Motherwell have final say despite Hearts fightback

As penalties loomed, the teenage substitute broke away on to Scott McDonald’s pass and guide a composed finish beyond Craig Gordon, the goalkeeper. It was a fitting reward for Terry Butcher’s side, who had thrown away a two-goal cushion in the dying minutes of normal time.

The occasion even eclipsed the drama of 1991 when Motherwell won the Scottish Cup 4-3 in extra time. Another piece of silverware is now just 90 minutes away on March 20.

Easter Road housed a raucous gathering, the Hearts supporters taking great delight at the invasion of the home of their great rivals, Hibernian.And Dennis Wyness soon had them on their feet after ten minutes when his shot on the turn was deflected narrowly wide for a corner.

However, Motherwell absorbed the initial pressure before summoning up a threat of their own after 17 minutes. Kevin McBride’s free kick from the left picked out Richie Foran at the back post and ought to have been finished off by the striker. Somehow, Foran eschewed an attempt on goal in favour of a cushioned header back towards Scott McDonald, who was so surprised that his tame shot was cleared off the line by Steven Pressley.

Such an unfamiliar vulnerability in the air by Hearts was underlined just two minutes later when Motherwell scored. This time the free kick, awarded against Joe Hamill for obstruction, came in from the right and Steven Craigan somehow rose unmarked at the back post again to meet Steven Hammell’s inswinging delivery and plant a firm header into the net beyond Gordon.

Hearts were visibly unnerved. It took them some time to summon up a response, with Hartley the threat. Twice he found room in the box, the first time firing a shot over the bar and then forcing Gordon Marshall, the goalkeeper, to parry his effort after Wyness had threaded a pass into his run.

However, it took Gordon to preserve that scoreline. The Scotland goalkeeper produced a fine save to touch a 30-yard free kick over the bar that Hammell had curled over the wall and then denied McDonald’s volley from Hammell’s corner. Hearts thought they had restored parity in stoppage time after Wyness clipped his shot past Marshall but Foran recovered to hook the ball away.

Hearts raised the tempo in the second half, and it almost brought an instant reward when Salius Mikoliunus stabbed a shot from just inside the box that crept past Marshall’s post thanks to a deflection.

They came even closer after 55 minutes. Joe Hamill’s vision found Hartley roaming on the right side and the latter’s cross for Wyness, lurking at the back post, seemed destined to be finished off by the striker until Craigan’s lunge applied the vital touch that took the ball out of his path.

Mikoliunus was proving to be a thorn in Motherwell’s side. The Lithuanian drew a foul from Craigan which allowed Hartley to bend a free kick that Marshall pawed wide.

Mikoliunus, though, had an insatiable appetite. His energetic bursts saw him win the ball in midfield for Hartley and then get on the end of his colleague’s cross, only to head over. Then he thrashed a dipping long-range shot that required Marshall to be vigilant.

John Robertson sensed that the cup final was slipping out of Hearts’ reach and sent on Mark Burchill, signed last week from Portsmouth. Those fears grew as Marshall produced a remarkable save in 73 minutes, getting down at his right-hand post to touch Hamill’s volley to safety.

Hampden was in Motherwell’s grasp when Foran doubled their lead in the 77th minute. McDonald’s surge into the box prompted a rash lunge from Jamie McAllister, conceding a clear penalty which Foran stroked past Gordon to unbridled celebration from the Lanarkshire fans.

Hearts appeared dead. Even when Burchill scored with five minutes left, it seemed no more than a piece of defiance, but the Scotland player controlled Stephen Simmons’s free-kick and thrashed a low shot past Marshall and that ignited his team and their fans.

Taken from timesonline.co.uk