hearts 1

hibernian 1

WITH passions at the Edinburgh derby high enough at the best of times the antics of French striker David Zitelli after Hibernian equalised at Tynecastle on Saturday will, hopefully, never be repeated.

Turning round to the disconsolate Hearts supporters who were only a few yards behind the Hibs dug-out, the Frenchman made eye contact, clenched his fists and shouted ''F*** off'' in their faces.

Not surprisingly they reacted to his stupidity and someone threw something at the Hibs dug-out. Police had to be called to calm the situation.

A Hearts spokesman said they would receive the police report into the game this morning and it will be interesting to see what the boys in blue make of it all, and if they take any action.

In the past, Gary Naysmith has been hit by a coin at Easter Road, while a Hearts supporter aimed a punch at former Hibs player Andy Dow when he tried to take a throw-in at Tynecastle. However, it's not often a player brings the trouble on himself.

The incident involving Zitelli was missed by the majority of people in Tynecastle, including referee Stuart Dougal and the fourth official, who were all caught up in the celebrations which followed John O'Neil's last minute equaliser.

Indeed, even Bernard Gallacher, the former Ryder Cup captain and long-standing Hibs supporter, was out of his seat as his team grabbed their late goal.

The strike by the Hibs captain was no more that Franck Sauzee's side deserved, as they had the majority of the second- half play, and in young strikers Gary O'Connor and Derek Riordan, who came on as a substitute, they have two bright prospects.

Their man of the match was Grant Brebner, who provided the link between defence and attack in much the same way as Sauzee used to do, and while Hearts midfielders Stevie Fulton and Tommi Gronlund tired alarmingly, the Hibs man kept going right to the end.

Hearts have only themselves to blame for allowing Hibs back into the game. I have never witnessed a side sit so deep as Hearts did in the last 15 minutes. It was as if they were arrogantly assuming Hibs did not have the ability to score.

You would also be unlikely to see a player disappear so quickly from view as Ricardo Fuller did when Mathias Jack came on to mark him after 55 minutes. A few crunching tackles from the German and it looked like the man who is on loan from Caribbean side Tivoli Gardens had lost his appetite for the fray.

This was one of the more interesting encounters in a game which was high on passion and low on skill. Brebner and O'Neil, who had a tendency to try too much at times, ran the show in midfield for Hibs, while for Hearts, captain Steven Pressley, young full-back Austin McCann and goalkeeper Roddy McKenzie put in sterling performances.

You have to feel sorry for McKenzie, who has now spent nearly six years at Tynecastle, first as understudy to Gilles Rousset and now to Antti Niemi, who missed the derby with a broken finger.

At 26, McKenzie is good enough to be playing first-team football, but must now decide whether to stay at Hearts and hope Niemi is sold to a bigger club, which would give him his chance at Tynecastle, or try to win a move to another SPL side.

He certainly did himself a lot of good against Hibs, looking assured at crosses and pulling off a great save from young O'Connor.

From Craig Levein's point of view a draw isn't the end of the world, although when O'Neil's shot hit the back of the net, it probably felt like it was. His side had won their last three games up until Saturday and were boosted by the return of the influential Scott Severin, whose five minutes as substitute against Hibs was the first time he has tasted first -team action since September 16.

For Hearts, young Gary Wales looked sharp up front, but overall, they didn't make the most of the chances they created, with their goal from Kevin McKenna in 11 minutes being a scrappy affair. Gary Smith had headed the ball clear from a corner to Fulton, who lobbed it back in to McKenna, who was standing alone in the six-yard box.

Hibs goalkeeper Nick Colgan seemed to kneel down in front of him, expecting to gather the ball before he hit it, but the Canadian managed to get the slightest of touches on the ball to deflect it over the embarrassed Irishman.

You would have thought Craig Levein's side would have taken a stranglehold on the game but they ran out of puff late on when the going got tough.

From a Hibs point of view a draw against Hearts was a huge moral victory although it has to be remembered that Sauzee's side have still to win a match after four outings under his management. They face Dundee United on Wednesday at Easter Road then Stranraer away in the Scottish Cup on Saturday. Winning both these games is now imperative for the Frenchman if he wants his side to put together a decent run of form.

Ironically it is not the overseas players who seem to be reacting best to the influence of Hibs' first foreign manager - it is the Scottish players such as Brebner, O'Neil and Ian Murray.

As for the foreigners, Alex McLeish's last act as Hibs manager was to sign Ecuadorian striker Eduardo Hurtado, but against Hearts he looked slow and cumbersome, as if his best days are long behind him. Even Ulises De La Cruz, Hibs' record signing at (pounds) 750,000, has failed to make the sort of impact everybody at Easter Road expected.

He did score against Hearts in the last derby, which Hibs won 2-1, but since then he has drifted in and out of games. He certainly has the pace and talent to go at defenders, but like many of the other Hibs players, appears to be lacking in confidence at present.

However, a draw against their oldest rivals at Tynecastle will help to boost overall confidence in the Easter Road dressing room, although after Zitelli's antics off the field against Hearts they should also consider taking steps to boost the Auld Alliance as well.