Heart of Midlothian let a promising position slip away in a 2-1 defeat to Falkirk on Tuesday evening. A second-half goal from Owen Eames overturned James Wilson's first-half equaliser, handing Heart of Midlothian their first league loss in five matches.
The result means Steven Naismith's side remain third in the Scottish Premiership on 12 points, but they are now six points adrift of leaders Celtic, who have 18 points. Rangers sit in second place with 15 points.
Early exchanges
Falkirk struck first after eight minutes when Ben Krauhaus found the net, assisted by Ryan Strain. Heart of Midlothian responded well and were level 14 minutes later. Josh McPake, who now has two goals in four appearances this term, provided the pass for James Wilson to score.
The visitors enjoyed more of the ball, finishing with 58 percent possession, but struggled to turn that control into clear chances. Both sides picked up a flurry of yellow cards, with Cláudio Braga, Yan Dhanda and Jamie McCart all cautioned for Heart of Midlothian. The match saw a total of seven bookings.
Decisive moment
The match turned decisively against Heart of Midlothian in the 68th minute. Falkirk's Owen Eames, who had been booked just a minute earlier, scored what proved to be the winner. Naismith made a flurry of changes in response, introducing Jerome Williams, Rogers Mato, Sabah Kerjota and Stephen Kingsley, but a clear chance to level the game did not materialise.
Falkirk defended their lead doggedly in the closing stages, restricting Heart of Midlothian to just four shots on target all night. The home side's three saves from goalkeeper Scott Bain were enough to secure the points. This loss ends a run of four consecutive victories for Heart of Midlothian, a sequence that included wins over Dundee, Hibernian and St Johnstone. Their recent form now reads four wins and one loss from their last five Premiership outings.
Heart of Midlothian will look to bounce back quickly, with their next fixture detailed on our fixtures schedule.
