U19s: Callum sinks Celts
27.11.2011

Hearts U19s are making a habit of winning games right at the death, and Sunday's 2-1 win at Celtic was arguably the most significant comeback of the season so far.

Two late goals meant Darren Murray's team are now ten points clear of the Parkhead side, and have come from behind on six occasions this season.
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The game only went ahead after a 10am inspection following heavy overnight rain in the Glasgow area. The pitch was soft but playable and the wind had eased a little from the previous day's gales.

Darren Murray sprung a bit of a surprise with his formation, playing five at the back with Fraser Mullen playing a "sweeper" role reminiscent of the 70s & 80s, four across the middle and one striker.

The game opened quietly, with both sides looking for weaknesses but finding none. Indeed, it took until the 15th minute for the first shot at goal which was a tame effort from a Celtic free kick that Jack Hamilton gathered comfortably.

It was Hearts who created the best chance of the half on 23 minutes when Callum Paterson broke out of defence at pace following a Celtic corner. He carried the ball all the way up to the edge of the Celtic box before playing in Sam Nicholson. Sam took the ball round the Celtic keeper but could only hit the post from a tight angle.

A goalless first half was probably a fair reflection on the play and the few chances that were created by either side.

Celtic opened the second half with purpose and it was no surprise when they went ahead after 48 minutes. Paul George picked up the ball on the left and cut inside a couple of would be tacklers and fired a low shot past the diving Hamilton's left hand and into the corner of the net.

Darren Murray reacted immediately by reorganising the team's shape to provide more offensive capability. Fraser Mullen joined the midfield and the two wide men were pushed forward to provide support for Billy King in a 4-3-3 formation. Despite the changes, Celtic continued to dominate possession during the early part of the half, but were limited again to cross balls and long range shots.

Hearts missed a great opportunity to get on level terms after 65 minutes when Dale Carrick dispossessed Filip Twardzik but Robbie Thomson made a good save at the young striker's feet.

Hearts suffered a blow after 71 minutes when Chris Kane suffered a leg injury that forced him off the field. Kane's departure resulted in another reshuffle as Jordan McGhee came on as substitute in central defence while Brad McKay took up Chris Kane's role in midfield

The Wee Jambos eventually got themselves level late on. First Billy King and Dale Carrick were thwarted, but the ball broke to Callum Tapping 20 yards out. The midfielder neatly sidestepped a challenge and created space for a left foot shot that beat Robbie Thomson low to his left for Hearts equaliser.

Hearts almost got their noses in front with five minutes left when Callum Patterson rose high to meet a Fraser Mullen Cross but his header was glanced just of target.

The Celtic defence should have heeded the warning as just a minute later, Hearts dramatically snatched all three points

A free kick on the right was swung in by Kevin McHattie and Callum Paterson found himself in space and rising above Thomson to head home from six yards.

The win was an important result for the youngsters who extended their lead at the top of the table to 8 and 10 points ahead of Hibs and Celtic respectively, although both of them have games in hand.

It is to their credit that they were able to continue the series of come from behind wins without the services of arguably their top three midfielders - Jason Holt, David Smith and Jamie Walker - who had made their loan debuts for Raith Rovers the previous day. All three were watching from the sidelines which demonstrated good camaraderie within the whole squad.

Hearts World