A late goal from an unlikely hero gave Hearts the bragging rights in the Edinburgh derby after beating Hibs 1-0. Despite a disallowed Boyle strike, it was Craig Halkett who scored at the very death to give Hearts all three points and extend their gap at the top of the table to five points. Oli Hampson reports from Tynecastle.
Derek McInnes mentioned pre-match that the derby was one to “whet the appetite” of his team, and the occasion didn’t disappoint. McInnes opted for an unchanged lineup, remaining in the same 4-4-2 formation from the 3-0 win over Falkirk a week prior.
David Gray made two changes from his side’s 0-0 draw to Celtic last week, changing to a 3-4-1-2 with Chris Cadden and Josh Campbell replacing Jamie McGrath and Miguel Chaiwa.
Just under 19,000 fans poured into a blustery, but dry Tynecastle; the tension being almost tangible. Bragging rights, European and even title ambitions were all up in the air now. The roughly 3,500 Hibs fans, too, were in fine voice. Eventually, the battle began as Hibs got the game underway.
First Half
Hearts posed the biggest threat in the very opening stages of the game, with Craig Halkett heading over a free kick from Harry Milne. Definitely a sign of things to come.
Claudio Braga has been a focal point of Hearts’ attack this season, and the Portuguese striker forced Jordan Obita into an early booking just nine minutes in following a counterattack.
Hibs changed the tides and caused the danger as the half progressed. Iredale sent in a deep free kick that Campbell was unable to reach, and Obita saw a strike deflected out for a corner. The tensions were evident merely from the kind exchange of words by McInnes and Gray on the touchline.
Hearts needed to harness the home advantage. Alexandros Kyziridis lit up Tynecastle with a stunner against Falkirk last weekend, and the Greek winger nearly did so again after hitting a 20-yard rocket which hit Sallinger’s upper netting.
Martin Boyle managed to force a break on the counter for Hibs, drawing in a necessary foul from Beni Baningime who consequently received a booking 36 minutes in.
Before the whistle, Shankland couldn’t get his feet right from Braga’s cross in, and scuffed the best chance of the half. It remained 0-0 at the break.
Second Half
Despite a quiet first half, both sides entered the field again with intent. Oisin McEntee picked up a very early booking just a minute after the restart, but Campbell couldn’t head in from Obita’s following cross.
The 55th minute marked a turning point, with the Jambos capitalising on sloppy Hibs midfield play. Harry Milne and Alexandros Kyziridis both saw shots needing to be deflected away, and Grant Hanley was forced to be alert too in stopping McEntee’s offensive efforts.
Almost out of nothing, Hibs had their best chance to score of the night. Martin Boyle was set through centrally by Josh Campbell, however Alexander Schwolow closed down the striker, forcing Boyle to chip his effort onto the crossbar before Findlay cleared.
Hearts had the next yank in this tug-of-war game. Devlin, a standout on the night, intercepted a pass out from Barlaser before Braga carried and shot, forcing Sallinger into a low save.
Martin Boyle was simply an unlucky forward during the game, and the striker once again fell short when he slid a ball past Schwolow in goal, only to be immediately flagged offside and to halt the Hibs celebrations.
Hibs made the first change of the night 75 minutes in, with Josh Campbell coming off to be replaced by Jamie McGrath.
The Hearts attack had reached a mild stalemate approaching the end, so McInnes made three changes. Elton Kabangu came on for Claudio Braga, Sabah Kerjota on for Oisin McEntee, and Michael Steinwender on for Stephen Kingsley.
The edge had seemingly gone in the tie, arching towards an underwhelming 0-0 draw. Both teams opted for a last roll of the dice, with Hibs bringing Thibault Klidje on for Kieron Bowie, and Hearts changing Alan Forrest for Alexandros Kyziridis and Tomas Magnusson for Beni Baningime.
The game needed one moment, one clear-cut chance for the difference to be made. Three minutes were added on, three points on the line, one target in mind; score.
But then came the moment.
Hibs were pinned back. Steinwender played a wide ball out to Kerjota, and then the Albanian sent a ball in. It sailed over everyone, every head, until it reached the back post where it met the feet of Craig Halkett, the unlikely man, the saviour. The centre back hit it first-time, and it flashed across the face of goal into the far corner. Sallinger was rooted to the spot.
Tynecastle erupted. The voice of roughly 15 and a half thousand fans in the Gorgie home end roared. There was hugging, jumping, even tears from some, because they knew that Craig Halkett and the Jambos had won the Edinburgh derby once more. The Hibs players and fans looked deflated, silent, because this was more than a sucker punch to them.
Minutes later, the full-time whistle went to an elated crowd in Gorgie. The three points were with the Jambos, and Edinburgh has now turned maroon for the time being. It is a massive win for McInnes’ men, extending their lead over Celtic at the top to five points sitting on 19, with David Gray’s hurting Hibees dropping to seventh on 8.
Both sides now have the chance to rest and reflect with the international break pending, with Hearts next travelling to face McInnes’ old stomping ground Kilmarnock, and Hibs looking to bounce back at home to Livingston.
Post Match- Craig Halkett
“I always felt we had a goal in us.”
“I think especially at my personal level I’ve had up and down injuries. From not playing as much as I like to starting the season and performing pretty well, but to top it off with a winning derby goal, it’s very special. I’m feeling great and my body is feeling great, and I’m just really glad to be back to playing 90 minutes each week again.”
“I didn’t know what to do (when I scored). I just looked up at the big screen and I saw there was 91, 92 minutes added on. But obviously, the game was eventually won”.
Post Match- Derek McInnes
“It’s seven league games in and we’ve had three last-minute winners, and to get the elation of that in a derby game was more pleasing. For long spells of the game it looked like a 0-0 and that we could get away with one with Boyle’s chance off the bar, but you need a bit of luck in a derby game”
“I feel like the supporters all feel that maybe, just maybe there’s something going to happen and we feel that. If we get last minute winners and it becomes a pattern and what you are, it can be worth so many points“.
“I think we train with motivation and we train professionally, I’m not looking for any more there and I don’t think they can give any more. There’s already a beef to the squad and a strength about it. For us there’s been a lot of tight games and we’ve got to recognise that we need to keep working hard”.
“Everybody’s so desperate for the success at Hearts but we’ve got to recognise there’s work to be done here. We were a bottom six team last season and it’s not just a flick of the switch to be better.”
Post Match- Warren O’Hora
“I don’t think words express how that dressing room was right then. It was very very hard to take, and it had 0-0 written all over”.
“Derbies can be so emotional- it’s the reason we play this game. To lose in this way is horrible. (Late goals conceded this season) is something we need to address. We’ve got some time now on the international break to reflect that”.
“Football is a cruel sport. It’s the league table we all really look at. It doesn’t matter if you play good or not, it’s the points which really matter. We just keep trying to improve and to do better”.
Post Match- David Gray
“Yep, it certainly hurts. Unfortunately for us it’s the story of our season a little bit. We could sit and talk about the game but the reality is all the work you do for 90 minutes is undone in the last second of the game”.
“If you actually think about the chances in the game, there wasn’t very many. I don’t think the conditions helped with that either but in terms of how we fix this, it’s about taking accountability and that’s me firstly. I thought if there was a team that was going to be the winner, it was going to be us”.
“All you can do is go over it, work as hard we always do to make sure we put it right and make sure we bounce back as quick as we can and we’ve got the next home game to make sure of that”.
