20040803 Hearts in the Press from Scotsman Venus left stargazing as Hibs win derby honours Paul Kiddie

HIBS No.2 Mark Venus today praised the performance of his young side after the Easter Road outfit defeated Hearts 3-1 in the final of the East of Scotland Shield at Tynecastle.

Goals from Stephen Dobbie, Samuel Morrow and Dean Shiels gave the visitors a comfortable victory over vastly more experienced opponents, whose only counter came from Dennis Wyness via the penalty spot.

It was an impressive display from the Hibees, who fully merited the win last night in what was at times a fiercely contested derby.

Hearts fielded eight recognised first-team players - Michael Stewart made his first start for the club since joining on loan from Manchester United last week - but can have no complaints with the outcome of the tie.

"The lads worked hard for each other and they had to as we knew Hearts had a lot of strength and experience," said Venus. "We tried to break away because of Hearts’ power and it worked and we all enjoyed the occasion. We all knew they would put a strong team out but it wasn’t about Hearts, it was about how we played. That was all we were interested in.

"It’s about the young boys improving their game and putting into practice what we want them to do. It’s about them showing individual skill, getting themselves fit and expressing themselves.

"They have responded to everything we have asked of them and I was very pleased. It was a good game and a useful exercise as it is still pre-season."

The loss came at some cost for the Jambos with Stephen Simmons being stretchered off after just five minutes with a broken foot after a lunging tackle from Jay Shields, who could easily have seen red instead of the yellow brandished by referee Stephen Finnie.

The midfielder had started as a strike partner to Wyness and his early departure meant a quick change of plan for home coach John McGlynn, who brought on Calum Elliott up front.

With Hibs enjoying the better of the game, it came as little surprise when the visitors broke the deadlock after 22 minutes.

Kevin Nicol was sent clear into the box by a fine pass from Shiels. Scotland keeper Craig Gordon came charging out to meet him on the right-hand side of the area but the 22-year-old showed great presence of mind to cut the ball back to Dobbie, who chipped home into an unguarded net.

Ten minutes later and the home defence was split open again, this time Nicol picking out Morrow with a superb pass. He did well to create a shooting chance for himself but Patrick Kisnorbo came to his side’s rescue with a magnificent sliding block.

The hosts’ best moments came towards the end of the first half. Firstly, Stewart’s cross presented a good opportunity for Christophe Berra but the defender’s header lacked accuracy as the ball flew well off target.

Seconds later and it was Wyness’ turn to have a chance but he, too, failed to direct his header on target from ten yards out after a great cross from Neil MacFarlane.

Any hopes the home fans had of seeing their team draw level before the break, though, were dashed two minutes from the interval when the impressive Shiels picked out Morrow with a delightful through ball and the front man kept his composure to chip the advancing Gordon and double the Hibees’ advantage.

On the stroke of half-time Hearts clawed their way back into the game with a well taken penalty from Wyness after Elliott had been fouled in the box by John Kane.

That timely strike should have given the Jambos the platform to come out and carry the game to their city rivals but seven minutes after the restart the home side found themselves 3-1 behind.

Hearts had indeed been pressing for an equaliser but after Robert Sloan’s cross from the left just evaded Wyness, the visitors swept upfield to restore their two-goal advantage. Morrow this time turned provider, his defence-splitting pass sending Shiels in on Gordon and the Northern Ireland Under-21 internationalist rounded the keeper before slotting into an empty net.

As they strived to force their way back into proceedings Hearts came close on a number of occasions without any luck. Grant Tierney saw a header cleared off the line by Dermet McAffray, Berra headed inches wide and a Stewart shot grazed the post.

With tempers rising towards the end, referee Finnie became caught up in the action and showed Stewart a second yellow card for a foul on Shields despite the midfielder not having been previously cautioned, the official quickly realising his mistake and allowing the Scotland internationalist to remain on the pitch.

There were five bookings in total - Kisnorbo, Craig Sives and Stewart for Hearts and Shields and Morrow for Hibs, with Venus relieved to see both teams finish with 11 men still on the park. "There were a few loose feet at the end but I suppose that is going to happen every time they play each other," he said. "That’s what is expected and I’m glad no-one got sent off at the end as that would have spoiled the evening."

McGlynn was disappointed the first-team players didn’t make more of an impression on the game. He said: "Considering the experience we had out on the park it was a big disappointment. In derby games you have to win your battles and we didn’t win enough of them. We were a bit fortunate to get a goal back before half-time and that should have given us a lift but

we can’t really have any complaints."

Hearts: Gordon, Kisnorbo, Sives, Berra, Tierney, Stewart, MacFarlane, Janczyk (Thomson, 65), Sloan (Driver, 85), Simmons (Elliott, 7), Wyness. Subs not used: Barjaktarevic, Murtagh.

Hibs: Brown, Kane, McAffray, O’Neill, Baillie (Notman, 23), Shields, Nicol, Shiels, Dobbie, Riordan (McCluskey, 89), Morrow (Fletcher, 82). Subs not used: Reid, McDonald.

