HEARTS captain Steven Pressley today backed goalkeeper Craig Gordon to bounce back from his ordering off against Falkirk to star for Scotland this weekend. The Gorgie No.1 was sent packing by referee Iain Brines for hauling down Darryl Duffy in the first half of yesterday's SPL clash in what was his 99th consecutive game for the club.
Gordon had been hoping to reach the milestone of 100 games in a row for Hearts in the showdown with Celtic at Parkhead in two weeks' time but will now be forced to hand over the gloves to stand-in Steve Banks, the Englishman having performed well against Falkirk on his debut as the Jambos came back from the dead to snatch a 2-2 draw against the Bairns and maintain their unbeaten start to the season.
Gordon, who will meet up with the rest of the Scotland squad tomorrow, doesn't have long to dwell on his heartbreak with the focus now on helping Walter Smith's side keep alive their World Cup qualification hopes with a victory over Belarus at Hampden Park on Saturday.
Pressley, who was his side's hero with both goals after the break at Falkirk Stadium to earn an unlikely share of the spoils, has no fears the 22-year-old will be in the right frame of mind for what is another must-win fixture for the Scots.
"I don't think anybody has a better temperament for the game than Craig Gordon," said the Hearts skipper. "And whether he'll recover from this is in time for the weekend is not an issue. He is a top-class goalkeeper."
Pressley absolved his keeper from any blame for the 25th-minute red card which left the visitors with a mountain to climb, Duffy converting the spot-kick past substitute Banks.
Insisting the team must shoulder the responsibility, the Scotland star said: "He was faced with the scenario where he was unprotected and a player through on goal.
"He did as any goalkeeper would do and tried to prevent the player from scoring. The laws state that if you are the last man and impeded someone then the consequences are an ordering off.
"It is disappointing for him as his form has been of the highest quality and that was his 99th consecutive game for the club.
"But we all shoulder the blame. We win, lose and draw as a team. There is no blame attached to Craig. We as a team allowed their player through on our goal and must take responsibility."
The stirring fightback came at a cost with both Gordon and in-form midfielder Julien Brellier set to miss the Celtic clash, the Frenchman having suffered a suspected broken rib against Falkirk.
Pressley himself faces a race against time to make the Belarus match, the Scotland defender having struggled through the second half yesterday with a dead lead following a challenge with Alan Gow.
"I'll be at the club today and tomorrow for treatment and hopefully I'll be okay to start training towards the end of the week," he said.
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