WE'VE GOT GUTS TO BE CHAMPS

HEARTS boss George Burley last night hailed his Gorgie grafters for rescuing a point that felt like a win.

The Jambos failed to secure a record start to an SPL season as they missed out on a ninth win on the trot yesterday at Falkirk. But that mattered little to Burley, who saw skipper Steven Pressley snatch two goals in the final 15 minutes to hand the table-toppers a dramatic 2-2 draw at Westfield.

Doubters who question Hearts' title credentials were forced to think again as they showed they have the guts for the championship battle.

But the draw came at a cost for the Tynecastle club,who had keeper Craig Gordon ordered off for a first-half foul on Darryl Duffy and saw midfielder Julien Brellier pick up a suspected rib break that will sideline him for several weeks.

Both are out of the game at Celtic a week on Saturday with top spot in the table up for grabs as Hearts are three points in front of Gordon Strachan's side.

Burley was full of praise for his men, who recovered from Duffy's first-half penalty and a Pressley own goal in70minutes.

Burley said: "It felt like a win because when you're 2-0 down with little more than 10 minutes to go anything is a bonus.

"What can you say about the character, energy and desire of our side? Falkirk were the better team in the first half but after the break we were better and deserved the point.

"I asked the players at halftimetoshowmetheircharacter and they did that, with Steven leading by example.'

Pressley picked up a dead leg in a challenge with Alan Gow but reckons 48 hours' rest will see him back in training ahead of Scotland's World Cup crunch with Belarus onSaturday.

He dedicated his goals to Hearts bus driver Alan"Scooby" Scott, whose father died on Saturday night.

Elvis said: "I said I'd score for Scooby after he lost his father. Unfortunately, my first goal went into our own net so I was delighted to make amends.

"At 2-0 down with only 10-15 minutes to go, playing with 10 men,you would say the writing was on the wall with some sides, but not this team."

Burley admitted he has no complaints over Gordon's dismissal for pulling down Duffy and Falkirk boss John Hughes reckoned it spoiled the game as a spectacle.

He said: "In those instances I'd like to see the ref show a red card but the keeper stays on and is dealt with later. It gave us an advantage we took and we created a lot of chances.

"It might have been different had we held on for another five or 10 minutes after scoring our second but they got a goal that gave them belief."

Falkirk striker Duffy said: "I can't believe we only came away with one point

Taken from the Daily Record