Hibs And Hearts Serve Up A Derby Cracker

Nov 5 2007 David McCarthy at Easter road

CAPITAL CRACKER ... Hibs, Hearts get point each in Edinburgh derby cracker

HIBS 1

HEARTS 1

IT could have gone either way but in the end it went neither way. Nobody could complain much about that.

None of the players who threw their sweat-stained Hibs and Hearts shirts into the washing last night deserved to go home as losers.

This was derby football at its very best, a smattering of excellent stuff laced with lashings of commitment and the occasionalglaring error that all added up to yet another thrilling capital clash.

Hearts scored both goals but came away with only a point, although at half time they would have settled for that, having gone behind to Christophe Berra's 17th minute own goal.

They repaired the damage seconds after the restart with Christian Nade's close-range effort and for the rest of the match both sides battered at each other's door without being let in.

There might be three-quarters of the season still to pan out but this was a match Hearts couldn't afford to lose if they wanted to end the campaign with the bragging rights over their city rivals.

Awin for John Collins' men would have hoisted their advantage over the Jambos to 10 points and even at this stage that would be a chasm to bridge.

But Hibs, for all their dynamic start to the season, had lost two games on the spin and played poorly against St Mirren. Hearts are Hearts and nobody was sure what they'd bring to the party. Plenty as it turned out.

Collins and Vladimir Romanov each made three changes to their line-ups, Hibs bringing in fit-again Steven Fletcher and Guillaume Beuzelin for Clayton Donaldson and Merouane Zemmama, while Filipe Morais returned from suspension at the expense of Ross Chisholm.

Hearts also lost their last league game but bounced back superbly against Celtic in the CIS Cup in midweek - a result that had their fans in fine voice before kick-off.

Nade returned from a ban to partner Andrius Velicka, whose two goals at Parkhead earned him a starting place.

Eggert Jonsson came in for Marius Zaliukas, who was injured.

Much of the interest was focused on the French keepers who occupied their respective penalty boxes.

Hearts won on their last visit to Easter Road, while Hibs had done the same at Tynecastle on the opening day of the season so there were few clues to which way this one would go - but both sets of supporters were up for it and the joint was jumping as the players appeared.

Hibs enjoyed territorial advantage in the opening 10 minutes but it was Hearts who carved out the best two chances in that period.

Andrew Driver was instrumental in both moves, powering a header over from Robbie Neilson's cross in the sixth minute then delivering a low cross for Velicka to sweep a near post shot inches wide.

Hibs, though, had a decent claim for a penalty in the 13th minute when Berra cut across Lewis Stevenson as the youngster charged into the box. Charlie Richmond didn't want to know but it was a let-off for the visitors because some referees would have pointed to the spot.

The home support was howling at that one but four minutes later they were jumping for joy as their team went ahead.

Hearts didn't defend Morais' corner well and paid the price as Berra went with Rob Jones at the near post and somehow managed to deflect the ball with his thigh past Anthony Basso, although if Velicka hadn't deserted the post he was standing at, the Lithuanian would have cleared.

It could have been worse for Hearts a couple of minutes later when only a superb tackle by Berra on Mickael Antoine-Curier prevented Hibs doubling their lead.

The striker was then gifted a passback by Jose Goncalves but was crowded out as the Hearts defence creaked alarmingly.

Fletcher was enjoying a fine match, with his movement causing Hearts all sorts of trouble and a bit of twinkle-toed magic between two defenders opened space for the Hibs striker to test Basso from the edge of the box. The keeper passed the examination but only after a bit of juggling that didn't exactly inspire confidence.

Hearts tried to hit back as the break approached and Neilson's effort from the edge of the box after good build-up play might have troubled YvesMa-Kalambay but for Murphy's deflection that took the ball over the bar.

Hibs, though, almost went 2-0 up in a turbo-charged finale to the half. The home side broke out of defence - after an outrageous dive by Velicka at the other end - and Beuzelin released Fletcher, who brought a first-class, one-handed save out of the advancing Basso.

The Jambos then raced to the other end, whereMa-Kalambay saved with his feet from Diver before Kevin McCann bravely blocked Nade's effort.

If Nade was denied then, it took him less than a minute after the restart to take his revenge.

Hibs defended a corner poorly, allowing the cross to drift to the far side of the penalty box where Driver knocked it back in for Andrius Ksanavicius to head goalwards and Nade to bundle the ball home from a couple of yards.

Hibs looked for an offside flag that didn't come - linesman Tom Murphy got it absolutely right.

Collins' men had been caught cold and spent the next five minutes camped in their own half as Hearts, inspired by young Driver, came at them.

With the visitors in control we then had the bizarre spectacle of Nade apparently being replaced by Mauricio Pinilla - even shaking hands with the Chilean and taking a seat on the bench and stripping off his top while play continued - only to be then ordered to get his jersey back on and re-enter the field.

ALucozade bottle was chucked on to the pitch from the Hibs support opposite the main stand and before

Richmond handed it to a policeman. A few of the home side could have done with aslug because they had started the second period far too sluggishly.

They got a grip of themselves and it became a basketball match with play raging from end to end with chances galore and all of them being spurned.

Beuzelin thought he had scored with a header from a Morais corner in 64 minutes only for Velicka to hack the ball off the line.

Fletcher then headed home from close range but he had shoved a defender in doing so and had his celebrations aborted by the referee's whistle.

Then Pinilla did replace Nade just before Velicka sent a shot inches wide.

You just couldn't peel your eyes away from it, although clearly Richmond did when he failed to spot Berra pulling Fletcher's jersey inside the box just after Donaldson had replaced Antoine-Curier in the 71st minute.

Pinilla could have won it four minutes from time but fresh-aired a Driver cross with the goal at his mercy. That, though, would have been tough on Hibs who deserved their share of the spoils.

MAN OF THE MATCH Guillaume Beuzelin (Hibs)

Taken from the Daily Record