Hearts report and player ratings v Aberdeen as two men score 8/10 and four get 7/10

Jorge Grant's penalty and a delightful Lawrence Shankland strike saw Hearts move 19 points ahead of Aberdeen with a 2-0 victory at Tynecastle Park. The Edinburgh club recovered from a poor first half to score twice after the interval and take three valuable points in pursuit of third place in the Premiership.

Captain Lawrence Shankland had failed to convert his last three spot-kicks and Grant took on the responsibility to open the scoring. However, Shankland would not be outdone. His clever finish gave Hearts total command of this affair and they did not look like relinquishing the two-goal advantage.

They are now unbeaten in their last eight matches in all competitions and sit 10 points clear in third spot after fourth-placed Kilmarnock drew with Hibs. Aberdeen drop to eighth in the table as manager Barry Robson struggles to find consistent results. Chants of "Robson, Robson, get to F***" were heard from the away section during the second half.

Undefeated since their last meeting with Aberdeen in December, Hearts left centre-back Craig Halkett on the substitutes' bench for this fixture following Tuesday's 3-2 win against Dundee. Teenage midfielder Macaulay Tait, outstanding after coming on in that match, was also among the potential replacements.

The Tynecastle chairwoman Ann Budge, chief executive Andrew McKinlay and Foundation of Hearts chairman Gerry Mallon unveiled a flag to commemorate Hearts' 150th anniversary prior to kick-off. After a relatively quiet opening period, Aberdeen found the net through Bojan Miovski's exquisite finish in the 25th minute. However, VAR advised referee Kevin Clancy to review the build-up on a touchline monitor. He concluded that Hearts midfielder Beni Baningime was impeded by Miovski, who accidentally tripped the Congolese.

Aberdeen were more dangerous than their hosts going forward in the opening 30 minutes. That was largely due to their control of midfield, where Graeme Shinnie, Connor Barron and Leighton Clarkson dominated. Hearts did break at pace on 40 minutes but Grant failed to capitalise when Alan Forrest played him through in space and possession was lost.

Hearts stepped up the pace in the second half and won a penalty after another VAR review by Clancy on 55 minutes. He pointed to the spot for handball when Forrest's cross struck the arm of Aberdeen right-back Nicky Devlin. Grant stepped up to stroke the ball high into the top corner from the spot.

The hosts seemed to have found some momentum and Forrest forced Kelle Roos, the visiting goalkeeper, into a fingertip save with a powerful left-footed attempt on the hour mark. Shankland had Roos airborne again to stop his driven effort from 22 yards. Hearts were in command and sought a second goal to make the afternoon more comfortable.

It arrived on 76 minutes. Grant controlled Alex Cochrane's forward header near the edge of the opposition penalty box and then let Shankland take over. He promptly dispatched a brilliant finish with the outside of his right foot high into Roos' net. It was the striker's 20th goal from 32 games in all competitions this season and finished this fixture as a contest.

Here are the Hearts player ratings from Tynecastle: