Hearts 1-1 Falkirk (4-5 penalties)
Parkinson (59′) Shankland (85′ pen)
Ben Parkinson’s goal and winning penalty sent Falkirk to the 5th round of the Scottish Cup, dumping the league leaders out at Tynecastle.
Hearts started brightly, in an otherwise bleak first half. Claudio Braga raced clear of the Falkirk backline in the opening minutes, but scuffed his left-footed striker wide of Scott Bain’s goal.
Alexandros Kyziridis produced a world-class goal to break the deadlock against Falkirk in September. He attempted a similar 25-yard strike after collecting Tomas Magnusson’s cross-field ball, but Bain gathered the bobbling effort.
Derek McInnes’s side enjoyed plenty of possession in the opening 25 minutes without scoring, to the delight of the large travelling support, who filled most of the Roseburn end.
Chances were few and far between for the visitors in the first half. Leon McCann raced towards Alexander Schwolow’s goal on the half-hour mark after picking up a pocket of space. His left-footed strike had power, but was pushed away by the Austrian goalkeeper.
The visitors had the final chance of the half when Filip Lissah headed over a Miller freekick. Neither side looked likely to find a goal as Nick Walsh blew his whistle for half-time.
McGlynn opted for a triple substitution at the break, including the introduction of Sheffield United loanee Louie Marsh. McInnes kept the same eleven, but looked to have switched Kyziridis to the right flank, in an attempt to penetrate the visiting defence.
Magnusson thought he had broken the deadlock in the 53rd minute. The ball broke kindly to the Norwegian following a hopeful long ball, stroking home from close range amidst a sea of Falkirk bodies. But a lengthy VAR check ensued, deeming that the midfielder had controlled the ball with his hand, keeping the scores level.
The visiting support cheered the decision and didn’t have long to wait before celebrating again. Substitute Parkinson got across Jordi Altena to tap home Filip Lissah’s low cross in the 58th minute, sending the away allocation into frenzy.
The goal galvanised the visitors, and Parkinson should have doubled their advantage after racing clear on goal moments later. But the striker failed to trouble Schwolow, slicing his strike into the Roseburn Stand.
With 15 minutes to play, McInnes turned to the latest incomer, Islam Chesnokov, injecting pace into Hearts’ attack. In truth, Bain in the Falkirk goal had enjoyed a quiet second period.
The hosts were awarded a lifeline with five minutes to play. Chesnokov made an immediate impact after being hacked in the box by Leon McCann, Shankland powered home the resultant penalty to level proceedings, and set up extra time.
A tense extra time period ensued, as both teams wrestled for the winning goal. Miller tested Schwolow with a left-footed strike after finding space on the edge of the box. The low drive looked set to break the net, but the Austrian pushed clear to maintain level proceedings.
Spittal went closest for Hearts in the 113th minute with a 25-yard free kick, which dipped narrowly over Bain’s crossbar.
Falkirk responded with four minutes to play. McCann marauded into space on the left, his cross broke to substitute Ethan Ross, who blasted from 6 yards towards goal. Schwolow held firm to divert the powerful strike, and Stuart Findlay cleared the danger.
Falkirk held their nerve in the penalty shootout, scoring all five of their penalties. Kabangu placed his left-footed strike over Bain’s bar before Parkinson delivered the killer blow. A marathon 120 minutes ended in delight for McGlynn’s determined bunch, for McInnes and Hearts, full focus will shift to their league title charge.
Hearts: Schwolow 7 Kent 6 Halkett 7 McCart 6 Milne 6 Altena 6 Magnusson 6 Baningime 7 Kyziridis 6 Braga 5 Shankland 6
Substitutes: Spittal 5 Findlay 5 Kabore 5 Chesnokov 5 Kabangu 3 Forrester 3
Falkirk: Bain 7 McCann 6 Henderson 7 Allan 7 Lissah 7 Cartwright 6 Spencer 7 Yeats 6 Tait 7 Miller 7 Stewart 6
Substitutes: Marsh 5 Wilson 5 Parkinson 6 Adams 4 Ross 3 Graham 2
