Hearts 2 Inverness 3

Revenge is a dish best served bold

From DEREK McGREGOR at Tynecastle
Last Updated: 24th February 2013

IT was Warren peace for Caley Thistle as they headed back north after savouring sweet revenge over Hearts.

Terry Butcher’s spirited side had been struggling badly since last month’s League Cup semi-final loss to the Jambos.

They’d gone five games without a win, losing four, and desperately needed a confidence booster.

They got it big time in the capital to go second in the SPL, with a Gary Warren double and Billy McKay effort, his 22nd of the season, grabbing the points. All three were headers.

Sorry Hearts fought back twice through Jason Holt and Andy Webster, but it’s now only one win in eight games, and five defeats, for a club still gripped by financial worries.

Boss John McGlynn put himself under pressure before a ball was even kicked by again opting for a 4-5-1 formation.

He’d suffered dog’s abuse for it from 14,000 fans here last week following their drubbing by Kilmarnock and you wondered if the support deserved better.

Experienced target man John Sutton once more had to warm the bench.

Jambos had two changes with Billy King a sub and Scott Robinson out while the Highlanders had youngster Daniel Devine in for only a second start since he joined from Wrexham last month.

McGlynn, of course, has lost so many players since the summer he’s been forced to go with youth. The Jambos had four teenagers starting, plus four 22 and under.

The Jambos’ challenge could have been all the harder after just 25 SECONDS when beanpole striker Michael Ngoo was lucky to avoid a red card.

The on-loan Liverpool striker reacted angrily to close attention from Warren by pushing him to the ground in full view of ref Bobby Madden and stand-side linesman Alastair Mather. But Madden opted for a yellow.

Having been close to being a man down, the Jambos should have been a goal up in the second minute. Fraser Mullen’s corner was headed down to the far post area by Danny Wilson and found captain Webster unmarked at point-blank range.

But instead of bursting the net the stopper volleyed well over.

Hearts were punished in the 16th minute as Caley Thistle opened the scoring. Aaron Doran whipped an inviting cross into the box for Warren to rise above Ngoo and several others and beat Jamie MacDonald with a superb downward header from 12 yards.

It was an impressive fifth goal of the season for the defender.

Four minutes later it was almost 2-0 as Owain Tudur Jones blasted a free-kick inches wide from 25 yards.

Hearts huffed and puffed for most of the first half, with Holt impressing the most with some superb bursts forward from centre midfield. But they just couldn’t create clear openings.

And they seemed very fortunate again in the 35th minute as Andrew Shinnie put McKay straight through on goal with a great pass, only for the Northern Irishman to be flagged offside.

It had to be a tight, tight call.

This wasn’t a game for the purists, mainly blood and snotters stuff with precious few moments of class. It basically came down to who wanted it most. And Caley were to prove to brave and bold for the hosts to handle.

Three minutes into the second half Darren Barr agonisingly failed to get a touch at close range from a Arvydas Novikovas free-kick. Then only a superb last-gasp tackle from Wilson stopped Doran from a run on goal — and just moments later at the other end Hearts levelled.

Holt took possession on the edge of the Caley box, danced past several challenges and lashed a brilliant right-foot shot beyond Ryan Esson at his near post.

Yet, Hearts’ joy lasted only seven minutes as they conceded from another set-piece delivery.

David Raven’s 55th-minute free-kick to the far post was headed across the six-yard box by Tudur Jones for McKay to bundle home a header aided by a ricochet off the luckless Callum Tapping. It was his first goal in five games.

McGlynn responded by throwing on two strikers, Sutton and King, and Hearts equalised in the 74th minute.

An Ngoo header from a King corner was headed off the line by Nick Ross, but the ball broke to Webster on the edge of the box and his shot took a wild deflection to wrong-foot Esson.

The Caley Thistle keeper then saved magnificently from a Jamie Walker piledriver.

And that proved even more important two minutes later as the visitors, amazingly, regained the lead for a third time.

Warren bulleted home a superb header from a 78th-minute Graeme Shinnie corner to leave the small band of travelling fans chanting boss Butcher’s name.

There were only full-time jeers for McGlynn from the home fans.