Fringe players impress in comfortable win for Hearts

Published Date: 06 July 2011
By Iain Collin
at Bayview
HEARTS manager Jim Jefferies was given food for thought last night as his fringe players impressed in a comfortable victory against John Robertson's East Fife.
The furore which blew up over the club's handling of Craig Thomson's court case and his subsequent suspension appeared to have dimmed enough for the supporters present to concentrate fully on the on-field action.

It was a first opportunity for the Gorgie faithful to glimpse their new-look side. Jefferies, who barring keeper Janos Balogh, fielded two separate teams, began the match with what looked like a first-choice line-up, with summer recruits Jamie Hamill, Mehdi Taouil and John Sutton all being handed starts and only Danny Grainger of the new signings being forced to sit out the opening 45 minutes.

And the lesser lights who sprang off the bench for the second half outshone their more celebrated colleagues, adding goals from Grainger and Arvydas Novikovas to the first-half strike from Lee Wallace.

The strong-looking SPL outfit sparked to life from kick-off and their attack in the opening minute featured the familiar sight of Wallace galloping forward from his defensive beat.

And Taouil's intelligent passing and ability to engineer space in midfield was another feature of the opening spell.

Hearts' bright opening dimmed, though, and Balogh had to touch Darren Smith's netbound shot wide before Ryan Stevenson wasted a free header from another Wallace incision down the left. But with three minutes of the half remaining, Hearts took the lead. Wallace skipped away from Fife right-back Andrew Cook and drove into the box before slipping his shot through a crowded six-yard box and into the net.

Any thoughts the home side had they might get it easier against Hearts' second line-up after the break quickly evaporated with two goals for the visitors in the space of two second-half minutes. With 58 minutes gone, Grainger showed his dead-ball prowess when he curled a superb free-kick into the top corner. A minute later, David Templeton weaved some magic down the left only to see Ridgers touch his shot onto the post, but Novikovas drilled in the rebound from 12 yards out.

East Fife 0

Hearts 3
Wallace (42), Grainger (59), Novikovas (60)

East Fife: Ridgers; Cook, Ovenston, White, Park (Durie 53); Linn, Muir, Smith, Johnstone (Young 50); Dalziel (Ogleby 66), Wallace (Newbigging 80). Subs not used: Brown, Campbell.

Hearts (first-half): Balogh; Hamill, Zaliukas, Webster, Wallace; Stevenson, Mrowiec, Black, Taouil; Sutton, Elliott.

Hearts (second-half): Balogh; J. Thomson, Barr, McGowan, Grainger; Novokovas, Robinson Obua, Templeton; Holt, Smith.

Referee: J. Beaton.

Taken from the Scotsman