Lee strikes gold to give Hearts victory at Easter Road
Hibernian 0 Heart of Midlothian 1
Ladbrokes Premiership, Saturday 29th
December 2018 – Easter Road
Hearts recorded their first
league win at Easter Road since April 2014 when a spectacular Olly Lee goal in
the first half was enough to ensure the Jambos earned the bragging rights in
the capital city after a typical blood and thunder Edinburgh derby on Saturday
evening.
Lee’s unstoppable effort from
25 yards meant joy for the travelling Maroon Army and left Hibernian manager
Neil Lennon contemplating what needs to be done during the January transfer
window.
The game kicked off at 5.30pm
to suit the needs of broadcasters Sky Sports and with many supporters having
spent Saturday afternoon in the pub the atmosphere inside Easter Road Stadium
was even more raucous than usual for an Edinburgh derby.
Hearts were first to threaten
when Peter Haring pounced on a loose ball and sent Olly Lee down the right
wing. The Englishman crossed for Steven
Naismith who headed back to Haring who set up Lee for a shot on goal which took
a touch off Vykintas Slivka before being saved by Hibs keeper Adam Bogdan.
Hibs then had a chance when youngster
Sean Mackie crossed for Oli Shaw, but the striker headed the ball over. Then,
Efe Ambrose drilled in a shot which was saved well by Hearts keeper Colin
Doyle.
Midway through the first half
Olly Lee’s corner for Hearts found Michael Smith who had time and space to
shoot for goal, but the defender couldn’t direct the ball away from Bogdan and
a real chance was gone for the visitors. Five minutes later, however, Hearts
did go in front – and what a goal it was!
Sean Clare found Olly Lee 25 yards from goal. Despite having his back to goal, the midfielder turned Hibs Paul Hanlon and blasted a ferocious shot which rose high past Bogdan and into the net. Joy for the Hearts support in the Dunbar Road end while the rest of the stadium was stunned.
Hibs, though, stormed back.
Stevie Mallan’s free-kick from 30 yards out found Steven Whittaker and the
former Rangers defender forced Colin Doyle into a fine save.
Sean Clare then had a chance
to increase the visitors’ lead when he got away from a couple of Hibs players
but his shot on goal was high and not so mighty.
Half-time: Hibs 0 Hearts 1
Hearts almost made to 2-0
right at the start of the second half when Clare’s drive into the Hibs penalty
box fell to Steven Naismith and the Scotland striker forced Bogdan into another
fine save.
Hibs upped the ante in a bid
to get back into the game. Oli Shaw fired in a magnificent shot from 25 yards
that clipped the crossbar with Colin Doyle helpless. Sean Mackie then tested
the Hearts keeper before firing in a long-range attempt which went wide.
Hearts should have added a
second with 20 minutes to go when great play from Naismith sent Sean Clare
through but the Englishman, looking desperately short of confidence in recent
weeks, fired in a weak shot which was easily saved by Bogdan.
With ten minutes left there
was a great chance for Hibs to draw parity. Steven Whittaker fired in a long-range
effort which looked a goal all the way until keeper Doyle got a finger to the
ball to push it on to the post. The ball then spun along the goal line and
bounced off the other post before going out of play. The home support couldn’t believe
it and it was a clear signal this was going to be Hearts night.
There was another let off for
Hearts when Naismith unintentionally diverted the ball towards his own goal,
but Doyle was quick to react to prevent an equaliser.
Hibs launched everything at their rivals in the closing moments but Hearts, with Christophe Berra immense, held on to secure a long-awaited victory at Easter Road. The Maroons are now seven points ahead of Hibs and are six points off the top of the Ladbrokes Premiership.
Hearts manager Craig Levein
was, naturally, a happy man after the game. He told BBC Sport Scotland:
“We had to show a bit of resilience, especially at the end when they threw Darren McGregor up and really bombarded us. We just edged it, but this is a massive match for us. I feel we should be further up the league table, but it’s been a tough few weeks”
His
Hibs counterpart Neil Lennon told BBC Sport Scotland:
“I feel we deserved something out of the game, we didn’t deserve to lose. We lost a goal to a quality strike then the grease paint cost us an equaliser.
“It wasn’t a poor performance by any manner of means, I think we tried to really force the game, especially second half. If we don’t improve we’ll finish in the bottom six.”
Hibs: Bogdan, Whittaker,
Hanlon, Horgan (Hyndman, 62′), Slivka (Gray, 73′), Mallan, Kamberi, McGregor,
Ambrose, Shaw, Mackie.
Hearts: Doyle, Smith, Haring
(Bozanic, 54′), Berra, Lee (Mulraney, 82′), Clare, Djoum, Naismith, Garuccio,
Godinho, Dikamona.
Referee: Kevin Clancy
Attendance: 20,200
Top man: Hearts captain Christophe
Berra.