That's the way to bounce back

Last updated : 20 March 2011 By TwoTonTed

Midfielder Ryan Stevenson concedes that Hearts had been feeling the pressure and were glad to relieve that with the fight back against St Mirren. The mini-slump in form which included the loss against Dundee United. Yesterday's result maintained the 12 point gap over Dundee United in third place of the league. Ty did it the hard way by as they twice came from behind to take all the spoils against the Buddies as the recorded a 3-2 home win. Things were looking bleak during an abject first-half performance. Hearts trailed to Michael Higdon's 15th-minute header although the damage could have been greater. Some stern half-time words from manager Jim Jefferies generated a different attitude as Rudi Skacel notched a clinical equaliser 10 minutes in the second half. Higdon restored the visitors' lead in the 68th minute but substitute Stevenson levelled with eight minutes left before Skacel scored the winner in injury-time. After a recent three-game winless run that included losses to Kilmarnock and Dundee United, Stevenson admits the players were anxious to get back to winning ways ahead of the 3 April derby game away to Hibs. 
 
He said: "The last three or four games have been difficult. We had not been playing as well as we had been and then we were beaten by Kilmarnock, but we knew it was coming. We went to Dundee United and it was a tight game and we lost a goal from a set-piece. It's always hard because you read that they have a great chance of catching us, which they have because they're a good team. Between that and Kilmarnock there was maybe a little bit of pressure but we're playing for Hearts, it's a big club and you have to deal with that." 
 
Stevenson, who will be hopeing his goal boosts his chances of landing a new contract this summer, went on: "Hopefully we can look back at the end of the season and say the last 10 minutes against St Mirren was a turning point but we were never going to go through the season playing as well as we had been playing. Every team goes through it, it does not matter if you're at the top or in the third division, every team goes through a bad patch. The manager made it clear we had to stop the rot and get back to basics. In the first half we didn't manage to do that but in the second we did and it's a massive three points for us, especially with the Hibs game coming up." 

St Mirren manager Danny Lennon, whose saw basement side Hamilton close the gap on his team to six points thanks to a 0-0 draw with St Johnstone, said: "In the first half we created very good opportunities and caused them a lot of problems.  don't think anyone could argue if we were 3-0 up at half-time. Throughout the game, I thought my defenders dealt with most things admirably but there were lapses in concentration, their first goal came form a poor defensive header. We'll get at them, they know the things they're doing well at this moment in time. All we can do is ask them to score more goals than the opposition. We now have nine crucial games to go."