MILLER'S IN G-LEE CLUB

Jan 16 2005

Jambos hero off to flier after debut drama

HEARTS ........3 DUNDEE UTD .......2

Euan Mclean At Tynecastle

LEE MILLER might not have come to Hearts if Stevie Crawford hadn't snubbed Tynecastle for Tannadice.

But yesterday there was no doubt who came out tops in the battle of the debut boys as Miller struck gold and Crawford hit rock bottom with a terrible miss.

Both hitmen were handed a glorious chance but while supersub Miller grabbed his with both hands, Craw spurned an early opening that could have put United on easy street.

And afterwards Jambos hero Miller vowed to shrug off the forgotten man tag he's had since leaving Scotland for Bristol City.

The former Falkirk striker said: 'I couldn't have asked for a better start. It was only my second touch and I was celebrating a goal.

'The manager told me at half-time to go on and rustle them up but I didn't expect to make an impact so early. I hope to build on this now and get stronger and fitter.

'People have forgotten about me and I'm determined to remind them what I can do.'

In the end it was Paul Hartley who nicked the points for the Jambos with a deflected strike from a hotly-disputed late free-kick.

It summed up United's luck these days and Crawford will need to be far more deadly if he's to fire Ian McCall's side away from danger.

The Tynecastle crowd ripped into the Scotland striker for having the audacity to snub them.

But Crawford should have silenced the boo boys inside six minutes when Grant Brebner mugged Phil Stamp in midfield then sent him clear with a perfect diagonal pass.

Keeper Craig Gordon, man of the match by a mile, did everything right and made a solid block as he raced out to meet the striker.

The catcalls from the stands summed it up and Crawford knew he should have scored.

But the home crowd weren't so smug when United took the lead after 19 minutes.

It came from a free-kick on the edge of the box as Hartley needlessly pushed Derek McInnes in the back.

Barry Robson - always so precise from dead ball situations - stepped up to show his class.

His left-foot curler took a slight deflection on its way over the wall and tucked inside the top right-hand corner.

It was no more than the Arabs deserved against a disjointed Hearts side.

It took John Robertson's troops 33 minutes before carving out their first decent chance and they wasted a glorious opening.

Ramon Pereira's cross from the left was met by Kevin McKenna but the Canadian was left holding his head in anguish as he volleyed wide from seven yards.

The turning point came six minutes before the break as Gordon produced heroics in the Hearts goal.

Mark Wilson's teasing cross from the right was met by a glancing header from Robson who must have thought he was set for a second as the ball dipped towards the bottom right corner.

But Gordon showed exceptional reflexes to get down in a flash and claw it away.

Gutted Robson groaned: 'If that one had gone in it would have been difficult to see Hearts pegging us back from a two-goal lead.

'It was a wonderful save and probably a turning point, although we could have done a lot better with the goals we lost.'

The let-off seemed to spur the Edinburgh side into action and Hartley led the rally with a storming run from midfield.

He burst forward and unleashed a decent low shot that was well held by keeper Tony Bullock.

Hearts claimed an ill-deserved leveller through Steven Pressley a minute before half-time.

It was a wonderfully executed strike from a man who will always stand up and be counted when the chips are down.

Stamp's corner fell like a bomb into the box and first to throw his foot at it was the Jambos skipper who thundered home a furious low volley.

Boosted by his side's late resurgence, Robertson looked to build on that momentum by handing new boy Miller his debut - in place of Joe Hamill - and pushing him into attack with McKenna and Pereira.

It paid off three minutes in as the hitman got his career off to a flying start.

Again it stemmed from a set piece as Hartley's free-kick was knocked down by McKenna into the path of both Miller and Pereira.

The eager new boy won the race and bundled the ball home.

However, United dug deep and levelled five minutes later.

It was another superb strike from a free-kick on the edge of the box after Robbie Neilson caught Robson with a high boot. Wilson rolled it square for Alan Archibald and the defender unleashed an unstoppable rocket shot inside Gordon's post.

With the game back on a knife-edge both benches were called into action. Hearts striker McKenna made way for Dennis Wyness after 62 minutes and United brought on new signing Lee Mair for Brebner two minutes later.

With Mair slotting into the back four Wilson was pushed into midfield but it was Robson and Mark Kerr who set up another good chance for McCall's side.

Robson ran at the Jambos defence and teed up Kerr to rattle in another vicious long-range drive.

It looked set for the net but Gordon came to Hearts' rescue with another superb save.

Stephen Simmons then came on for Neil Macfarlane as Roberston made his last change.

Hearts soon had a penalty claim turned down for a push on Miller by Archibald. Softer spot-kicks have been given.

Referee Mike Ritchie was having a quiet game and the first booking came 11 minutes from time as McInnes picked up a yellow for persistent fouling. Simmons followed him into the book for the same offence five minutes later.

Crawford's uninspiring debut came to an end on 84 minutes, replaced by Jason Scotland.

Hearts bagged the winner with just four minutes left.

McCall was raging as the home side were given a soft free-kick on the edge of the area when Paul Ritchie fairly tackled Simmons.

Hartley stepped up to take it and the ball took a wicked deflection off the wall to totally wrong-foot the helpless Bullock.

David McCracken passed up a chance for the leveller late on, heading an Archibald cross wide from close range.

It was a painful defeat for United to take and McCall's frustration was clear as he vented his fury at the whistler in the tunnel.

ref watch

MIKE RITCHIE copped abuse from Ian McCall for the free-kick that led to Hearts' winner and rightly so. Even the Jambos camp admitted it was soft and the ref was shaky all day. Rating: 4/10

Taken from the Sunday Mail