Spartans 1-2 Hearts 

by Jon Tait

at Ainslie Park 

THE TV cameras were at tiny Ainslie Park hoping for an upset.
Frankie Kent’s stoppage-time winner made sure they didn’t get one.

Alex Cochrane whipped over a corner in the 92nd minute and Kent got up to head powerfully into the bottom corner from six yards — and Hearts breathed a huge sigh of relief.

“It was a tough game but we stuck in there and kept trying to do the right things and we got there in the end,” admitted the former Peterborough defender.

“We stuck to it and eventually got the goal. I got the flight of the ball and thankfully it went in. It was a professional performance throughout most of the game.”

The Tynecastle outfit’s leading scorer Lawrence Shankland is subject to intense transfer speculation and missed the game through illness, while veteran goalkeeper Craig Gordon made a return after a year out with a broken leg.

He made a decent one-handed save to turn a powerfully hit shot from Callum Booth over the bar from the hosts only effort in first half — but was left a virtual spectator by James Craigen’s stunning second half strike that levelled the tie up.

Costa Rican striker Kenneth Vargas headed in a curling George Grant cross to put Hearts ahead early on as the SPL side dominated.

League Two minnows Spartans came up from the Lowland League via the play-offs in the summer and sat deep in their own half so while the SPL side were well on top, there was little intensity and the lack of space made it difficult to create any clear-cut openings.

Spartans keeper Blair Carswell made a good diving save to parry away a curling Vargas effort from the edge of the box and a glancing Craig Halkett header from a corner was hacked away as the match continued in the same vein after the break.

But Steven Naismith’s side were stunned by a bolt from the blue in the 65th minute when Craigen guided a wonderful volley high into the net with his instep from 18 yards after a half-cleared corner was sliced back into his path.

Grant had his head in his hands after curling a 25-yard free kick inches wide with 10 minutes to go and he was denied by Carswell from close range at the back post soon after.

With extra time looming Carswell made another good save to keep out a powerful Dexter Lembikisa volley but, from the resultant corner, Kent powered home.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the team. We asked them to stay in the game and to score a meaningful goal and they’ve done both of them,” said Spartans boss Dougie Samuel.