Saved at the bells

Hearts 1 Hibernian 1

TO be Franck, Hibs felt like they won the Edinburgh derby last night. Tynecastle assaulted the eardrums and froze the extremities before a compelling match climaxed with the first goal of Franck Sauzee's managerial reign.

He had waited four long matches to see one of his players score but the goal meant more to the club than that. John O'Neil's drilled shot extended Hibs' unbeaten run against Hearts to six meetings, but to come as Hearts fans were imploring referee Stuart Dougal to blow the final whistle was sweeter still.

Sauzee has still to lose an Edinburgh derby as a player or manager, though he came mighty close after Kevin McKenna's freakish early goal gave Hearts a lead they held for 80 minutes. Had they defended more shrewdly Craig Levein might have had a milestone of his own - his first derby win as manager; instead he gently rebuked his players for attacking naively instead of playing down time.

"We showed a little bit of inexperience at times in pushing forward in trying to make it 2-0. Maybe more experienced players would have taken the ball into the corners." His team, though, were more guilty of defending too deep than attacking too flamboyantly.

One point seems almost insignificant, but it was a big result for Sauzee. He went into the game without five established first team players: Ulrik Laursen, Tom McManus, Francisco Luna and Paul Fenwick through suspension, and Craig Brewster because of injury. The side he sent out had an unmistakably makeshift appearance. Alen Orman was in central defence and Gary O'Connor, starting a match for the first time, up front along with Eduardo Hurtado.

They were an unlikely pair - the burly Ecuadorian and the tall, young Scot. Hearts' resilient defence found neither of them unduly troublesome although there were flashes of menace from O'Connor, notably with a crisp turn and shot which Roddy McKenzie saved, and later an acrobatic overhead kick also plucked to safety by the goalkeeper.

McKenzie has a few more years on the clock than O'Connor, but he is barely more experienced. A frustrated understudy, who submitted a transfer request only a fortnight ago, he had languished for six years on Hearts' books before being subjected to an Edinburgh derby. If he had played the matches over countless times in his mind, they could hardly have been more agreeable for him than yesterday's was.

His handling was sound but he benefited from diligent protection from his central defenders. Andy Webster picked up O'Connor, McKenna snuffed out Hurtado, and Steven Pressley was flawless as the spare man between them.

Some of Hibs' interplay in midfield was attractive, but their attacks lacked the unpredictability and raw danger which Ricardo Fuller brought to Hearts. Fuller's final use of the ball can be questionable, but his runs and elusive footwork add a mesmerising quality to Levein's front line.

Gary Smith whipped the ball off his feet after one threatening early run, but he later tormented Ian Murray and Grant Brebner and had Hibs supporters gnawing their fingernails every time the ball came near him. One of his bursts into the penalty area ended with a lay-off for Stephen Simmons, who would have scored with a low side- footed shot had Murray not been on the goalline to clear.

Surprisingly, Hearts' goal bypassed him. Alan Maybury's corner was cleared, but as Hibs pushed out to play offside Steve Fulton nodded it back in to the isolated - but on side - McKenna. The defender's touch was poor but his mis-hit shot bounced into the ground and up over the stranded Nick Colgan into the net. It was a messy goal, but then Edinburgh derbies are messy affairs.

The goal lifted Hearts until half time. Maybury buried a low, long- range shot into Colgan's body then Fuller sliced a shot wide, but crucially their cleanest chances did not fall to their strikers. Fuller delivered a cross which Thomas Flogel met with a scissors kick to send the ball fizzing over the bar, and Fulton weaved his way to the edge of the area but sent a right foot shot drifting wide.

Hibs were encouraged to find themselves still in contention. Brebner and O'Neil worked tirelessly in a central midfield which was no longer outnumbered when Sauzee instructed Ulises de la Cruz to move from right-back to midfield. The switch from a back three to a four came after McKenna's goal and Hibs were the better for it.

There was a third change to his back line when Mathias Jack came on for the injured Orman early in the second half, but as the game wore on Hibs' defending was no longer under examination.

In an attempt to protect what they had, Hearts opted to defend deep. It was a strategy which invited trouble as well as attacks and Hibs began to sense that they could sneak a point. Derek Riordan, a pencil-slim 18-year-old, slipped a low shot to the corner which McKenzie saved. Hibs grew into the match to such an extent their equaliser was deserved.

From a rushed, untidy move both de la Cruz and Derek Townsley saw shots blocked by Hearts defenders but when the ball broke for a third time no-one was near O'Neil, who smacked a low shot through the scrum of bodies and past McKenzie.

"I am delighted," said Sauzee. "I think we did well after losing a bad goal once again." He detects a nervousness among his players at the beginning of games, but last night was not the time for nitpicking. "I was happy because we had four key players suspended but the others who came in were fantastic. It showed me we have 21 or 22 players who can play at the top level."

The equaliser robbed McKenzie of the clean sheet he deserved, but he still had the consolation of keeping his side in the game. In injury time, O'Neil played Townsley in only for McKenzie to dive and smother at his feet. That denied Hibs a winner at the death, but their draw breathed life into the Sauzee era.

Copyright 2001
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