Nade off the mark as Hearts hold nerve to earn second win on trot

Stuart Bathgate
HEARTS reclaimed fourth place in the SPL last night with a victory which could and should have been more convincing. After taking an early lead through Christian Nade they had a fair number of chances to add to their lead, most of them falling to the striker himself. But, after failing to make sure of the points with a second goal, they ended the match in nervous fashion, failing to dictate the pace.
Even so, after a shaky run of form, this was a second straight win, and will ensure they travel to Inverness at the weekend in relatively optimistic mood.

Accies were playing at Tynecastle for the first time since December 1988. Twenty years later, they are in the same position they were in then – strong favourites to be relegated to the First Division – but they showed some fight and not a little skill in their bid to leave Edinburgh with at least a share of the spoils.

Hearts took the lead after only six minutes, and with their first chance. Nade, who had already troubled the visitors' defence with some close-quarters dribbling, was first to react when a long ball from Lee Wallace was head-flicked on by Bruno Aguiar into space behind the Hamilton Accies defence.

As Nade drove on into the box, Accies' Martin Canning got between the Frenchman and the ball, and the scoring chance appeared to have gone. But Canning failed to make use of his superior position to clear the danger, and, as Tomas Cerny came out of goal to try to help stifle the threat, Nade stuck out a foot and poked the ball home for his first goal of the season.

After that setback, Hamilton had no choice but to press forward, although they had in fact already been playing in a positive fashion. Having fallen to the bottom of the SPL after a promising start, they appear to have decided that they cannot merely sit back in matches and hope to score on the counter- attack, but must be more active in their search for goals.

Having scored one, Nade was certainly active in his own quest to score again, and he was the dominant figure for the rest of the half. He came close to scoring a second after 25 minutes, when he fell down while trying to control a ball from Christophe Berra yet still managed to shoot with a sort-of bicycle kick which went just wide. A few minutes later the burly striker had two shots in quick succession as the home team tried to kill off the contest. Both times, however, Cerny was well positioned and saved without too much difficulty.

Towards half-time Hamilton enjoyed a good spell of play, and the home goalkeeper Janos Balogh looked distinctly uncomfortable when trying to deal with high balls. The Hungarian did well, however, when David Graham shot from the left after good work by James McCarthy. Balogh blocked at his near post, and Marius Zaliukas slid in to clear for a corner.

In the closing minutes of the half, Nade was again in the spotlight. First, he was just too high with an overhead kick from a Wallace cross, and then he beat four men after picking up a throw-in down the right from Eggert Jonsson before a fifth managed to block. It was impressive stuff, but Hearts went in at half-time knowing the game was far from won.

Nade, for one, realised that, and resumed the match as he had left off. A cross from the right by Aguiar was slightly overstruck, and although the forward managed to connect with his boot, he was overstretched and could only send the ball over the bar.

Hamilton had brought Richard Offiong on for Lukas Akins, and the substitute had the chance to put his team back on level terms ten minutes into the second period. He rose well to meet a cross from Simon Mensing, but he could not get enough on the back-post header and Balogh made an easy save.

Hearts made two changes of their own around the hour mark. First, Robbie Neilson came on after seven months out through injury to replace David Obua, who has himself had injury problems and was making his first start since the previous league meeting between the teams at the end of August. Then, in a less popular move, Jamie Mole replaced Nade.

Still Hamilton refused to lie down, and with quarter-of-an-hour left to play, McArthur should have done better than head over from a Graham cross. An edginess had crept into Hearts' play, and the removal of Nade had done nothing but allow Hamilton to push more men forward and resort to just two at the back.

Hearts: Balogh; Jonsson, Zaliukas, Berra, Wallace; Karipidis; Driver, Palazuelos, Aguiar, Obua (Neilson 59); Nade (Mole 62). Subs not used: Kello, Makela, Thomson, Templeton, Balatoni. Booked: Mole.

Hamilton: Cerny; McClennahan (Thomas 84), Canning, McLaughlin, Easton; Mensing, McArthur (Gibson 76), Neil, Graham, McCarthy; Akins. Subs not used: Murdoch, Elebert, Swailes, Lyle. Booked: Mensing.

Taken from the Scotsman