Hearts 0 Kilmarnock 1

Oct 30 2011 Euan Mclean, Sunday Mail

KILLIE proved they have steel to match their style by battling to victory in a stormy clash against 10-man Hearts.

Raging Jambo players hounded ref Alan Muir after he flashed a straight red at Ian Black then snubbed their penalty claims for a handball in Killie's box.

Their fury got worse when the whistler gave the visitors a hotly-disputed spot-kick, stroked home by Dean Shiels for the winner.

Eventually raging Paulo Sergio was sent packing for abusing the fourth official.

That is sure to land the Hearts gaffer in more hot water, on top of this week's SFA disciplinary hearing for comments he made about his last run-in with a referee.

Afterwards Rugby Park ace Paul Heffernan insisted this win proved Killie were about more than pretty football. He said: "There were some big tackles going in and some spicy conversations out there too.

"It was all going off. You get games like that and we handled ourselves well.

"People say we like to play pretty stuff - but we rolled up our sleeves this time."

Jambos dominated the first 15 minutes but were a man down after hothead Black's deserved 16th-minute red card.

His studs-in lunge on Shiels was as needless as it was late and could easily have seriously injured the Irishman.

Sergio would presumably have complained bitterly about it if it wasn't for the club's bizarre media blackout.

But the body language of the Portuguese boss made his outrage clear to see.

Undeterred, the home side continued to press and Rudi Skacel's spectacular overhead kick flew just over.

Then Muir gave Hearts a more justified cause for complaint when he snubbed a strong 26th-minute penalty claim.

Alex Pursehouse miscued a clearance from Jamie Hamill's cross and the ball screwed off his head and struck his hand.

The whistler waved play on, ruling the full-back's handball as unintentional.

Just before half-time Killie keeper Anssi Jaakkola saved his side. Danny Grainger's corner dropped at Ryan Stevenson's feet - but the Finn showed super-quick reactions to palm his point-blank shot over.

It was a great stop from the stand-in who is staking a strong case to keep his place even when Cammy Bell returns from injury.

Jaakkola followed it up with another topdrawer save in the second half.

Skacel worked a neat one-two with Stevenson and cracked a low shot but the keeper got down to make a vital stop.

And four minutes later Killie grabbed the lead from a hotly-disputed penalty. Marius Zaliukas let Heffernan drift goalside as the pair powered in to the box.

There was clearly a barge on the canny hitman, who needed little encouragement to hit the deck to win his penalty.

Skacel and Zaliukas were booked for dissent before Shiels stepped up to roll home a cool spot-kick straight down the middle.

Tynecastle was a bubbling Hallowe'en cauldron now - and the burning sense of injustice boiled over in 77 minutes.

Sergio was sent to the stand after one too many verbal volleys at fourth official Paul Robertson. The gaffer gestured angrily at Muir - pointing to the stand, seemingly to suggest the ref should be the one leaving the field based on his performance.

Hearts almost got a late leveller but Andy Webster's bullet header from a Hamill corner whizzed wide.

Taken from the Daily Record