Hearts ill-served by misplaced venom

IT WAS a paradox of such a listless performance from Hearts that the only sign of passion in their play at Aberdeen should emerge in the second half when Laryea Kingston, who had been sent off for a second yellow card, lost his temper and allegedly branded referee Steve Conroy a racist. It was an extraordinary outburst which resulted in the midfield player being punished with a second red card.

Praised for his quick feet and shrewd football brain in recent weeks, Kingston has been Hearts' most creative player since he joined the club on loan during the transfer window from Russia. He scored a fine equaliser from a free-kick against St Mirren and supplied the crosses for both goals against Motherwell in a man-of-the-match performance last week. However, the Ghana internationalist came to Scotland with disciplinary baggage. Last summer he missed out on the World Cup finals because of a record four-match ban earned during the Africa Cup of Nations.

At Pittodrie, Kingston let himself and Hearts down with a stormy reaction to being booked and sent off. Although his first caution appeared harsh - it emerged later the booking was for persistent fouling - the player's show of dissent might have persuaded another referee to send him off there and then. Having confronted Conroy and wagged his finger at the referee, the player on loan from Terek Grozny was perhaps fortunate to stay on the pitch. With the benefit of hindsight, Hearts should have substituted Kingston for his own good and allowed him to calm down on the bench. As it was, when the midfielder subsequently caught Barry Nicholson with a high, late challenge, Conroy deemed the offence reckless and sent him off.

Although the foul may have been mistimed rather then mischievous, Kingston again reacted badly to the referee's decision, making gestures, removing his shirt and shaking his fist defiantly at the travelling support from Edinburgh. Later it transpired that Kingston was said to have called the referee a racist and that several players overheard the accusation.

Irrespective of the fact that referee Conroy is married to a black woman, the SFA is likely to take a dim view of Kingston's rash conduct. His enforced absence at a time when Hearts already have 11 players out through injury will do nothing to assist the club's hopes in the weeks ahead of salvaging a place in European football next season.

Apart from a tiresome gift for generating controversy, there was little in this underwhelming display from Hearts to generate headlines. Lacking width and ideas in midfield as well as any hint of a cutting edge up front, Hearts didn't produce a single shot on target during the course of a match Aberdeen deserved to win without ever scaling any great heights themselves.

While the combination of a rotation policy and a lack of transparency at Tynecastle can make it difficult to keep track of who is unavailable and who is out of favour, there's little doubt the huge number of injuries sustained by the club this season needs to be assessed.

As coach Stephen Frail observed: "We need to try and get a couple of players back. People laugh when we have injuries because we have a big squad. Any squad would miss quality players such as Roman Bednar and Saulius Mikoliunas, who does a job on the right hand side, as well as Robbie Neilson, and Neil McCann. You'd imagine if they were fit they would feature. Let's hope we can get them back and fight for a place in Europe."

Craig Gordon, who must have re-assured the onlooking Scotland manager, Alex McLeish, that he's ready for the forthcoming European Championship qualifiers, made the point he was the only player in Saturday's starting line-up with a number below 20.

Only four members of the team which won 3-1 at Pittodrie in September figured at the weekend and, apart from Gordon, none were regulars in the side George Burley took to the top of the SPL last season. The dismantling of the best Hearts team in 20 years is now complete. And there was little to suggest, on this evidence, as Hearts slipped further adrift of Rangers and Aberdeen, that the next generation are up to the mark.

While it's self-evident Hearts have yet to replace players of the calibre of Steven Pressley, Paul Hartley and Rudi Skacel with footballers of similar quality, what was most disturbing about the display at Pittodrie was the collective lack of spirit. As Frail conceded: "We didn't deserve to take anything from the game. Aberdeen were hungrier, had more desire, and created more chances."

Scott Severin, the former Hearts man who stokes the engine of Aberdeen's midfield, reckoned that once they'd matched their opponents in terms of physique, the home side were able to run out comfortable winners. Craig Brewster's tenacity, Nicholson's perceptive pass and Steve Lovell's superbly struck angled shot gave Aberdeen the lead after eight minutes. It was a measure of how comfortable Jimmy Calderwood's men were for the remaining 80-odd minutes of play that goalkeeper Jamie Langfield didn't have one save to make.

On a sandy, bumpy pitch with a swirling wind adding to the complications of a dour contest between third and fourth in the SPL, Calderwood had the Dunfermline connection to thank for this victory. Starting a game for the first time since January, Brewster led the line shrewdly while Nicholson added craft in midfield.

It was a combination which edged Aberdeen closer to European football.

Taken from the Scotsman