Roman Bednar scored twice as Hearts beat defending champions Celtic at Tynecastle to go joint top of the SPL.
Bednar struck shortly after the break with a great drive past Artur Boruc and then had a valid finish ruled offside.
Stilian Petrov replied for the visitors with a brilliant strike but near the end Bednar pounced on a Neil Lennon error to deliver victory for Hearts.
Celtic manager Gordon Strachan and Hearts coach John McGlynn were sent to the stand by referee Stuart Dougal.
Celtic captain Lennon was free from suspension but Strachan had opted to leave him out of the starting line-up.
Robbie Neilson and Takis Fyssas were notable Hearts absentees, replaced by Ibrahim Tall and Lee Wallace.
There was even a last-minute change of referee, Stuart Dougal taking over from Kenny Clark who suffered a back injury.
After a high-energy start, with few clear chances, Bruno Aguiar's flighted free-kick from the left was headed past the post by Bednar.
Just before the half-hour, Tall was replaced by Neilson, after the Senegalese seemed to catch his studs in the turf.
Three minutes before the break Celtic had their first direct attempt on the Hearts goal, Kenny Miller shooting low from 20 yards, but Craig Gordon saving well.
Then Strachan and McGlynn became embroiled in a heated touchline debate after the game was halted for Hearts midfielder Julien Brellier to receive treatment.
After consulting his fourth official, referee Dougal decided to send both Strachan and McGlynn to the stand.
The second-half was thankfully a vast improvement on the first.
When Bednar spurned an easy header he soon atoned, outstripping the Celtic defence and lashing an angled left-foot shot past Artur Boruc in off the post.
The Czech marksman then had a legitimate finish ruled offside, before Celtic themselves pounced in the 65th minute for the equaliser.
A sweeping move - involving Shunsuke Nakamara, Kenny Miller and Aiden McGeady - was ended superbly by Petrov whose first-time drive rendered Gordon powerless.
But with three minutes remaining substitute Lennon's dreadful back pass was intercepted by Bednar who rounded Boruc before calmly sidefooting the winner into the Celtic net.
Hearts: Gordon, Tall (Neilson 27), Pressley, Berra, Wallace, Mikoliunas, Aguiar, Brellier, McCann (Cesnauskis 63), Bednar, Pospisil (Makela 83).
Subs Not Used: Banks, Beslija, Elliot, Karipidis.
Booked: Brellier.
Goals: Bednar 49, 87.
Celtic: Boruc, Telfer, Caldwell, McManus, Wilson, Nakamura (Pearson 71), Jarosik, Petrov, McGeady, Zurawski, Miller (Lennon 66).
Subs Not Used: McGovern, Riordan, Sno, Wallace, O'Dea.
Booked: Jarosik, Wilson.
Goals: Petrov 65.
Att: 16,822
Ref: S Dougal (Scotland). |
