Hearts 3 Livingston 1

From ROBERT MARTIN at Tynecastle

JOHN McGLYNN praised skipper Marius Zaliukas after the Lithuanian overcame a howler to fire Hearts into the last eight.

It had looked as if his mistake would force the Jambos into extra–time.

Zaliukas dithered in the box in 55 minutes and Marc McNulty took advantage to level Danny Grainger’s deflected opener.

But he saved his blushes by scoring TWICE in four minutes from corners to kill off any hopes for John Hughes’ Livi.

Boss McGlynn said: “He made a mistake and cost us a goal and put us in a situation we should never have been in.

“We were well on top, but to be fair to him he has went up and scored twice.

“He’s the captain and you look for leadership and he came through. He produced the goods when he needed to.

“It was a good statement from him and a good performance from us. In the end we could have won by more.”

Andrew Driver for Dale Carrick was the only Hearts change from the team that had thumped Dundee United, but it was Livingston who made the early running.

Ex-Hearts kid Jordan Morton flashed a shot just over and McNulty fired one a foot wide.

Livi skipper Craig Barr and Jesus Garcia Tena were booked as Hearts finally exerted pressure and Zaliukas followed for cynically bringing down Stefan Scougall.

Keeper Andy McNeil then did superbly to twice deny Scott Robinson, tipping away his header and then rushing off his line to deny him again.

But McNeil could do nothing as Hearts scored in 44 minutes.

He appeared to have Danny Grainger’s shot covered as the left-back let fly from 30 yards, but the ball took a wicked deflection on its way past former Hibee McNeil.

Hearts should have killed the tie seven minutes into the second half.

Driver’s clever ball picked out Robinson, who fired it across goal but Novikovas was unable to turn it home. And just as it seemed Hearts were cruising, Zaliukas boobed.

The defender was totally at fault as he dithered on the ball just outside his own box and McNulty robbed him.

MacDonald raced off his line but the striker kept his nerve to shoot into the top corner.

Cue Zaliukas to right his earlier wrong. Ryan Stevenson’s corner in 68 minutes dropped into his path six yards out and he blasted in a half-volley.

And he nodded his second in 73 minutes from another Stevenson corner to seal it.

Livi boss Hughes said: “I’m disappointed with the goals but that’s what you get when you work with young kids lacking a bit of height.

“I thought we had the best player on the park in the wee boy Stefan Scougall, I’d pay money to see him.”

Hearts: MacDonald 6; R McGowan 5, Barr 5, Zaliukas 6, Grainger 6; Driver 7 (Carrick 2), Robinson 6, Taouil 5, Novikovas 6; Stevenson 5, Paterson 6 (Sutton 2). Subs: GK Enckelman; Smith, D McGowan. Booked: Zaliukas, Stevenson.

Livingston: McNeil 8; Docherty 6, Watson 6, Barr 7, Tena 6; Morton 6 (Gray 2), Andreu 6, Jacobs 6, Russell 6 (Easton 2); Scougall 7; McNulty 7. Subs: GK Jamieson; Fordyce, Downie.Booked: Barr, Tena, Morton.

Ref: S McLean – got bookings spot on. 6.