Hearts youngsters offer hope, but Saints march on in Euro race

Monday 26 March 2012 03:44

IF this was a glimpse of what to expect from Hearts when their austerity measures kick in, Paulo Sergio seemed to like what he saw.

His young and inexperienced side took the lead through a teenager, looked comfortable for long spells and might have grabbed a point had Gary Glen’s late shot not struck the woodwork.

Sergio said later that he felt for his players, who performed a decent patch-up job in the absence of several regulars. Foremost among them was Jason Holt who scored on his first start for the club before Murray Davidson’s quick reply and a late penalty by Francisco Sandaza forced the visitors to go home with nothing. With the exception of their defence, Hearts fielded a reserve team. Glen was their lone striker, Darren Barr played in front of the back four, while Holt, Arvydas Novikovas and Scott Robinson made up most of the midfield. Mark Ridgers, a goalkeeper, made his competitive debut when he came on at half-time for the injured Jamie MacDonald.

The problem is that Hearts’ form is now repeatedly viewed in the context of their many other difficulties, such as the wages fiasco, the high-profile departures and the catalogue of aches and pains that led Sergio to put Ian Black, Jamie Hamill and Rudi Skacel on the bench. Craig Beattie dropped out of the squad with a heel injury. At the moment, Hearts are forgiven their foibles, but will they be when relative penury becomes the norm? What about when declining resources is no longer the prism through which their every slip is viewed? Sergio has said that a gradual deterioration was to be expected in the light of recent cutbacks, but St Johnstone and Dundee United are managing well enough on a tight budget of their own. Rightly or wrongly, Hearts will not always be excused setbacks such as these. They will surely secure the top-six finish that is still not guaranteed, but the reality is that they are now four points behind St Johnstone, who have played a match fewer. No matter how meagre their resources become, a club of their standing will be expected to do better in the long run.

The Perth club are well-placed to deny Hearts the European berth that would give them a much-needed financial boost, although if Celtic win the Scottish Cup, sixth-place would still be enough to claim a Europa League place.

Having long ago resolved to live within their means, St Johnstone are as stable on the pitch as they are off it, a quality reflected in this latest performance. It was not their most convincing, but they came from behind to grind out a victory. After Holt had crisply finished Ryan McGowan’s cross, Davidson’s swift equaliser was similarly constructed. Then, with 13 minutes left, Marius Zaliukas pulled down Sandaza in the penalty area. It was the second successive match in which the Hearts captain had cost his team a penalty.

The Hearts players, who upset Sandaza by goading him as he waited to take the spot-kick, were not the only ones frustrated by the outcome. Sergio complained that the referee had made mistakes in the build-up to both of St Johnstone’s goals, although as Sandaza pointed out later, a soft penalty at the same venue last month kept Hearts in the William Hill Scottish Cup. St Johnstone are out of that competition, but an exciting finale to their league season beckons. Steve Lomas, their manager, says that the aim is to finish fourth, but if they beat Inverness on Wednesday night, they will move to within five points of third-placed Motherwell, and the prospect of an unlikely berth in the Champions League qualifying rounds.

If that sounds a touch fanciful, the Europa League is a distinct possibility for the club whose last venture into European competition was 12 years ago. At least Alan Mannus, their goalkeeper, has more recent experience of the high life, albeit in his capacity as a goalkeeper for Linfield and Shamrock Rovers. With the latter, he conceded a goal to Alessandro Del Piero, which he doesn’t mind admitting is his claim to fame.

“The good thing about playing for the bigger clubs in Ireland is you’re involved in Europe every year. Luckily for me, I played in a lot of games for Linfield and Shamrock Rovers. I must have played around 20 qualifying games in both the Champions League and the Europa League.

“We played Juventus two years ago with Shamrock and before that I faced Dinamo Zagreb with Linfield. Sometimes you get a nice draw – other times you get one where you can actually get through to the next round, like Shamrock did last year. It would be great to bring that kind of thing to McDiarmid Park.”

Taken from the Scotsman