Hearts 2 Inverness CT 1

Nov 27 2011 By Rob Fairburn, Sunday Mail

EGGERT Jonsson's first goal of the season helped Hearts back to winning ways and left Inverness marooned at the bottom of the table.

The Icelandic midfielder headed in the winner 15 minutes from time after a quick corner caught the Highlanders napping.

After four games without a goal the Jambos relied on talismanic figure Rudi Skacel to break the sequence 25 seconds after the interval.

Ross Tokely's header in the 58th minute looked like salvaging a point for Inverness until Jonsson popped up with the decider.

The blustery conditions made good football impossible with the ball swirling in the air for an apparent eternity.

There was little to write home about in the first half until Gregory Tade was sent clean through after a Marius Zaliukas slip.

As he tried to round Marian Kello the keeper stuck out a leg to foil the Frenchman who was left hanging his head.

Hearts came racing out of the blocks at the start of the second half.

John Sutton flicked on Jamie Hamill's through ball and Skacel let it run across his body on to his favoured left foot before thumping a low drive past the helpless Ryan Esson.

It was the Czech star's fourth of the season, making him top scorer and the relief around Tynecastle after so many blanks recently was evident.

Inverness managed to get back on level terms in the 58th minute.

Jonsson clipped Jonny Hayes and the winger sent over a floated free-kick that Tokely rose to head home through a ruck of defenders.

And the visitors should have been in front in the 67th minute when Kello produced a great diving save to parry Andrew Shinnie's powerful effort then Hayes blasted the rebound over the bar.

But it was Hearts who got what proved to be the deciding goal in 75 minutes.

Esson produced a fine save to foil Sutton at the expense of a corner.

But Inverness were caught napping as David Templeton received the ball short from Hamill and sent over a peach of a cross for Jonsson to head home from close in.

It was enough to guarantee the points for the Gorgie outfit although Tokely again came close with another header three minutes from time.

Not for the first time this season Inverness boss Terry Butcher was left shaking his head.

He said: "It is the most frustrating season I have been involved in but we are bottom of the league because we have not kept clean sheets.

"It feels weird. We play well in spells but then toss it away with silly mistakes. Once we scored I thought we were going to draw or even win.

"It was disappointing to concede from a corner when we went to sleep and the first goal was an absolute joke. It was a kick up the park, a flick on and a shot. It was woeful defending.

"We showed a bit of character coming back but the lack of clean sheets is costing us. We have tried everything with the back four but keep conceding."

Taken from the Daily Record