SMILING comes easily to Morgaro Gomis, the diminutive midfielder who has occupied the engine room of Hearts' drive towards the SPFL Championship title this season.
He had even more reason to smile on Saturday evening after a hard-fought 2-1 win at Falkirk in which a first-half stroll was transformed, due to a battling second-half performance from the home team, into a full-blooded struggle.
Gomis, though, gave the impression that it was specifically the hard-fought nature of his team's victory that had pleased him most. "It was tough in the second half, very physical," he said with a smile. "But we won. You have to enjoy this. I am happy where we are."
Where Hearts are is six points clear of nearest challengers Rangers at the top of the league table. As such, it was inevitable that thoughts after the match would turn to the forthcoming visit of Ally McCoist's side to Tynecastle this Saturday.
Gomis was asked if he was concerned that Rangers might take a leaf out of Falkirk's book and adopt a similarly robust approach in a bid to hustle Hearts out of their stride. The French-born player, who has represented Senegal twice, smiled again. "If it's going to be a battle, we will be ready."
During that towsy second half Gomis was one of five players shown yellow cards by referee Calum Murray as Falkirk discarded their earlier watching brief on their visitors to, as their manager Peter Houston put it afterwards, "get in their faces".
Up to the interval Houston's players had largely stood back and admired this talented Hearts side as they weaved pretty passing patterns about the pitch and cruised into a two-goal lead. Gomis and Spanish playmaker Miguel Pallardo were afforded space and time to control possession in the centre of the park, allowing Prince Buaben to push forward in support of striker Soufian El Hassnaoui. Meanwhile, Billy King and Jamie Walker teased the Falkirk full-backs and were aided by Jordan McGhee and Kevin McHattie.
Their first goal came when King, after a mazy dribble, teed up left-back McHattie to blast a shot high into the net. Hearts doubled their advantage when Walker impudently poked the ball through the legs of Joe Shaughnessy, the Falkirk right-back, before hammering over a low cross that was converted by El Hassnaoui.
The course of the match was changed by Houston's half-time pep talk plus the double substitution he made four minutes into the second half. He introduced winger Alex Cooper and pacy forward Botti Biabi and altered Falkirk's formation from 4-2-3-1 to a more direct 4-4-2.
Hearts goalkeeper Neil Alexander, a virtual spectator up to that point, was soon being called on to save two shots from Cooper before clutching a header from David McCracken.
When Biabi sclaffed a left-foot effort into the net 20 minutes from time, Hearts' poise was replaced by a measure of panic. Walker and substitute James Keatings spurned good chances to stretch their lead but Falkirk's players remained in their faces and, increasingly, at their ankles as the proceedings were interrupted by shuddering challenges and snarling flare-ups between rival players.
The unnatural 5.30pm kick-off at the Falkirk Stadium allowed live coverage of the match to be fitted into BBC Alba's Saturday tea-time schedule in between the animated children's show Am Prionnsa Beag and the cartoon series Fraochy Bay. The Gaelic commentary served the educational purpose of informing monolingual football fans that "tri puingean" means "three points" and "botul" means "bottle", which this bold Hearts squad appears to have in abundance.
That bottle will be tested to the full against Rangers. The ebullient Gomis, however, is certain that no crashing sound will be heard down Tynecastle way this Saturday. "What is the point of playing if you can't enjoy something like this?" he asked with a smile. "I don't feel any pressure. I want to win every game."
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