Disheartening behaviour

FALKIRK MANAGER John Hughes last night accused Andrius Velicka of conning the referee into sending off his centre-half Darren Barr, as Hearts' narrow victory at Tynecastle was overshadowed by the tie's explosive final moments.

With the home side 1-0 up and seconds from the final whistle, the Lithuanian striker caught Barr with a late tackle and when the 20-year-old turned to face the Hearts player, Velicka went down as if he had been head-butted, prompting referee Steve Conroy to red card the young Scot.

"I think Steve Conroy is one of the best referees we've got. But with that sending off, I think he was conned," said Hughes, trying his best to contain his post-match fury to words which would not ensure trouble with the game's authorities.

"I feel there is an injustice and we will 100% appeal the red card. I'm especially unhappy that this has happened to a young, up-and-coming Scottish player who is the hardest working guy at our club. Darren is as honest as the day is long and he told me he did nothing.

"I am unhappy with both the Hearts player and the referee. I expect better from a professional player who should know how to conduct himself, and I expect better from the referee."

While the Falkirk manager refrained from using the word "cheat", Dean Holden admitted that is exactly the expression he used when he confronted Velicka amid angry scenes, which resulted in Holden picking up a booking and the Lithuanian receiving a yellow card too; presumably for the initial challenge which sparked the mayhem.

"I was disappointed to see that sort of behaviour," said Holden, who came on as a first half substitute after fellow defender Karl Dodd had been stretchered off with concussion.

"Darren is a lad with great integrity and we told him he had done nothing wrong and he should keep his chin up," added Holden. "I would have been embarrassed if I had behaved like he Velicka did. I hope the video replay is looked at and he is fined. But you see it in football and the only way this sort of thing is going to be stopped is if players who do that are given three- match bans. I spoke to three or four of the Hearts players after the game and they said that is what Velicka is like."

Hearts assistant manager Stephen Frail refused to comment on the incident, claiming he hadn't seen it. Which makes him the only one in Tynecastle who missed it. Certainly from the vantage point of the press box, Velicka looked to have dived. There was no head-butt - even though that was the explanation Hughes received from the referee after the match. At most, Barr and Velicka bumped chests, yet the Lithuanian went down like he had been taken out by a sniper's bullet.

The match was played out in dreadful conditions as sleet battled rain for control of the skies. In the first half, Valdas Ivanauskas expressed frustration at Hearts' inability to break the deadlock by thumping the dugout roof so hard it threatened the integrity of the Perspex cover.

But, by the final whistle, he could genuinely have claimed to have played a significant part in the win, for it was the manager's second half substitutes who finally broke down Falkirk's impressive resistance; Andrew Driver delivering a cross from the right which Roman Bednar met with a neat low shot beyond Kasper Schmeichel.

The son of the legendary Manchester United goalkeeper Peter may not have been able to earn a successive clean sheet following his loan move to Falkirk, but he was impressive again in conditions which were particularly testing for goalkeepers.

At the other end, Steve Banks was in for Craig Gordon after Scotland's No1 was sidelined with a groin problem.

Conspiracy theories often accompany the selection policy at Hearts, but Gordon himself told the club's media outlet that he had been struggling with the injury, even if Banks admitted he had not been aware he was going to play until two hours before kick-off.

He coped admirably, saving brilliantly on 22 minutes when Jack Ross met a Russell Latapy cross with the sort of firm header which required lightening reflexes to intercept. Still, Falkirk missed a chance to go ahead, since the ball broke back to Barr, whose follow-up header cannoned off the foot of the post.

The first half, however, belonged largely to the home side; Schmeichel using his legs to block a near post effort from Velicka, and Saulius Mikoliunas rasping a shot on to the bar after being set up by Paul Hartley, the game's dominant figure.

Falkirk had much more of the play in the second period, but lacked the penetration to make it count. While Ross curled one shot into Banks' arms, it was Hearts who continued to get closer, Velicka himself hitting the post when he should have scored after being picked out by Hartley with a fine ball.

The Hearts fans grew increasingly edgy as the clock ticked down, and their nerves were tested on 73 minutes when a cross from Thomas Scobbie found Vitor Lima in the box, but the Falkirk midfielder's flicked header was yet another effort which found woodwork rather than the back of the net.

It summed up the twisted fortunes of football that within a minute of that near miss for Falkirk, their opponents were ahead courtesy of a Czech striker who had emerged from the shelter of the bench not long into the second half.

Bednar's strike was significant as it propelled Hearts back into third place in the SPL table. But it was the actions of another Hearts' striker which soured the afternoon. Velicka should be embarrassed. And he should also be penalised.

Taken from the Sunday Herald