Hearts 1-2 Celtic: Hearts take the plaudits

Published Date: 10 May 2010
By BARRY ANDERSON
INSPIRATION comes from within, so the saying goes. In football, it often comes from within the technical area.
Neil Lennon and Jim Jefferies prowled their respective dugout zones like snarling lions yesterday. Both have had to engender a response from their squads in recent weeks and both left Tynecastle relatively contented after a game which simmered nicely from start to finish.

Celtic secured victory through two clinical finishes from Robbie Keane and Zhi Zheng, but it was Hearts who best expressed themselves. They enjoyed a majority of possession and almost monopolised the entire first half. Celtic came to the fore after the interval and began performing to Lennon's tune. Certainly, the visitors' tenacity and probing shouldn't have been inspired by the IRA-fest being conducted in the Roseburn Stand. That was as needless as it was brainless.

Only poor ball control by Marius Zaliukas allowed Keane through to slot Celtic's first beyond the exposed Jamie MacDonald. The Lithuanian atoned nine minutes before the interval with a one-touch finish from Craig Thomson's free-kick, and at that point the impetus lay firmly with Hearts. They finished the first half strongest and strove to affirm their dominance in the second period. However, Zhi required only two touches – one to control and one to finish – from Keane's cross after the break to decide the outcome.

Such was the ferocity of this contest that it seldom looked like an end-of-season affair. For both Lennon and Jefferies, carrying the application into next season will be key to how their respective tenures pan out. Lennon, of course, is now waiting to hear whether his application to manage Celtic full-time has been successful. His Hearts counterpart is already planning for next year.

"That first half was the best 45 minutes since we came back here," said Jefferies. "Once we got a grip of the game, we were excellent for the last 25 minutes of the half. We passed the ball and worked hard but we worried about a breakaway and their goal was a breakaway. Craig Thomson made an honest mistake and was robbed of the ball and Keane got through to score.

"Their goalkeeper made a fantastic save from Obua and I think we would have deserved a 2-1 half-time lead. Maybe because it's been a long hard season, we seemed to be a little less sharp. But there were a lot of positives to take from the game. It was an impossible task to qualify for Europe but we tried to put on a decent performance. It took a wonder strike to beat us. The boy did fantastic to pull it down, never mind score. It was just a great goal. We didn't give the victory to Celtic and that's all you can ask.

"The players showed me what they can do. Maybe the pressure was off but Celtic have been in good form. Neil has them well fired up and I hope he does get the job. He's done good enough for me."

Lennon was speaking in anticipation of a statement from the Celtic board regarding his future. He had done everything possible to lift his players following the departure of the much derided Tony Mowbray. If his predecessor was often accused of lacking passion, the Irishman has it in abundance.

"I'd like to thank everyone for their support, especially in the games after the Ross County loss," he said. "The fans were tremendous. They were behind us and really enjoyed themselves. I'm proud of the players. I have to finish my Pro Licence now so I have to sort that out during the summer.

"I haven't spoken to Robbie Keane about staying but it's not just about him. McGeady, Brown, Hinkel and Wilson were magnificent for us. It would be unfair to mention one player, I couldn't have done this without them."

Both managers incurred the wrath of referee Craig Thomson separately during the second half. Jefferies complained about infringements against his players going unpunished, but Lennon and his charges stood accused of not knowing the rules of the game after Edson Braafheid's free-kick "goal" was disallowed.

The match official had awarded Celtic an indirect free-kick for a foul by David Obua on Mark Wilson on the periphery of the Hearts penalty area. Despite Thomson clearly standing with his right arm raised to denote the indirect nature of the set-piece, Braafheid stepped up to curl the ball round the Hearts wall and past MacDonald into the net. The referee awarded Hearts an indirect free-kick but was instantly confronted by a possé of Celtic players – led by Scott Brown. Their ignorance of football's legislation extended to Lennon, who was seen ranting in the technical area.

"I think he was crazy at the goal being chalked off," said Jefferies. "If it was an indirect free-kick it's up to the ref to decide. I think it made Neil a little bit mad but that's the passion that burns within him."

As he glances ahead to next season, Jefferies will plan to construct his team around Zaliukas but will surely seek to eradicate the moments of uncertainty like that which preceded Celtic's first goal.

"To equalise was a good feeling and we wanted to give a small present to the fans," said Zaliukas. "It was a good experience to play against Keane, he is quite better than other strikers. Our manager said there will be big changes and everything is going to be different. I'm not thinking about this, I'm just thinking about the holidays. I'm just looking for the first half of next season because my loan finishes (in December]."

Regardless of personnel, there will be no shortage of commitment at Tynecastle next season. Or at Parkhead for that matter. Yesterday proved that both Jefferies and Lennon specialise in motivational techniques.

Taken from the Scotsman