Glen lights up Hearts

So this is what life is like in the bottom six? Sure, it was an entertaining enough game. The sun shone and we witnessed five beautifully executed goals. We even saw Hearts overturn a deficit for the first time since July 2005. And yet, there was something missing: the edge that comes with the knowledge that there is actually something to play for, probably.

Maybe it would be different if the relegation issue were not already decided. As it was this was played out with pace and commitment of a training match, an impression only strengthened by the absence of bookings for either side in such a closely fought game.

The personnel hinted at experimentation, certainly for the home side who showed five changes from the side that had failed to break down Kilmarnock a fortnight ago. Out went Anthony Basso, Robbie Neilson, Ibrahim Tall, Kestutis Ivaskevicius and Fernando Screpis. In came the fit-again Steve Banks, Christos Karipidis, and Eggert Jonsson, while there was a rare start for Jason Thomson replacing the suspended Neilson at right back, and a first-ever first-team start for young Gary Glen, who partnered Christian Nade in attack.

And it was the youngster who was the first to catch the eye in front of Mark Howard's goal when he latched onto some good work from Nade to hit a 16-yard shot on the turn. Buddies' defender John Potter had stayed alert, however, and did just enough to divert the ball wide for the first corner of the game.

Saints replied with a scorching effort from Andy Dorman, the midfielder letting fly a speculative effort from 25 yards, which had Banks at full stretch as he parried it away. Craig Dargo was sniffing around at the loose ball, but lacked the height to bring it under control.

The visitors continued to look the more interested, flashing a couple of corners across the face of Banks's six-yard box which had to be dealt with by Thomson and Christophe Berra respectively. The only other noteworthy incident in a fairly sterile opening fifteen minutes was the uncertainty of Saints' keeper Howard, who dallied too long over a simple clearance and allowed himself to be charged down by the galloping Nade. Sadly for the Frenchman, the ball span out to safety.

At that stage it was looking very much like the end-of-season affair we had all been expecting, but things were enlivened in the 20th minute by a rare moment of enterprise from the visitors' Ryan McCay. Picking up a long clearance from his own goalkeeper, the diminutive wide man ambled forward unmolested towards the Hearts area before unleashing an unstoppable left-foot shot beyond Banks's despairing dive.

If the home side's response could hardly be classed as furious, they at least didn't spend too long licking their wounds, and within eight minutes they found themselves level. Glen was the main architect with some fine control and a neat flick to take Ian Maxwell out of the game, Nade then held the ball up in the box before working it back to Jonsson, and his left-foot effort from 20 yards was deflected well away from Howard's flailing left arm.

If we expected the pace of the game to rise as a result of those goals, we were disappointed as things ambled along pretty much as before. St Mirren continued to look the more likely to get behind their opponents' defence, while the home side's efforts were more often than not thwarted by the raised flag of the Main Stand linesman, usually signalling offside against the luckless Nade.

The one ray of attacking light remained Glen, whose movement and inventiveness on the ball continued to impress. And he added to the assist for the first goal with a fine strike of his own just three minutes before the break. Jonsson was the supplier this time with a precise pass through to the youngster's feet, and although Glen failed to finish it off first time (Howard made a good stop) there was no way he could miss with the subsequent rising shot into an open goal.

Hearts don't often overturn a deficit these days, and the confidence they took from doing so in this match was plain to see as the second half got under way. Nade continued to hold the ball up reasonably well and Glen began to receive some rougher treatment with the St Mirren defenders now more aware of his capabilities then they had been an hour previously.

The one problem remained finding the two strikers with a penetrating through ball. With Jonsson and Palazuelos more concerned with protecting the defence and Mikoliunas decidedly off the boil, that left the mercurial Kingston. But although the Ghanaian's movement was as fluid as usual, his touch was a little off, his flicks and dinks easily mopped up by the Buddies back-line and his shooting and dead-ball delivery somewhat awry.

A 60th-minute head knock put paid to Nade's afternoon and his replacement Juho Makela came close to living up to the reception he received from the home support by almost scoring with his first touch. Howard and Maxwell presented him with the opportunity when they collided inside the box, but Will Haining was on hand to turn the Finn's goalward prod behind for corner.

At the other end, Dorman powered in his second pile driver of the afternoon but Banks was up to the task with a full-length dive to his left and a secure grasp. Saints appeared to take heart from that, though, and upped the pace in search of an equaliser. Banks had to clutch twice more under pressure as Gus McPherson's men adopted a more direct route towards goal, but the Englishman was left helpless with fourteen minutes remaining as midfielder Gary Mason drew his side level with a magnificent dipping volley right into the postage stamp corner of the net.

It was hard to begrudge the visitors their equaliser - they had been no worse than the home side over the course of the game - but still there was disappointment in the air that Hearts had let slip their narrow lead. Not for long through. Four minutes later, Miko went on a rare burst forward and was awarded an even rarer free kick after he was tripped by his marker.

Having earlier watched him twice blast shots into the Gorgie Stand and then knock a corner kick straight out of play, there may have been some reservations when we saw Kingston step up to take the award. We needn't have worried. This time the Ghanaian's execution was perfect - a curling right-foot effort that left Howard helpless as it sped into the top left hand corner of his net to give Hearts all three points.

Hearts: Banks; Thomson, Karipidis, Berra, Goncalves (Wallace 77); Kingston, Jonsson, Palazuelos, Mikoliunas; Nade (Makela 60), Glen (Mole 87). Subs not used: Basso, Zaliukas, Ivaskevicius, Screpis.

St Mirren: Howard; Barron, Haining, Potter, Maxwell; Dorman, Brady (McGinn 66), Mason (Corcroan 86), McCay (Hamilton 76); Mehmet, Dargo. Subs not used: Smith, Kean, Brittain, O'Donnell.

Referee: Michael McCurry

Top man: Gary Glen

Hearts World