Hearts vs Hibernian. Scottish Premiership.
TynecastleAttendance18,675.
Match report as Hibernian snatch a point in Edinburgh derby with Hearts
Saturday 7 October 2023 20:29, UK
Elie Youan hit two goals in 83 seconds as Hibernian came from behind to seal a 2-2 Edinburgh derby draw at Tynecastle.
Hearts looked firmly in control after a spectacular strike from Alan Forrest and Christian Doidge's own goal had them two ahead.
But Youan scored with Hibernian's first two efforts on target midway through the second half ahead of a thrilling finale when both teams went for a winner.
The comeback maintained Nick Montgomery's unbeaten record as Hibs head coach after five games in Scotland and prevented Steven Naismith's side from moving ahead of Rangers into third place in the cinch Premiership.
Heavy overnight rain had created perfect conditions for slide tackles and referee Willie Collum was busy in the opening 15 minutes, booking Hearts captain Lawrence Shankland and Devlin plus Hibs defender Will Fish.
Lowry made a lively start, curling a left-footed shot off a post from 20 yards and forcing two saves from David Marshall while generally picking out team-mates with clever passes in the final third.
Marshall also denied Shankland before being beaten by a piece of brilliance from Forrest, who had seen plenty of the ball in the opening stages.
The former Ayr and Livingston player collected the ball on the right wing, cut inside, and unleashed a powerful left-footed strike which curled just inside the top corner in the 28th minute.
Hibs took a while to settle after the goal but they did have some pressure late in the half without threatening Zander Clark.
Hearts' defensive efforts came at a cost when Stephen Kingsley injured himself cutting out a cross. After trying to play on, the left-back was carried off on a stretcher.
The injury blow sparked a reshuffle as Odel Offiah came on at right-back and the rest of the back four moved one space left with Kye Rowles filling Kingsley's position.
Hearts doubled their lead in the 58th minute when Lowry passed the ball into the goalmouth following his own half-cleared corner and Doidge sliced his attempted clearance behind him and into the corner of the net.
Hibs had several shots blocked in the immediate aftermath of the own goal and they finally got through in the 66th minute when Vente's first-time pass teed up Youan to fire high into the net from 14 yards.
The same combination soon reaped rewards again as Youan drilled home the Dutch striker's lay-off from similar range.
Hibs lost Marshall to injury, with Max Boruc coming on and the Pole was immediately under pressure. Shankland curled just over after a mazy run and Rowles' shot took a deflection and hit the bar.
The visitors had chances to seal an unlikely three points but Youan's low cross was just too far in front of Boyle and Clark stopped Joe Newell's strike.
Hearts got back on top and substitute Beni Baningime came closest to a last-gasp winner.
Hibernian head coach Nick Montgomery said: "Elie's a fantastic player, he could play at the highest level no doubt, but he needs to be more consistent and he knows that.
"I told him at half-time we needed more from him because he's a player that can win you a game of football. There were too many who weren't good enough in the first half and Elie was definitely one of them but when I asked him to step up he certainly did.
"He gets two goals and we need that from him for 90 minutes, not for 45. If only the game was 45 minutes he would probably be playing in the Champions League.
"But that's something Elie has to fix, he's a young player with bags of ability. That's normal, sometimes it takes young players a couple of years to get that consistency but there's no doubting his ability. He is a fantastic player and a good lad and second half he reacted really well."
Hearts head coach Steven Naismith said: "We carried a threat, the chances we had were really good, scored two good goals. The biggest disappointment is we have given up two goals in the space of a minute-and-a-half that has ultimately cost us three points in what would have been a very good performance."
The Scottish Premiership takes an international break with Hearts returning to action at home to Celtic on October 22, live on Sky Sports; kick-off 2.15pm.
Hibernian are away to Rangers on October 21; kick-off 3pm.
