Calderwood still striking out

Patrick Glenn at Tynecastle
Sunday August 15, 2004
The Observer

Even the vandals who disfigured the pitch overnight- prompting excellent remedial work by the Tynecastle ground staff - could not be blamed for the general moderate standard of a match from which both sides took precisely what they deserved.

Berti Vogts would have derived more satisfaction, from watching Scotland's Craig Gordon and Steven Pressley of Hearts give unperturbed performances, than anyone else in the stadium.

There are times when an energising atmosphere can help sabotage the standard of football. Encouraged into putting an emphasis on commitment and application by an animated, demanding crowd, players betray a tendency to neglect attempts at composure and coherence.

Tynecastle on days such as these lends itself to such a phenomenon, a raucous and immovably aligned home support complemented by Aberdeen's far-travelled, endlessly supportive band of followers. The consequence is virtually uninterrupted intrigue and excitement, but a regrettable absence of enough fluency to satisfy those who yearn for artistry and inventiveness.

It is already obvious that imaginative forward play and sharp finishing are likely to be the most pressing problems that Jimmy Calderwood, the new Aberdeen manager, will have to solve.

Against Rangers on the opening day, nobody loyal to the Pittodrie club could possibly have complained of a lack of urgency and liveliness about their play - the first signs of it in a couple of years - but it had seemed throughout the match that, if they were to score, it would come about by accident.

They imparted a similar impression for much of this match, the hard-pressed midfield of Steven Tosh, Scott Severin, Markus Heikkinen and Chris Clark having difficulty in finding the time and space from which to supply Steven Craig and Noel Whelan.

What cohesion they had managed was disrupted after only 33 minutes, when Clark, carrying the ball out of defence on the left, suddenly pulled up, clearly in pain from a damaged hamstring. This resulted in Derek Adams joining Whelan, with Craig retreating into the middle.

By then, Aberdeen's most promising moments, unsurprisingly, had come from a piece of slipshod defending by Hearts and two penalty claims that had a certain legitimacy. It was Alan Maybury's short pass back to Gordon that allowed Heikkinen to reach the ball on the right of the penalty area, but the young goalkeeper stood up well to deflect the shot over the bar.

Pressley's challenges on Severin and Craig - the first a nudge from behind, the second a tackle that took the young forward at the knees - brought the hope of a kindly decision from referee Kevin Toner and, doubtless, plenty of alarm in the home dug-out before the official dismissed the claims.

If Hearts, especially during the first half, has more thrust, they were no more competent in finishing. Ramon Pereira's deft turn away from three defenders was ruined by a poor drive that sent the ball over by several feet.

The home side also failed to exploit the moment when the unfortunate Clark limped out of the play, Joe Hammill taking free possession and crossing from the right to Graham Weir, whose header back towards the far corner was hooked out from under the bar by the alert Russell Anderson.

Given the immense effort that each of the teams devoted to preventing the other from playing, nobody would be surprised at the shortage of authentic scoring opportunities. Nor was it entirely a shock when the respective supporters took to receiving the winning of a corner with the acclaim normally reserved for a cup final triumph.

The home fans experienced a fluttering in the collective breast when Pereira seemed to be clear in the area, but he had clearly used a hand. Yet, having spent most of the time pursuing a containment policy, it was Aberdeen who left the heaviest memories of near things in the closing stages.

McNaughton's powerful run down the right ended, unusually, with a precise cross to the far post. Adams's header was powerful and true, but Gordon distinguished himself once again. And there remained just enough time for Whelan, from another cross from the right to the same area, to head into the roof of the net. Even he would not have been surprised at being penalised for offside.

Taken from the Guardian/Observer