Hearts end a 12-year curse at St Johnstone to move three points clear in third place

For years Hearts wondered if McDiarmid Park was a cursed venue. Paulo Sergio, John McGlynn, Gary Locke, Robbie Neilson, Ian Cathro, Craig Levein and Daniel Stendel all took charge of Tynecastle teams that failed to win a league game in Perth since November 2010. Neilson has finally broken the hex.
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Seventeen times Hearts visited St Johnstone since that previous league victory, their only win a Scottish Cup tie in February 2012. This time goals from stand-in captain Lawrence Shankland, winger Alan Forrest and substitute Barrie McKay put the hoodoo to bed. It was a huge result, taking them three points clear in third place in the Premiership entering 2023.

Zander Clark was making his full Hearts debut against the club he only left in May and watched gratefully as Graham Carey fired a first-half penalty-kick over his crossbar with the score at 2-0. However, Stevie May succeeded where Carey failed soon after half-time. Substitute Barrie McKay’s sumptuous effort from distance put the Edinburgh club 3-1 ahead before another replacement, Jamie Murphy, made it 3-2. Neilson’s side saw the game out.

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On a wet and misty evening in Perth, the visitors appealed for two penalties in the opening minute after challenges on Toby Sibbick and Josh Ginnelly. Referee Willie Collum was unmoved. Hearts’ promising start continued when Jorge Grant struck a post on five minutes.

The next penalty appeal was granted by Collum following a VAR check. The referee checked a pitchside monitor to confirm that Grant’s flick did strike Ryan McGowan’s arm and, after stern St Johnstone complaints, Shankland confidently converted from the spot with 12 minutes played. Play was being totally dominated by Hearts at that stage through intelligent passing and movement. It was no surprise when they moved 2-0 ahead. A patient passing move carefully orchestrated by influential midfielder Robert Snodgrass on 32 minutes ended with Andy Halliday supplying Forrest with a threaded pass for a calm left-footed finish from 16 yards into the bottom corner.

Carey wasted a precious opportunity to haul the hosts back into this contest with a 39th-minute penalty miss after handball against Cammy Devlin. They pushed their guests further back as the interval approached. Halliday blocked Ali Crawford’s driven shot before the ball spun high, bounced up and struck the crossbar with Clark and his defence hesitating. Ten minutes into the second half, Collum ruled that Snodgrass fouled May inside the area and the striker drove the resultant penalty straight down the middle to halve the deficit.

If that might have unsettled Hearts, they responded emphatically. McKay was only on the pitch 60 seconds when he collected possession, skipped past McGowan and angled a perfect strike into the bottom corner from 25 yards. Yet Saints responded when their own sub Murphy dispatched a precise low finish beyond Clark after Liam Gordon tackled Shankland 40 yards from goal.

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That’s how it stayed despite a late Alex Mitchell header going close. For the sizeable travelling support, victory in Perth truly was worth celebrating as New Year approaches.

Barrie McKay scores a minute after coming on to make it 3-1 to Hearts at McDiarmid Park. Picture: Paul Devlin / SNSBarrie McKay scores a minute after coming on to make it 3-1 to Hearts at McDiarmid Park. Picture: Paul Devlin / SNS
Barrie McKay scores a minute after coming on to make it 3-1 to Hearts at McDiarmid Park. Picture: Paul Devlin / SNS

St Johnstone (3-4-1-2): Matthews; McGowan (MacPherson 70), Gordon, Considine; Wright, Hallberg (Mitchell 25), Carey (Wotherspoon 70), Montgomery; Crawford (McLennan 65); Clark (Murphy 65), May.

Hearts (3-4-2-1): Clark; Sibbick, Rowles, Cochrane; Forrest (M Smith 63), Devlin, Snodgrass, Halliday; Shankland, Grant (McKay 63); Ginnelly (Kiomourtzoglou 77).

Referee: Willie Collum.