It wasn’t pretty on the pitch, but there were ugly scenes afterwards as ten-man Hearts kept Hibs at bay in the Edinburgh derby fourth-placed shootout at Tynecastle.
Early optimism after Yutaro Oda's goal evaporated among the home fans after Alex Cochrane was sent off just before the half-hour mark. To make matters worse for the hosts, Kevin Nisbet sent the free-kick low past Zander Clark to restore parity and suddenly Hibs' tails were up. However, they missed some big chances before the break and despite plenty of huffing and puffing afterwards, they couldn't find the goal that would see them leapfrog their rivals.
Needle had been brewing the longer the game went - with a combined total of 17 minutes of added time at the end of each half, there was plenty of time for it. Lee Johnson was booked for charging into the Hearts technical area, while Elie Youan got involved with an overzealous fan in the stands during nine minutes added on at the end.
There was then a full-time free-for-all as Johnson appeared to shove Steven Naismith away as the pair went to shake hands, which was just the excuse everyone else needed to pile in. It's Hearts who go away, if not happy, then somewhat relieved, although missing out n third should still rankle despite getting over the line this afternoon.
It wasn't quite as fast as the start they made at Ibrox in midweek, but the Jambos were ahead early on for the second game in a row. James Hill's long throw wasn't dealt with by the visitors, and Yutaro Oda took a touch on the edge of the area before drilling low past Marshall to claim the first goal of his Hearts career.
Hibs thought they had a route into the game midway through the first half. Alex Cochrane fouled Chris Cadden as he prepared to burst into the box. Don Robertson pointed to the spot and booked the Hearts defender, although replays showed it was outside the box. A VAR check confirmed that, but also that Cochrane had denied a goalscoring opportunity and was sent packing.
It turned out to be a double whammy for Hearts. Kevin Nisbet stepped up swept the free-kick into the bottom corner past Zander Clark, who may feel he could have done better. That gave Lee Johnson's men a big lift. Clark had to look sharp to top a Paul hanlon drive over the bar as they looked to complete the turnaround. The Hearts keeper made an even better save to sto Newell putting his team ahead on the stroke of half-time from close range. The resulting corner should have been buried by Lewis Miller, who headed wide from a few yards.
Nisbet flicked a header wide after the break. Harry McKirdy had a drive held by Clark, as did Youan as the Leith side looked to put the pressure on. Hanlon was once more denied by clark, the keeper palming out a powerful header from close range to deny the Hibees' slawart. The woodwork saved Hearts as yet again Hibs caused problems from a set piece with eight minutes to go. Will Fish rose to meet a corner and his header hit Clark then came back off the upright. Here's three talking points from Gorgie
Argy bargy
It wouldn't be a derby without some handbags. Lee Johnson's frustration, seemingly with Hearts' time wasting, was evident long before things boiled over at full-time.
Steven Naismith seems to have an innate ability to get under the opposition's skin at the best of times, so it was never likely to end well. Both benches reacted en masse to a confrontation between the two gaffers immediately after the final whistle. Not wanting to be left out, those still on the park decided to get involved as well and it became impossible to tell who was spoiling for a fight and who wasn't.
Got there in the end
Hearts could have no argument over the decision to send Cochrane up the tunnel - his third red card of the season. If his dismissal in virtually the same area of the pitch against Celtic a few weeks ago was harsh, this was cut and dried. His attempt to hook the ball away failed and he caught Cadden, who was in on goal otherwise.
That Don Robertson blew for a penalty, despite first glance making it appear that the foul was someway out the box was worrying Replays confirming it wasn't even close to being inside only made it look an even worse call in hindsight. Fair play to Nisbet though, finding the back of the net from 19 yards rather than 12.
Sub standard
There only looked like being one winner after that incident, and a second Hibs goal seemed inevitable as they passed up some big chances. However, Lee Johnson opted to make a double switch at the break, introducing Harry McKirdy and Ewan Henderson in place of Lewis Miller and James Jeggo.
It didn't have the desired effect as his team seemed to run out of ideas and looked less dangerous in general. McKirdy made little impact bar a questionable attempt to win a penalty and a couple of wayward shots. Henderson was hooked back off again late on, although the call to pitch centre back Mikey Devlin up front for his Hibs debut seemed a baffling move by Johnson.
