Hibernian 1-1 Heart of Midlothian: Uche Ikpeazu's late strike denies home side
- Published
Highlights: Hibernian 1-1 Heart of Midlothian
Uche Ikpeazu's late equaliser denied Hibernian back-to-back Edinburgh derby victories and kept Hearts within three points of their fifth-top hosts.
Visiting captain Christophe Berra deflected a Daryl Horgan cross into his own net after a spell of Hibs pressure with 20 minutes remaining.
It looked like that would be enough for Hibs despite Marc McNulty having earlier missed a penalty.
But Ikpeazu slid in from Steven MacLean's cut-back to secure a point.
Hearts ended a breathtaking game on top to end their run of three Scottish Premiership defeats against a Hibs side who are now unbeaten in 10 league outings under Paul Heckingbottom.
Hibs are now four points adrift of fourth-place Kilmarnock with three games remaining in the race for a potential Europa League place.
Fire, fury and a fine finish
With an unchanged Hibs the league's form team and and Hearts having lost three Premiership games in a row - including that derby defeat at Tynecastle - the form book pointed firmly towards a home win.
However, Hearts manager Craig Levein's changes in personnel and formation appeared to knock the home side out of their early stride. With 17-year-olds Connor Smith, handed a surprise first start, and Harry Cochrane introduced to form part of a four-man box in central midfield, it was the visitors who looked the more dangerous as the match began at a furious pace.
Hearts' cause, though, was not helped by a curiously uncertain display from John Souttar. The Scotland centre-half's poor control after a dangerous pass from Zdenek Zlamal forced the goalkeeper into the first save of the game to deny Stephane Omeonga. From that moment, the 22-year-old who has been linked with Rangers and clubs in England was a back of nerves.
That tension spread to the rest of his team-mates and, as Hibs came to terms with Hearts' system, Daryl Horgan went close to a third derby goal in two games after Souttar failed to cut out a cross.
Having been denied by some desperate Hibs blocks early on, Hearts relied on a long mazy run on the break from Jake Mulraney to force Ofir Marciano into his first serious save before the break.
Lewis Stevenson matched the power of that shot at the other end and, when Zlamal beat the ball away, Berra had to clear McNulty's cut-back from in front of his own goal.
Souttar's block denied Stevenson as Hibs started to take control after the break and half-time substitute Vykintas Slivka ought to have done better with a header that Zlamal beat away from point-blank range.
A sloppy attempt at a clearance by Ikpeazu that clipped Paul Hanlon handed Hibs a soft penalty chance, but McNulty fired against the outside of a post.
Hibs' relentless pressure eventually led to Berra's unfortunate own goal, but they were pegged back with six minutes remaining as substitute MacLean cleverly set up Ikpeazu.
Ikpeazu's overhead kick forced Marciano to prevent Hearts stealing all three points with an athletic save as the derby ended in typically frenetic style.
Christophe Berra's own goal looked like giving Hibs successive derby wins
'Two points dropped for Hibs'- analysis
BBC Scotland's Brian McLauchlin at Easter Road
The one thing we learned from this match was that form certainly goes out the window when it comes to derby games. Hibs, who remain unbeaten in the league under Heckingbottom, looked as if they had the points in the bag, such was their dominance in the second period, only for Hearts somehow to draw strength from the depths and snatch a point.
The Easter Road boss will certainly look upon this as two points dropped as they continue their quest to catch Kilmarnock in fourth spot.
The boost this draw could give Hearts before the Scottish Cup final could be massive. The Tynecastle side have lost a bit of sparkle but the manager found out these players have it in them to battle. And with Hampden places up for grabs, some more regular starters may be looking over their shoulders. Derby draw after Ikpeazu's late strike
'I would have knocked his teeth out'