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Venus left stargazing as Hibs win derby honours PAUL KIDDIE HIBS No.2 Mark Venus today praised the performance of his young side after the Easter Road outfit defeated Hearts 3-1 in the final of the East of Scotland Shield at Tynecastle. Goals from Stephen Dobbie, Samuel Morrow and Dean Shiels gave the visitors a comfortable victory over vastly more experienced opponents, whose only counter came from Dennis Wyness via the penalty spot. It was an impressive display from the Hibees, who fully merited the win last night in what was at times a fiercely contested derby. Hearts fielded eight recognised first-team players - Michael Stewart made his first start for the club since joining on loan from Manchester United last week - but can have no complaints with the outcome of the tie. "The lads worked hard for each other and they had to as we knew Hearts had a lot of strength and experience," said Venus. "We tried to break away because of Hearts’ power and it worked and we all enjoyed the occasion. We all knew they would put a strong team out but it wasn’t about Hearts, it was about how we played. That was all we were interested in. "It’s about the young boys improving their game and putting into practice what we want them to do. It’s about them showing individual skill, getting themselves fit and expressing themselves. "They have responded to everything we have asked of them and I was very pleased. It was a good game and a useful exercise as it is still pre-season." The loss came at some cost for the Jambos with Stephen Simmons being stretchered off after just five minutes with a broken foot after a lunging tackle from Jay Shields, who could easily have seen red instead of the yellow brandished by referee Stephen Finnie. The midfielder had started as a strike partner to Wyness and his early departure meant a quick change of plan for home coach John McGlynn, who brought on Calum Elliott up front. With Hibs enjoying the better of the game, it came as little surprise when the visitors broke the deadlock after 22 minutes. Kevin Nicol was sent clear into the box by a fine pass from Shiels. Scotland keeper Craig Gordon came charging out to meet him on the right-hand side of the area but the 22-year-old showed great presence of mind to cut the ball back to Dobbie, who chipped home into an unguarded net. Ten minutes later and the home defence was split open again, this time Nicol picking out Morrow with a superb pass. He did well to create a shooting chance for himself but Patrick Kisnorbo came to his side’s rescue with a magnificent sliding block. The hosts’ best moments came towards the end of the first half. Firstly, Stewart’s cross presented a good opportunity for Christophe Berra but the defender’s header lacked accuracy as the ball flew well off target. Seconds later and it was Wyness’ turn to have a chance but he, too, failed to direct his header on target from ten yards out after a great cross from Neil MacFarlane. Any hopes the home fans had of seeing their team draw level before the break, though, were dashed two minutes from the interval when the impressive Shiels picked out Morrow with a delightful through ball and the front man kept his composure to chip the advancing Gordon and double the Hibees’ advantage. On the stroke of half-time Hearts clawed their way back into the game with a well taken penalty from Wyness after Elliott had been fouled in the box by John Kane. That timely strike should have given the Jambos the platform to come out and carry the game to their city rivals but seven minutes after the restart the home side found themselves 3-1 behind. Hearts had indeed been pressing for an equaliser but after Robert Sloan’s cross from the left just evaded Wyness, the visitors swept upfield to restore their two-goal advantage. Morrow this time turned provider, his defence-splitting pass sending Shiels in on Gordon and the Northern Ireland Under-21 internationalist rounded the keeper before slotting into an empty net. As they strived to force their way back into proceedings Hearts came close on a number of occasions without any luck. Grant Tierney saw a header cleared off the line by Dermet McAffray, Berra headed inches wide and a Stewart shot grazed the post. With tempers rising towards the end, referee Finnie became caught up in the action and showed Stewart a second yellow card for a foul on Shields despite the midfielder not having been previously cautioned, the official quickly realising his mistake and allowing the Scotland internationalist to remain on the pitch. There were five bookings in total - Kisnorbo, Craig Sives and Stewart for Hearts and Shields and Morrow for Hibs, with Venus relieved to see both teams finish with 11 men still on the park. "There were a few loose feet at the end but I suppose that is going to happen every time they play each other," he said. "That’s what is expected and I’m glad no-one got sent off at the end as that would have spoiled the evening." McGlynn was disappointed the first-team players didn’t make more of an impression on the game. He said: "Considering the experience we had out on the park it was a big disappointment. In derby games you have to win your battles and we didn’t win enough of them. We were a bit fortunate to get a goal back before half-time and that should have given us a lift but we can’t really have any complaints." Hearts: Gordon, Kisnorbo, Sives, Berra, Tierney, Stewart, MacFarlane, Janczyk (Thomson, 65), Sloan (Driver, 85), Simmons (Elliott, 7), Wyness. Subs not used: Barjaktarevic, Murtagh. Hibs: Brown, Kane, McAffray, O’Neill, Baillie (Notman, 23), Shields, Nicol, Shiels, Dobbie, Riordan (McCluskey, 89), Morrow (Fletcher, 82). Subs not used: Reid, McDonald. Taken from the Scotsman
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