O'Donnell volley seals victory

Patrick Glenn at Fir Park
Sunday August 29, 2004
The Observer

Hearts' first defeat also brought the first blemish to their goals-against column on a day when their status as Scotland's third team behind the Old Firm was made to look misplaced. By the time Kevin McBride and Phil O'Donnell produced their goals, Motherwell had made themselves an imposing force, immovable in defence, lively and inventive in midfield and, given the chance, deadly in attack.

The least surprising managerial act of the day was Terry Butcher's removal of McBride - replaced by Mark Fitzpatrick - after 88 minutes, clearly with the intention of giving the home support the opportunity to acclaim the player's outstanding contribution. In an uncharacteristically dishevelled and uninspired Hearts side, there were none worthy of similar recognition.

After a first half in which there was little to choose between the sides - the visitors' deterioration in the second would have come as a shock to those who followed them west from Edinburgh. The match may have given Hearts an opportunity to go to the top of the Premier League, but the Tynecastle side realised even before the kick-off - and confirmed during the event - that there are less rigorous challenges than a visit to Fir Park.

Terry Butcher's progressive team, a mixture of experience-driven composure and guile, youthful energy and skill, have, in the past couple of years, cut down some fancy reputations on their own turf. If they have, at the same time, shown a frustrating tendency towards inconsistency, it has been largely due to the number of younger players on whom Butcher has come to rely and, predictably, the departures of such valuable contributors as James McFadden to Everton and Stephen Pearson to Celtic.

One of their most telling attributes, however, is a refusal to be intimidated by higher-ranking opponents, a sense of self-certainty they demonstrated for long periods of a match that was unsurprisingly well-balanced. Indeed, it took all of 40 minutes for either side's equilibrium to be upset, the visitors the victims when an early injury to midfielder Phil Stamp finally forced his removal, to be replaced by Michael Stewart. The former Scotland under-21 midfielder, on loan from Manchester United, was on the field only a few seconds when he delivered a centre from the right which Patrick Kisnorbo sliced right-footed from 12 yards against the outside of Gordon Marshall's left-hand post.

That was something of a rarity from the visitors as, by then, Motherwell had produced the more threatening moments. Indeed, the shortage of genuine excitement within either goal area was an indicator of the general evenness of the play. David Clarkson was a little unlucky when he burst into the left side of the penalty area to reach a pass from Scott McDonald, the ball spinning awkwardly from his knee and allowing Craig Gordon to arrive in time to block the young striker's shot. McDonald, a pacey and elusive forward, made another bolt into the same area and seemed likely to present Phil O'Donnell with an unmissable opportunity from only six yards, until the alert Alan Maybury intervened to concede a corner kick.

When the goals arrived, even Hearts' most vehement apologists could not have argued with Motherwell's entitlement to an emphatic lead. The home side were quicker, stronger and more inventive than their opponents, a combination of advantages that is virtually guaranteed to bring profit. Pressley had been forced into a series of fouls before the one committed on McBride on the left that brought him a final warning from referee Alan Freeland.

It was all the more surprising, then, that he should be allowed to escape without a yellow card when he conceded the penalty kick by bringing down O'Donnell as McBride delivered the free kick from the left. McBride himself, who had by then emerged as an unshakable pest to the Hearts defence, converted with a low drive to the right of Gordon. In an attempt to quell McBride, Craig Levein sent on Jamie McAllister in place of Robbie Neilson (McBride's principal victim) and switched Alan Maybury from the left to the right. The manoeuvre was made to look futile within five minutes, when Motherwell scored their second. This time, it was a corner kick from McBride that was headed out towards O'Donnell on the right side of the penalty area. The veteran midfielder met the ball left-footed on the volley and the ball flew high to the right of Gordon from 15 yards.

Taken from the Guardian/Observer