ARE HEARTS STILL FAVOURITES TO GO THROUGH?
Yes, of course they are. But this performance wasn’t good enough for a team wanting to win silverware.
They were so in control, and while Thistle played well in the second half, they were helped enormously by the Gorgie men who forgot to do all the things they were doing just 15 minutes previously. Indeed, the Premiership side were rattled beyond belief. Craig Levein has never won a trophy, either as a player or manager, and he will need more, a lot more, from his men to get to a cup final.
They’ll win the replay. Probably.
HEARTS WOULD HAVE HAD A DIFFERENT SEASON HAD UCHE IKPEAZU BEEN FIT
The striker is some unit and is blessed with a football brain which provides him with the awareness this type of centre-forward requires. He is raw, let’s be clear about that, but he could be something. Ikpeazu is still not quite there in terms of sharpness, but he’s a nightmare to play against and allows Hearts to be more direct when they need to be.
Had he not missed the best part of four months, Hearts would undoubtedly have more points in the bag.
IF ONLY GARY HARKINS HAD BEEN BLESSED WITH PACE
Thistle’s veteran midfielder was blessed by the football Gods with a touch and vision very few possess.
Okay, he is coming to the end of his career and he’s slowing down, not that he was ever quick, but he’s a lovely player to watch even now. Harkins is a cult hero at every club he’s been at. No wonder.
CAN THISTLE STAY UP?
The answer to this was no in the first half and then yes after the break.
As a season ticket holder was heard to rant at one point “look interested” which was quickly followed by “we’re ******.” But his team gave him and his fellow Jags a bit of pride by the way they fought their way back. Staying up requires guts and spirit. They showed that. Eventually.
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL AT THE RATHER RANDOM TIME OF 7.05PM IS EXCELLENT
Said nobody. Ever.
In the name of the diminutive chap, football supporters do have lives you know away from going to the games. These people will be here long after television executives get bored of Scottish football.
It’s a rubbish night to play football and the kick-off was too early, especially for those coming to Maryhill from Edinburgh. Firhill was far from packed.
Why could this not have taken place early on Saturday?
The crowd numbered just over 5000. It would have been a lot more had this game taken place when football should be played.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here