A first half brace from Lawrence Shankland was enough to hand Hearts all three points against Dundee at Tynecastle Park on Saturday afternoon.
Head coach Neil Critchley made three changes from last weekend’s draw with Aberdeen as James Penrice returned from his suspension, Craig Halkett replaced the injured Frankie Kent and James Wilson was handed his first start in maroon.
The youngster was keen to make an impression and he was involved early on as Penrice wasted no time in resuming his duties of charging down the left wing and providing a dangerous cross, Wilson was on the move at the front post and although he couldn’t find the desired connection, the ball found its way to Musa Drammeh, but he couldn’t sort his feet out as his shot trickled wide.
The Jambos had started the better of the two sides, but despite enjoying the majority of the possession and swinging plenty of dangerous deliveries into the box, Dundee were making things difficult.
Blair Spittal almost provided a moment of magic to open the scoring on ten minutes. Jon McCracken came charging out of his goal to clear the ball up field, but the stopper only presented the ball to Spittal, who on the turn, volleyed at goal from just inside the Dee half, his effort had McCracken worried, but dropped just wide.
Hearts continued to dominate proceedings and after Musa saw an effort saved by McCracken, the men in maroon opened the scoring on 20 minutes. Penrice was again involved, and it was vintage Shankland as he peeled off to the back post to knock the ball back across goal and into the far corner.
The chances kept coming for Hearts and after Halkett headed over at the back post from a Penrice corner, Shankland almost doubled his tally for the afternoon, producing a smart turn to fashion the chance from Wilson’s cross, but he was denied by McCracken at the front post.
The first half hour had been one-way traffic, and the Jambos deservedly doubled their lead on 31 minutes, McCracken could only palm Penrice’s vicious delivery back into the middle of the penalty box, where Shankland was waiting to fire home his and Hearts’ second.
Half-time: Hearts 2-0 Dundee
Dundee had offered next to nothing in the first 45 and an unimpressed Tony Docherty made two changes at the interval with Simon Murray and Ethan Ingram both introduced.
The changes didn’t appear to have an immediate impact and in a second 45 of few chances, it was Hearts who continued to look the more threatening. Shankland almost securing the match ball, cutting in off the right wing before lobbing an effort over the crossbar.
The Jambos thought they had added a third goal on 71 minutes in bizarre circumstances. A through ball intended for Musa was cleared by the onrushing McCracken onto a Dundee shirt, the ball rebounded into the path of Musa to tap home into the empty net, only for the flag to go up for offside.
It took 89 minutes for Dundee to muster a real opening as substitute Julien Vetro's free kick was headed over by Antonio Portales at the back post.
Shankland almost bagged his hat-trick in stoppage time and when his effort was stopped by McCracken, Alan Forrest's rebound was cleared off the line as Hearts were forced to settle for two goals.
Hearts: Gordon, Halkett, Oyegoke, Shankland ©, Devlin, Rowles, Spittal (Vargas, 75), Boateng, Wilson (Forrest, 67), Penrice, Musa (Grant, 75)
Subs: Clark, Grant, Oda, Forrest, Dhanda, Tait, Forrester, Vargas, Salazar
Dundee: McCracken, Astley, McGhee ©, Mulligan (Vetro, 83), Cameron, Adewumi (Murray, 46), Robertson (Ingram, 46), Koumetio, Palmer-Houlden (Tiffoney, 60), Sylla, Portales
Subs: Sharp, Carson, Ingram, Tiffoney, Main, Murray, Kelly, Braybrooke, Vetro
