Caley Thistle Leave Hearts Shell-Shocked

Gary Ralston Reports

HEARTS 2

INVERNESS C T 3

CHRISTMAS is still hours away but Hearts have already been discarded like the must-have toy a spoiled little rich kid no longer wants.

Vladimir Romanov has spent this season Dancing With The Stars and now the Jambos are lying in the gutter, unloved and no longer desired.

The Tynecastle owner waltzed off at the weekend with top prize in Lithuanian television's equivalent of Strictly Come Dancing.

As his football team went down to another defeat in Gorgie, Hearts fans were calling for him to Foxtrot Oscar instead.

Romanov's eye is so far off the ball and on the ballroom he is now overseeing team selections that are not only in danger of leading his club on a slow shuffle to oblivion but ruining promising careers in the process.

Defeat by Inverness saw Hearts stumble and fall to ninth in the SPL.

God knows the effect the US credit crunch is having on Ukio Bankas and, therefore, the long-term well-being of Hearts.

But if Eduardas Kurskis is their poster boy for a safe pair of hands then Kaunas residents would be best advised to withdraw their savings and punt it on Romanov following up his fancy footworksuccess with a double victory on the Lithuanian version of XFactor.

Things at Hearts seem to be going from bad to worse and Robbie Neilson hopes the players find it within themselves to turn round the fortunes of the club.

The Jambos full-back said: "Every week you think it can't get any worse but it does.It's disappointing to talk about our game against St Mirren on Wednesday as being like a relegation dogfight but that's the way things are going.

"It will turn eventually and it'll be sooner rather than later because in spells we're playing well.

"However, the confidence we need will not be found from a manager, other players, the media or fans because it must come from within.

Almost every player here is an internationalist and should be used to playing under pressure.

"If we have any problems we can go to Steve Frail, Anatoly Korobochka and Angel Chervenkov. It's run like a committee and, true, sometimes you need a figurehead but that's not the way things are done at the club and we have to deal with that.

"Anyway, it's down to the players on the pitch. A team of the calibre of Hearts should not be sitting ninth in the league and while tension rises in the stadium we cannot blame the fans.

They pay money to watch a side that should be challenging for at least third."

Kurskis was the fall guy on Saturday, almost every touch of the ball ironically cheered by his own fans who were not prepared to easily forgive him his howler against Rangers the week before.

His six-yard box could have been filled with quicksand and he would not have sunk any faster but he should never have been put in a position that is so clearly beyond him, particularly when Anthony Basso and Steve Banks are fit and available.

Certainly, Kurskis was helpless for Russell Duncan's well-drilled opener in 22 minutes but the second half could not have been any more of a nightmare had the game been played on Elm Street with Freddie Krueger refereeing, not Willie Collum.

Firstly, Kurskis upended Romanian striker Marius Niculae who admittedly, rolled like compatriot Nadia Comaneci onhis way to winning a penalty, easily converted by John Rankin.

Hearts hauled themselves back into contention with a Christophe Berra header from an Andrew Driver corner before the game exploded into life in its closing moments.

Kurskis stupidly lifted his hands after a goalline scuffle with Duncan and a second yellow card was as inevitable as the derision that poured his way from the stands as he sloped off.

Remarkably, 10-man Hearts hauled themselves level when Andrius Velicka was brought down in the box by Grant Munro, with the Lithuanian striker slotting home from the spot.

Hearts, forced to put Lee Wallace between the sticks as they had used all their subs, should have closed out the last two minutes of injury time but the game was stretched and Barry Wilson crossed for fellow sub Graham Bayne to fire home from 10 yards.

The goal sparked wild celebrations on the Inverness bench as they clocked up five wins from their last five SPL fixtures - a far cry from the start of the season when they suffered six defeats on the trot.

Full-back Richard Hastings at least had the good grace to sound apologetic when revealing the Caley Thistle team talk had pinpointed the Achilles heel of the Hearts side-Kurskis.

Hastings said: "I don't want to sound nasty but he made a bad mistake last week and we had to test him. I'm sure it would have been part of the Hearts gameplan had the roles been reversed.

"It must be tough at Hearts because there are constant changes.

"At Inverness, we've always had a core of players and every season there are maybe only two additions to the squad, which helps consistency.

"It's difficult to get that at Hearts but they're going to have to do something."

Too true - and if he's not careful, Romanov won't spend next season Dancing With The Stars but Dancing With The Pars.

MAN OF THE MATCH Russell Duncan (Inverness)

MATCH STATS

50 POSSESSION % 50

7 SHOTS ON TARGET 7

7 SHOTS OFF TARGET 5

12 CORNERS 2

15 FOULS CONCEDED 12

3 OFFSIDES 3

HEARTS MAN BY MAN

Eduardas Kurskis: Should never have been in the team. 1

Robbie Neilson: Checked by McBain early on but soon played leader's role. 7

Marius Zaliukas: Stank like Santa's jockstrap on Boxing Day. 4

Christophe Berra: Worked tirelessly to inspire but not everyone took his lead. 7

Lee Wallace:Worth his recall with some dangerous, darting runs on left. 6

Ruben Palazuelos: Some nimble midfield touches but lacked penetration. 6

Eggert Jonsson: Mopped up in middle of park, tackled hard and never hid. 7

Audrius Ksanavicius: Anuisance until injury struck. 5

Kestutis Ivaskevicius:Rarely showed. 4

Andrius Velicka: Gave Munro and McGuire an uncomfortable afternoon. 7

Andrew Driver: Rarely on the ball. 4

Subs: Calum Elliot 4 - not a good day but scapegoated by fans and hooked at 2-1, 4. Michal Pospisil - added degree of urgency in attack, 4. Saulius Mikoliunas - showed heart wide right that team had missed, 4.

INVERNESS MAN BY MAN

Michael Fraser: Handling not always the cleanest but solid enough. 6

Ross Tokely: The least athletic-looking player in the SPL is still the most reliable. 6

Philip McGuire: Team-mates took the lead from his no-nonsense display. 7

Grant Munro: Honours even with Velicka as both gave as good as they got. 7

Richard Hastings: Had Ivaskevicius in his back pocket but Neilson was a threat. 6

Ian Black: Sprang well from central midfield to bolster forward threat. 7

Russell Duncan: Excellent understanding with Black capped by super opener. 8

John Rankin: Impossible to pin down as he darted from middle to front. 7

Roy McBain: Gave side excellent width on left early on but faded after break. 6

Don Cowie: Needed to keep an eye on Wallace, often blunting forward threat. 6

Marius Niculae: Languid striking style but linked with midfield to good effect. 6

Subs: Barry Wilson - super assist on lastgasp winner, 3. Graham Bayne - inspired contribution with decisive goal, 6.

MAGIC MOMENT

Not for faint-hearted Jambos but the last five minutes had everything.

Taken from the Daily Record