Motherwell fought well but failed to score at Tynecastle and lost 2-0 to Hearts.
The visitors had their chances in the goalless first half but midway through the second period a Lawrence Shankland header gave the home side the lead. Motherwell never came close after that and in added time Kenneth Vargas scored the second.
Blair Spittal and Calum Butcher were missing from the squad as Lennon Miller and Dan Casey stepped up.
It was an unbalanced opening half. Hearts had the vast majority of possession yet Motherwell had three clear chances. Liam Kelly’s only contribution was to save a misguided defensive headed from Paul McGinn. Jack Vale’s opportunity came early but his effort across goal was wide of the target. Casey had an outrageous forty yard effort tipped over the bar for a corner.
The best chance fell to Miller. Theo Bair released the midfielder from the halfway line and he sprinted unchallenged to the edge of the penalty area where he placed the ball wide of Clark’s left hand post.
The Gorgie faithful came to life when they felt (correctly) that Shankland was awarded a yellow card after a contested ball with Vale.
The visitors started well after the break and forced a series of corners in front of the travelling fans but there was no end product. The sides were well matched but a needless free kick was conceded in 67 minutes. From 35 yards in the centre of the pitch Alan Forrest found Shankland. Bevis Mugabi was on the wrong side of the striker and the header found the net.
Stuart Kettlewell made attacking substitutions but there was no spark and the game drifted into the added four minutes. Vargas added the second after what seemed to be a foul but his turn and shot ended the contest.
Motherwell’s unbeaten run has ended and we can look forward to the visit of Celtic next Sunday.
Hearts 2 Motherwell 0
Attendance
Team: Kelly, Devine, McGinn, Mugabi, Casey, Gent (O’Donnell 62), Miller (Nicholson 72), Zdravkovski (Ferrie 78), Paton, Bair, Vale (Obika 78)
Saturday 17 February 2024