Hearts will no longer be bullied

BARRY ANDERSON
Hearts 2, Motherwell 1

IF there is one enduring characteristic about Hearts under Csaba Laszlo, it's their stomach for a fight.
Whether it's players scrapping their way towards UEFA's Europa League or their manager defending his corner against a riled opponent, the bottle for the battle is unmistakeable.

Twice inside four days opposition managers have taken issue with the Tynecastle club. This, of course, implies that they must be doing something right from their own perspective. Last night Hearts overcame an excellent Motherwell side because they wanted to. Badly. In fact, the fire in their bellies would have done justice to that red stuff glowing inside ET's stomach as he reboarded his spaceship. Proper inspiration, you might call it.

Mark McGhee aimed a post-match broadside at his opponents after losing a match his team dominated for long periods. His criticism follows that of Craig Levein, who claimed Hearts feigned injury and conned the referee at Tannadice last weekend. Perhaps it was frustration talking with McGhee after Ruben Palazuelos' winning goal in stoppage time, but clearly Hearts are upsetting the SPL apple cart during this ruthless charge towards Europe.

McGhee was enraged by some expletives bawled across the technical area by Laszlo during the second half. With Hearts leading 1-0 through Andy Driver's header, the game was threatening to boil over. "I was quite upset about that, quite disappointed to be honest," said the Motherwell manager. "I asked him (Laszlo] what the problem was and he told me to F*** off. There was a foul, just a foul (Maros Klimpl on Andy Driver]. There are fouls in games all the time but the reaction from their bench was like there had been an assassination. I asked what it was all about and I was told to F*** off. I'm disappointed but satisfied that I've got a good team."

Laszlo offered an apology to McGhee literally seconds later and the two men shook hands, but McGhee then unleashed some retribution when Stephen Hughes struck a ferocious 20-yard equaliser 14 minutes from time.

"I know this is painful to lose the game but we can also talk about what he told me after 1-1," said Laszlo. "I think what he told me could start a war between normal people, but he should stay comfortable in his chair and not go into a war with me in the newspapers.

"He did not apologise to me but I won't say what he said to me. I work for the football and I am not here to make a war.

"I respect him as a person, he played in Germany and he is married to Scottish football. I am very respectful and I never talk about other coaches. I apologised for my attitude. He did not get it the first time so I went a second time to apologise, but he did not do the same.

"This is important. He must tell you what he said before. I think we must respect each other, I apologised to him but he did not do this.

"He must not bring too much emotion after losing a game, he must respect the opponents. I was not (going] to talk about this but if he tells you then he must be a man and tell what he did before and what he said to me. This is between me and him. If you have too many emotions you must control the emotions sometimes."

McGhee seemed to imply that Hearts won the match by default. Both their goals arrived via long throws launched into the opposition penalty area by Robbie Neilson. Driver snuck in to nod in the first while the second was a collector's item for Palazuelos as it was delivered by his right boot from the edge of the area.

"Two long throws is one way of winning games," said McGhee. "What can I say? I'm satisfied with the way my team played anyway. I think we will eventually be in the top six. I think we'll be fourth but I don't think we have any chance of getting third now. I'll look forward to playing Hearts again.

"We came here to compete and play. I think they (the players] have done absolutely everything asked of them. I think it was there for everybody to see. We passed the ball, kept the ball, we were pacy, and we did everything right apart from win the game. It's disappointing not to win but I'm 100 per cent satisfied with the performance."

The match was preceded by a minute's silence for the late former Hearts half-back Andy Bowman, and once play got underway Motherwell went on the offensive. Cillian Sheridan, the on-loan Celtic forward, struck the first attempt at Janos Balogh's goal after galloping in behind Christos Karipidis. It quickly became evident that Sheridan's height and pace would trouble Hearts and he dispatched another strike wide on ten minutes.

Bruno Aguiar produced the hosts' first effort on target after 19 minutes, but of greater concern was the erroneous distribution from defence which was placing all concerned under undue pressure. After one hesitant clearance on the half hour Motherwell forced a corner, from which Hughes unleashed a venomous shot that smacked off the crossbar.

Laszlo's discontentment with his side's opening 30 minutes led him to replace Adrian Mrowiec with Christian Nade. Both managers had named unchanged starting line-ups, meaning Morwiec continued in an unorthodox striking role for Hearts. However, the Pole ailed to impress. Motherwell then appealed in vain for a penalty when Sheridan fell under Karipidis' challenge. Despite finishing the first half with confidence, the visitors were unable to convert superiority into goals with their hosts looking out of touch.

"If you have a lot of young players who don't have much experience, you can have this first half," said Laszlo. "You win against Dundee United, a very important game, and then you think everything is going along okay. I did not have the time to touch my team and prepare them like a young team needs because the Motherwell game was very close.

"In the dressing room at the break we handled it differently than before. We did not talk about tactics, we spoke about tactical discipline and about work. It was very clear that if we worked hard and did not just play, we had a chance. Sometimes it is very important to understand this.

"You must work against the ball, get behind the ball quickly. This is not new, we try it often in training. Once you win the ball you must play it very quickly to the front."

Within five minutes of the restart, the visitors were cursing that profligacy as Driver nodded the opening goal. Neilson's long throw eluded a posse of players gathered at the near post and Driver ghosted in to head the ball past Graeme Smith from close range, reward for Hearts' refreshing urgency following the interval.

Driver broke into space on 65 minutes to run at Stephen Craigan with pace, however his eventual shot from an acute angle finished in the side netting. Balogh then saved a dipping volley from midfielder Klimpl before Craigan was stretchered off following an innocuous challenge from Nade.

The Frenchman's shoulder accidentally collided with his opponent as they contested a bouncing ball on the edge of the centre circle, but referee Brian Winter bizarrely decided to award Motherwell a free-kick once Craigan was removed from the field. As if to add to the intrigue, the disputed set-piece produced the equaliser. Steven Hammell's delivery was cleared by Nade and returned powerfully into the net by the left foot of Hughes, the best player on the park alongside Driver.

Craigan's injury caused five minutes of additional time at the end of the regulation 90, which were to prove a blessing for Hearts. One minute in, Neilson's throw was headed out to Palazuelos and his return shot nestled in the net, sparking intense celebrations all around Tynecastle.

Amid his team's euphoria, though, Laszlo had Craigan's welfare uppermost in his mind. "I hope the captain of Motherwell recovers very quick," he said. "This was an accident, not a foul, and I wish him all the best. I hope he is back training quickly. He is a very important player. I saw him and he did not move but we must be sportsmen so I hope everything will be okay."

"He seems to be okay, he's just got a dull one and I think it was accidental," explained McGhee. "There are no concerns over him."

The Motherwell manager and the rest of the SPL do appear concerned about how Hearts are managing to win games while not playing the most attractive football. Privately, you can be sure Laszlo will allow himself a wry smile at all the uproar.