Heart of Midlothian F.C. - Team of the Round
The performance of Heart of Midlothian when they saw off Celtic in the Fourth Round of The Co-operative Insurance Cup 1-0 in the east end of Glasgow on October 28 saw the Edinburgh men crowned as the Team of the Round.
Hearts won through when captain Michael Stewart scored a penalty 12 minutes into the second half after Christian Nade had been brought down by Danny Fox to send the holders out of the competition. The misery for Tony Mowbray’s side was complete when skipper Stephen McManus was sent off just before the end for a foul on the darting Andrew Driver.
Michael Stewart was on the spot to answer questions and he was asked what the trade secret was in taking a good spot kick. The former Manchester United youngster advised, “If you speak to anybody who takes penalties it is about whether you feel confident on the day. It does not matter how you hit it, where you put it, as long as it goes over the line.”
As well as netting against Celtic, Stewart hit the winner from 12 yards out against Dunfermline Athletic in the Third Round of The Co-operative Insurance Cup and he is pleased with his efforts saying, “To have scored a couple of penalties to get us through two rounds has been good on a personal level. I have seen a lot better penalties being hit and the ’keeper saving it, hitting the post or it going wide. It does not matter, though, as long as it goes in.
“A club like Hearts has a great history and tradition. When you’re aware of that, it makes you realise how important and how close we are to having the opportunity to write our names into the history books as well.
“It would be fantastic to lead the team out in a Cup Final. I’ve been back at Hearts for two-and-a-half years or so and to have the chance to lead the team out at Hampden next month would be great, almost the pinnacle of my time back here,” he said.
