Hearts crash out the Co-Operative Insurance Cup

Hearts' hopes of a day out at Hampden ended at Fir Park tonight as they lost 1-0 to a superior St Mirren side.

Billy Mehmet scored the game's only goal six minutes into the second half but it should have been more for the Buddies who dominated most of the proceedings before successfully defending a Hearts onslaught near the end.

For his second game since returning to manage Hearts Jim Jefferies made four changes to the side that lost at McDiarmid Park on Saturday with Ian Black, Lee Wallace, Andrew Driver and Gordon Smith coming into the starting line-up. For St. Mirren, manager Gus McPherson opted to go for size in attack by pairing Michael Higdon and Billy Mehmet together up front.

In the opening exchanges it was the men from Paisley who looked more likely to take an early lead with Michael Higdon twice going close in the first 13 minutes. First the striker managed to get his head to a Jack Ross cross right the right but his header from the edge of the area lacked the power required to trouble Kello.

A few minutes later Higdon then got himself on the end of a through ball that put him in on goal but, after initially hesitating, his finish was very weak as he was put under pressure from a retreating Hearts defence.

St Mirren began to dominate a lacklustre Hearts side struggling to get to grips with this game that was being played out on the patchy Fir Park pitch. On 23 minutes right-back Jack Ross came inches away from opening the scoring when his shot from the edge of the area took a wicked deflection off Marius Zaliukas and landed just wide of the keeper's left-hand post.

Two minutes later it was striker Billy Mehmet's turn to go close for St Mirren as he cut inside from the left and drove his shot from 18 yards low into the side netting.

It took Hearts until the 28th minute to have their first chance when Andrew Driver's corner from the left was flicked on by Christian Nade in the direction of Gordon Smith in the six-yard box. The teenager beat Paul Gallacher to the ball but could only hook his effort wide as he tried to navigate a tricky turn-and-shot in a packed penalty area.

The half-time interval didn't bring about any change to which side was in the ascendancy. Just two minutes into the half Mehmet was allowed space to cut in from the left and fire wide of Marian Kello's post from 20 yards out. From the resulting goal-kick Kello scuffed his clearance which allowed Higdon a run at goal but again the striker wanted too much time on the ball as Zaliukas got back to close out the danger.

With Hearts all over the place at the back the opening goal seemed inevitable and it duly arrived on 51 minutes. Yet again Mehmet was allowed far too much space as he received the ball 20 yards from goal in the centre of the park before turning with the ball and curling it expertly past Kello for a deserved St. Mirren lead.

Six minutes later Hearts were thankful to Marian Kello for (quite literally) single-handedly keeping their season alive when he blocked Andy Dorman's shot after the midfielder was played through for a free run on goal from just inside the half-way line.

Instead of awakening Hearts the goal merely spurred on St Mirren who began to stroke the ball around with the ease and precision of a side you wouldn't expect to find languishing in the bottom half of the league. It took Hearts until the last 20 minutes to suddenly realise that their season was on the line as they eventually started to press their opponents and create some chances of their own.

On 75 minutes Smith and Suso combined to cause chaos in the St Mirren rearguard but in the ensuing scramble no-one was able to create a clear-cut opening and Nade's sliced shot from the edge of the box flew high over the crossbar.

Two minutes later Driver found some room streaking into the box on the left and his low cross was almost deflected into the net but again St. Mirren were able to clear. Just after that opportunity it was the turn of Lee Wallace to get in behind going down the left but his front post cross was hooked wide by Nade from a tight angle.

With desperation at a high and the match seconds from finishing Eggert Jonsson tried a shot from 25 yards that curled far and away from the goal, ending any hopes of a Hearts comeback.

Hearts: Kello; Thomson, Bouzid, Zaliukas, Wallace; Jonsson, Black, Stewart, Driver; Smith, Nade. Subs not used: Ridgers, Kucharski, Suso, Glen, Mulrooney.

St Mirren: Gallacher; Ross, Innes, Mair, Barron; Thomson, Murray (Dargo 74), Potter, Dorman (O'Donnell 87); Higdon, Mehmet. Subs not used: Howard, O'Donnell, Brady, Robb. Booked: Mehmet

Referee: Charlie Richmond

Top man: Marius Zaliukas

Hearts World