Tynecastle for the second leg with a chance of going through."

Taken from the Scotsman