St Mirren 1 - 2 Hearts RECAP: Robbie Neilson's men go top of the league with first league win in Paisley since 2010
The fixture is the only top-flight fixture kicking off at 3pm due to the involvement of four other clubs in Europe on Thursday.
Robbie Neilson’s men go in search of back-to-back wins to start the season following the opening day victory over Celtic at a raucous Tynecastle Park even though there were fewer than 6,000 fans in attendance.
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Hide AdThe last time Hearts started with consecutive wins in the Premiership was back in 2018. That season they made it to fifth.
St Mirren will present formidable opposition. Jim Goodwin has built a well-organised side, packed full of top-flight experience.
The last time the clubs met was a significant one for Hearts – a 1-0 loss was their last game in the Premiership before the coronavirus pandemic put a stop to football.
We will have live coverage from the SMISA Stadium throughout the afternoon with updates, plus reaction and analysis.
St Mirren v Hearts: Updates, reaction and analysis from the SMISA Stadium
Key Events
- Kick-off 3pm
- Team news 1.45pm
- Halliday’s strike the difference at half-time
HT: St Mirren 0 - 1 Hearts
As expected, a very tight and competitive half between the sides.
Hearts knocked the ball about in the opening stages very well. They built from the back through the three centre-backs and Haring which saw Brophy and Main doing a lot of chasing.
Halliday’s goal - a delightful finish - was due to that with Beningime and Boyce involved after patient play.
It saw the Buddies push higher up the park. McGrath went from marking Haring to Halkett to prevent that build-up play, forcing Gordon to go long. In turn it led to plenty of turnovers as both teams put pressure on each other.
No battled has epitomised the game more than Halliday and Tait.
Hearts have struggled to get Ginnelly and GMS involved often, while Jamie McGrath has shown his quality for St Mirren and is the Buddies’ biggest threat.
A concern for the second half for Hearts is both Haring and Beningime in the book. Both for late challenges on McGrath.
Great football
Hearts go from one end to the other with Boyce turning in field, playing it to Haring who zips it first time to Ginnelly down the left. He passes into Haring who continued his run. The Austrian turned it to GMS but his shot was wild.
St Mirren on the front foot
McGrath turns Haring inside and out before sending a great cross to the back post which was met by Tait over Halliday, the header hitting the bar. However, Duncan rules it as a push on Halliday.
Buddies pressure
Hearts have lost that foothold they held.
St Mirren are pressing them higher up the park. McGrath has gone from marking Haring to getting up on Halkett and making it difficult for Hearts to build
Confident Hearts
St Mirren are having to do a lot of running as Hearts move the ball around. They’ve split the two strikers really well with Haring dropping in and popping it around.
1-0 Hearts
The visitors have dominated the last five-ten minutes. Patient play around the played ended with Beningime feeding Boyce who had drifted left. In turn he slipped the ball to Halliday who clipped the ball into the corner past Alnwick. Delightful.
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