Ferguson folly is the only minus point for Advocaat

Hearts 1 rangers 4 DICK Advocaat's desire to bury the evidence this summer, to clear the decks and start afresh in July as if the Martin O'Neill revolution never happened, will be denied him. Rangers' victory belatedly captured a place in next season's Champions League qualifiers, but they also left Tynecastle with some unwelcome baggage to carry into the new campaign.

In becoming the third Rangers player sent-off at Hearts' ground this season, Barry Ferguson incurred a four-match suspension which will rule him out of the remaining two games of this season and the opening two of the next one. Ferguson received a straight red card for a dangerous late challenge which caught Steven Pressley at the knee after half-an-hour. Pressley recovered sufficiently to later be sent off himself.

Ferguson's disciplinary record now stands at two red and 15 yellow cards this season, demonstrating a rashness and absence of composure which undermines his effectiveness as captain. The 22-year-old's smooth play can be inspirational at the heart of the side, but the asset is pointless if he is to be repeatedly suspended.

"There was no reason to do it because we were 1-0 up at the time," said Dick Advocaat. "Then again, I don't want to take that out of his game. Part of his game is his sharpness and we don't have many like that. But he has to control it."

Ferguson apart, Advocaat was grinning broadly. It was a thoroughly rewarding afternoon for Rangers, who were pulled back to 1-1 after Fer-guson's dismissal, only to steamroll over Hearts with a display choreographed by Jorg Albertz and abetted by the rampaging runs of Arthur Numan and deft feet of Tore Andre Flo.

Albertz gave journalists a Germanic mouthful for reporting he had demeaned Celtic's season as "lucky", but he would not deny he had found it galling to be usurped. Yesterday, Hearts were powerless to silence him. He scored twice, hit the woodwork twice, and passed to Flo for the fourth. The only goal he was not involved in was Rod Wallace's, and even then he almost took the free-kick which made it.

Hearts manager Craig Levein described the match as a typical end- of-season affair, so he must have had some rollicking good times at Cowdenbeath. It was anything but dull, with a bewildering number of attempts on goal, most of them by Rangers, and some spicy tackling.

Hearts attempted to disrupt Rangers' passing from the start, but were deceived by the wide free-kick from which Albertz opened the scoring. Expecting a cross, they were static as his inswinging ball flew through the box and into the net off the inside of the far post. He almost scored again with a powerful effort which hit the post and rebounded for Antti Niemi.

Hearts were aggressive in midfield, but meek in attack, and had created little more than a long-range Colin Cameron drive. Rod Wallace, guilty of an appalling miss with a header in the Old Firm match, was equally wasteful with the ball at his feet when a Flo shot bounced up off Niemi. It was a close-range gift, but he missed by driving the ball back at the Finn.

Wallace also hit a mild effort at Niemi's legs after being put clear by Numan after Hearts' equaliser, but it was the little forward, who will leave as a free agent at the end of the season, who restored Rangers' lead with a chance no-one could have squandered. Albertz was standing over a free-kick, but Lorenzo Amoruso took it and saw his low shot parried by Niemi, only for it to fall to Wallace in front of an open goal.

Pressley had been booked for riding piggyback on Flo to give away the free-kick and within three minutes he had another yellow card for pulling down Albertz. Hearts, who had been level on goals and a man ahead five minutes earlier, had thrown away their winning hand.

The wastefulness was particularly distressing to their support given the ideal timing of the goal which had cancelled out Rangers' first-half lead. Barely 60 seconds of the second half had elapsed when Juanjo's right-wing cross wrong-footed the Rangers defence and left Klos attempting a kicked clearance which fired back past him off Stephane Adam.

Levein had put on Juanjo at half-time to improve the delivery from the right, while Lee Makel replaced Cameron, who had a thigh strain. But Hearts could not cope after Pressley's dismissal. Rangers shredded them on the wings, particularly down Numan's side. Albertz drilled in his second to make it 3-1 after Flo, with a nicely- weighted pass, put him clear. Flo mesmerised Hearts whenever the ball was at his feet and he poked a soft shot into the corner of the net to complete the scoring.

At full-time Advocaat went on to the pitch to applaud the Rangers support as if it was the final match of the season. Nearly there, Dick, nearly there.

Copyright 2001
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