Lawrence Shankland's 16th Hearts goal of the season earned the Edinburgh club a dramatic victory over rivals Hibs at Easter Road. The prolific striker produced an outrageous finish in stoppage-time at the end of 90 minutes to secure Steven Naismith's first win in this fixture as head coach. It was a perfect Christmas present for Tynecastle supporters and allowed them to celebrate into the night in Leith.
This game started with two penalty-kicks inside the opening 15 minutes - one for each team - none of which were converted. Shankland missed for Hearts before Martin Boyle's spot-kick was saved by Zander Clark. However, Shankland refused to be shackled and earned his rewards with a quite stunning winning goal.
The result allows Hearts to consolidate in third place in the Premiership after winning six of their last eight matches. They move eight points clear of Hibs and now face Ross County and Livingston before the winter break. The away support rejoiced loudly as they headed out of Leith after a scintillating ending to the game for anyone of a Hearts persuasion.
Just hours before kick-off in this fixture, Sky Sports' plan to have Hibs manager Nick Montgomery wearing a microphone during play was vetoed by IFAB rules. Other extra access was permitted, such as body cameras on Hearts player Alex Cochrane during the warm-up and footage from inside the home dressing room. Ultimately, all of that paled in significance compared to the final result.
The tone for a dramatic evening was set inside five minutes when Hearts were awarded a penalty. A touchline monitor review by referee John Beaton concluded that Hibs defender Rocky Bushiri handled inside the box following Cochrane's long throw. However, Shankland stepped up and struck the outside of the post from the spot, much to the delight of locals inside Easter Road.
Beaton was pointing to the spot at the opposite end 10 minutes later. Following Jordan Obita's run and cross from the left side, Dylan Vente's shot at goal was blocked by the outstretched arm of Hearts defender Kye Rowles. A VAR review confirmed the decision and Boyle stepped forward. His shot was heading for the bottom corner but an expert save by the visiting goalkeeper Zander Clark pushed it onto the post. The ball was eventually cleared and the scoreline remained blank.
Hibs frequently found space to attack in behind the Hearts wing-backs, whilst the Tynecastle side utilised Alan Forrest's mobility to good effect going forward. The ball was with maroon shirts more often than green during the first 45 minutes, although both sides were guilty of making wayward passes under little or no pressure.
Hearts changed tactics for the second half as winger Barrie McKay replaced midfielder Aidan Denholm. Their three-man central defence was flipped to a back four, with Cochrane shunted into a central midfield role alongside Beni Baningime. Hibs lost Josh Campbell to injury early in the second period but gained a bit more space in midfield as a result of Hearts' switch.
The visiting substitute Kenneth Vargas profited from the umpteenth slack pass of the night after 67 minutes. He collected the ball from Lewis Miller only to shoot into the away fans in the South Stand. Then came a misplaced delivery from Stephen Kingsley which allowed Hibs to spring an attack. It ended with Clark producing an important save to stop Vente's shot. The goalkeeper was called upon again on 79 minutes to block Elie Youan's 18-yard drive after it flew through a cluster of bodies.
At the opposite end, Shankland rattled a drive against Hibs keeper David Marshall as the closing stages arrived. Everyone inside Easter Road knew that a goal at this stage would likely prove decisive. Predictably, it came from Shankland in the third minute of stoppage-time. Clark's long kickout dropped between the striker and Bushiri and Shankland reacted quickest. He dribbled into the penalty area to arc a sublime left-footed strike high into the top left corner past Marshall. Cue bedlam in the away end and in the visitors' technical area as the three points headed to Tynecastle.
Here are the Hearts player ratings from Easter Road:
1. GK: Zander Clark
7/10 Magnificent save to push Boyle's penalty onto the post, plus another couple of important stops in the second half.
2. RCB: Stephen Kingsley
7/10 Composed, confident and got himself forward. Moved to left back as Hearts changed to a back for four the second half.
4. LCB: Kye Rowles
7/10 Penalised for Hibs' penalty but made several important blocks throughout the night.