Celtic Beaten At Last!

Having played so well in all previous meetings against the champions this season with only a single point to show for it, Hearts finally got some breaks in this fixure and that helped them to deservedly take the three points today.

It's quite ironic that this Hearts performance was probably not quite as good as the previous ones but they got more reward. People might point to the fact that Celtic had little to play for, but I reckon the main difference was that we got some breaks today. For a nice change against the Old Firm, we didn't appear to be up against the match officials, although Neil Lennon not being sent off was a complete disgrace! I suppose you can't have everything!

Speaking of Lennon, I really hope Scottish Football has now seen the back of this little cretin. Some Celtic fans would have you believe that the reason he gets booed or taunted is bigotry-related but this is nonsense: he's one of the most despicable little men in the game and he just can't go through 90 minutes without deliberately trying to niggle at either an opposition player or the fans, usually both. It's not in jest either - he's just a nasty piece of work. It's shame it was Bruno Aguiar who was in opposition to him and not Pasquale Bruno...now THAT would have been interesting!

Before the game the chat around us was nervy. We'd learned that Julien Brellier was again inexplicably on the bench and Ibrahim Tall, who'd looked shaky at Easter Road last week, had kept his place. We were also aware that Neville from 'Auf Wiedersehen, Pet' (aka Alan Freeland) was the referee, so we understandably feared the worst!

As they did in this fixture on New Year's Day, Hearts got off to an unbelievable start. After seven minutes Hartley fired over a free-kick from the left and McManus powered a header behind his own goalkeeper to give the home side the lead.

Then just a couple of minutes later from another free-kick, this time closer and more central, Hartley was allowed to take it quickly and bent it into the corner while Boruc was still setting up his wall! Celtic players complained for an age about the goal standing but Hartley clearly asked Freeland if he could take it quickly before hitting it. It was about time we got a break against that lot anyway!

Speaking of breaks, if Stephen McManus had taken a gilt-edged chance before Hartley's free-kicks the game might have turned out very differently. After only a couple of minutes the Celtic defender, forward for a free-kick, found himself alone six yards out but he hurriedly shot straight at Craig Gordon, who still did well to keep it out to be fair. McManus should have burst the net though.

Celtic were having a lot of possession but Hearts nearly went three up when Rudi Skacel went charging forward on the break, beat two men before smashing a shot off the inside of the post. Sadly no Hearts player could latch onto the rebound.

Roy Keane then found himself with a similar chance to McManus after some slack play by Pressley, but he scuffed his shot straight at Gordon.

The second half continued in much the same vein as the first: Celtic with more possession but Hearts looking very dangerous when they broke forward.

Majic Zurawski brought out an excellent save from Gordon at his near post and then Hearts missed a glorious chance when Hartley took the ball off Skacel's toes from a Bednar cutback.

Just as nervousness started to creep back into Tynecastle though, Hearts effectively ended the game as a contest with the all-important third goal. Roman Bednar, who had been buzzing all afternoon, timed his run perfectly to receive a defence-splitting pass and after an untidy first touch, clipped a lovely finish behind Boruc. The relief was obvious around the ground, understandably so with memories of New Year's Day still painfully fresh!

Celtic continued to keep possession well despite the three goal margin and substitute Stan Petrov brought out a magnificent save from Gordon, his powerful drive looking destined for the roof of the net until Gordon's upstretched hand somehow clawed it to safety.

But there was to be no repeat of the New Year capitulation and Hearts comfortably closed out the match. It was great to see them performing so well against one of the Old Firm when it really counted. Make no mistake, there was huge pressure on Hearts going into this game and they answered quite a few questions out there today.

It will be the same again on Wednesday night when Aberdeen come calling in what is now the biggest game Hearts have had for years. It should be quite an evening!

Star Player
Quite a few candidates, but for me Paul Hartley edges it for another inspirational display. What a player he's become for Hearts.
Player Ratings
Gordon 8
Three outstanding saves and his handling was safe.
Neilson 7
Gave his man too much space in the early stages I felt, but generally had a good game and some of his distribution was uncharacteristically good!
Fyssas 6
Quietly effective without being overly involved today.
Tall 8
A surprise to see him keep his place, but he responded brilliantly: solid in the tackle and in the air.
Pressley 7
Pretty solid 90 minutes and the team always seems more assured when he plays.
Aguiar 6
I say this pretty much every week for Bruno: neat and tidy, nice skills, doesn't do much wrong, but he's not got the presence of Brellier.
Cesnauskas 6
Drifted in and out of the match, but his pace always caused Celtic problems when on the ball.
Hartley 9
Star man again. His dead-ball accuracy just gets better and better, hence the first two goals. All over the park and an inspiration to all.
Skacel 7
Looked much more up for this game that he has for ages. Unlucky when he hit the post after a great run and I even saw Rudi win a header today!
Bednar 8
Gave Celtic defence a roasting all afternoon, capped with his well taken finish for the killer goal.
Jankauskas 8
Exemplary leading of the line: his hold-up play was fantastic and allowed the likes of Hartley and Skacel to break beyond him time and again.
Pospisil 3
Looked sharp but didn't get much time to really shine.
Pospisil 3
Looked sharp but didn't get much time to really shine.
Barasa 3
Again, little time on the park to impress.
Mikoliunas 2
Came on even later than the other two subs!