THE inexorable decline of Hearts as a force to be reckoned with at Tynecastle left Stevie Frail, the club's assistant coach, to confess after another dispiriting loss that he'd never felt lower in his footballing life than he did in the wake of this
crushing 90 minutes. "Teams are coming to Tynecastle and smelling blood from the first mistake," he admitted.
Hearts captain Christophe Berra holds his head in despair as Inverness celebrate victory at Tynecastle Picture: SNS
It was a concern shared by many of the 16,000 or so Hearts supporters in the ground who looked on aghast as goalkeeper Eduardas Kurskis turned in a performance which might have been described as comic had it not held some tragic consequences for the home side's ambitions. Not that the inept handling and suspect temperament of the Lithuanian was Hearts' only major shortcoming during an astonishing game when slack defending from Marius Zaliukas at two of Inverness' goals and careless finishing in the period the Tynecastle outfit were on top at the start of the match also proved costly.
There were further periods of anxiety in the game when a number of Hearts players went into their shells and struggled to overcome the understandable discontent of the home support over how far the club has fallen since George Burley took the side to the top of the SPL before being jettisoned for his efforts. Little wonder they chanted a message of concern to their absentee landlord. "Are you watching Romanov?" they bellowed as much, it seemed, in dismay as anger.
Perhaps if he had not been preoccupied with winning the Baltic version of Strictly Come Dancing, it might have crossed Romanov's radar that the current coaching regime led by Anatoly Korbochka (in which Romanov himself is believed to have a large say) have failed to get the best out of a group of well-paid players of decent ability but questionable temperament. Dodgy in defence and profligate in front of goal, Hearts have reaped a harvest of poor results against sides earning a fraction of the salaries paid in Gorgie.
Down to ninth in the SPL, the Edinburgh club have won only one of their last nine league games. Even more damaging is their dismal track record at home. Despite a convincing win over Aberdeen in November, Hearts have taken a total of just four points from the last 15 on home turf. A ground that used to be a fortress has been turned into one of the most easily breached targets in the SPL. "We need to stand up and be bigger," added Frail.
In many respects, the match against Inverness followed a fairly typical pattern. Hearts were not all bad. Indeed, during the opening 20 minutes, they played some decent football. The combination of Eggert Jonsson and Ruben Palazuelos in central midfield was compact and effective, while the subtle prompting of Audrius Ksanavicius, who played off Andrius Velicka, caused Inverness problems.
During this period, Hearts created three or four excellent chances and, had they possessed a clinical finisher in front of goal, would have built a convincing lead. But they don't have a forward who scores 20-odd goals a season and when Inverness took the lead with their first shot at goal in the 22nd minute, the wind went out of the home side's sails for the rest of the half.
Having just defeated Celtic and about to claim another scalp, this sleeves-up Inverness side know how to mount a smash and grab act. The opening goal was well constructed down the left flank before Russell Duncan ran on to a square pass and sent a swerving shot past Kurskis into the corner of the net.
There was no blame attached to the goalkeeper on that occasion, though his general demeanour was edgy and unconvincing. Having kept his place in the team in spite of making a late howler at Ibrox the week before, which ensured Hearts' defeat against Rangers, Kurskis frequently let the ball squirm from his grasp and throughout the game impressed as an accident waiting to happen.
How on earth, when a goalkeeper of Steve Banks' calibre is on the books, did a player so bereft of basic technique and confidence force his way into the starting line-up? The unanswered questions at Hearts continued to haunt them when Inverness forced a counter-attack after Lee Wallace lost possession. Duncan laid off a pass which Zaliukas should have intercepted. However, the defender dived in and missed the ball, allowing Marius Niculae to move into the box where he was felled by the Hearts goalkeeper. John Rankin scored with ease from the penalty spot.
Thanks to the example of captain Christophe Berra, whose header at the back post from Andrew Driver's corner was deflected into the net, Hearts got back into the game and looked a more potent force after substitute Calum Elliot – a replacement for the injured Ksanavicius – was himself replaced after 30 minutes by Michal Pospisil, while Saulius Mikoliunas came on for the unconvincing Kestutis Ivaskevicius.
In a position to salvage something from the game, Hearts were badly let down by Kurskis. There was a clash with Duncan behind the dead ball line in the 85th minute when the goalkeeper inexcusably lifted his hands and shoved the Inverness player's face. The referee had no option but to dismiss the goalkeeper. Wallace picked up the jersey and became Hearts' fourth goalkeeper in six games. "I don't think you can defend what he did," acknowledged Frail. "Players know the implications when they raise their hands. It was annoying for the whole club. You'll need to ask him (if he wanted off]. I would hope not."
In a breathless finish, Velicka drew Hearts level from the penalty spot in the 88th minute after the centre forward was shoved in the box by Grant Munro. The drama, though, wasn't concluded until Zaliukas fluffed a panic clearance from Barry Wilson's cross which Bayne gratefully prodded into the net. It was the fifth win in a row for Inverness while Hearts have not won any of their last five games.
Man of the matchMichael Fraser (Inverness CT)
Although a sense of spirited togetherness was the main reason behind Inverness's victory, the contrast between the performances of Fraser, who pulled off a number of terrific saves, and Eduardis Kurskis, the Hearts goalkeeper, highlighted the difference in competence between the sides.
Referee: W Collum
Attendance: 16,202
