OUR HEART THROB!

By Graeme Bryce, 14/02/2009

Scorers: HEARTS: Nade, Driver ABERDEEN: Mackie

ANDY DRIVER planted a smacker past Jamie Langfield on Valentine’s Day then revealed why everything’s coming up roses for Hearts...his team-mates have fallen head over heels for manager Csaba Laszlo.

Things looked bleak when Darren Mackie volleyed Aberdeen in front after 20 minutes.

But Christian Nade headed past Langfield to give them a crucial lifeline just before the break.

Driver stunned even himself when he threw himself at David Obua’s back post cross after 66 minutes to dump the Dons with the FIRST header he’s scored in his life.

That dramatic strike saw Hearts leapfrog Dundee United to third, two points clear of United and four points ahead of the Dons. However, the 21-year-old Englishman is convinced that without Laszlo — now the longest surviving boss under Vladimir Romanov’s reign — his side would have ended up broken hearted and pointless.

He claimed: “I think this season we’ve shown a spirit which wasn’t always there in the past.

“If we went a goal behind last year we’d have caved in. Now we have players who want to do well and win for the manager.

“We’ve also got the fans with us this year. Last season they’d have given up at 1-0...and so would we.

“But today we fought back brilliantly and thoroughly deserved the win.”

It may have been the most romantic day of the year but there has never been much love lost between this pair of deadly rivals.

There is a history of bad blood between the sides and it has been spilled at times this season, so it was no surprise when this turned into another passionate affair.

Back in October referee Steve Conroy awarded Hearts a penalty only to have it overturned by linesman Chris Young as the Dons held on for a 1-1 draw.

Afterwards Laszlo raced on to the pitch and had to be hauled away following a confrontation with Aberdeen assistant Sandy Clark.

Then punches were thrown in the tunnel at Pittodrie in December after another bad-tempered affair.

So it wasn’t surprising when much of the early action was fairly crude as this prickly pair made it clear they simply don’t like each other from the start.

Yet when the deadlock was broken it was with a goal of beauty.

Charlie Mulgrew collected the ball and strode forward to the halfway line where he looked up and unleashed a howitzer of a diagonal ball fully 40 yards across the park.

With Hearts’ defence looking as unsure as Gordon Brown at a Slipknot concert, stand-in stopper Eggert Jonsson allowed Mackie to drift on to his shoulder.

The striker used his lightning pace to leave Jonsson gasping and, as the ball dropped over his left shoulder, Mackie met it with a cushioned volley which flew over Janos Balogh and into the top corner.

But Hearts dug deep and battled back to earn a deserved victory.

They pulled level just before half- time when Bruno Aguiar picked out Obua deep in the Dons box.

The Ugandan international nodded the ball back and Nade charged in to head past Langfield from eight yards.

That strike gave Hearts the belief they needed to come up with a fresh fervour after the break as referee Charlie Richmond did well to keep a lid on the game.

Ricky Foster tested the official’s patience more than most with a crunching tackle on Nade after 59 minutes which left the big striker writhing on the turf.

That decision incensed the Hearts bench and tempers flared as Laszlo and assistant Werner Burger went berserk on the touchline.

It was sensible refereeing which allowed Hearts their winner after 66 minutes as Richmond ignored a foul by Foster on Lee Wallace — to the fury of the home support.

With their boos stinging his ears, the ref waved play on to give Hearts an advantage, Lee Miller stopped and allowed Obua to swing in a deep cross. As the Dons failed to readjust Driver stooped to squeeze his header in off Langfield to give Hearts the lead.

He revealed: “If I had time to think about it I might have missed. Believe it or not, that’s the first header I’ve ever scored — even in boys’ club football!

“I actually got good contact on it and rose like a salmon to beat the keeper. I phoned my dad afterwards and said ‘Did you see me rise to score my header?’.”

Delighted Laszlo claimed his side’s victory had been even sweeter because Jimmy Calderwood had claimed in the run-up to the match that Hearts would be there for the taking after losing top defenders Christophe Berra to Wolves and Marius Zaliukas to suspension.

He said: “He said Hearts aren’t so strong now and we can get at them. I think those words contributed to making us strong today.”

Dons boss Caldo admitted he did well not to thump Burger as he continually whined about decisions.

He confessed: “We all like to challenge decisions, but when someone challenges 100 out of 100 it starts to get on your nerves.

“I was getting a sore left ear listening to him.”

HEARTS: Balogh, Neilson, Karipidis, Jonsson, Lee Wallace, Obua, Stewart, Aguiar, Driver, Glen (Palazuelos 81), Nade (Mrowiec 90).Subs Not Used: MacDonald, Cesnauskis, Thomson, Elliot, Templeton.

ABERDEEN: Langfield, Foster, Diamond, Severin, Mulgrew, Young (Considine 76), Kerr, Duff (Maguire 76), Vidal, Miller, Mackie (Wright 79).Subs Not Used: Bossu, Stewart, Paton, Pawlett.