Hearts 0-0 Ross County: Graham misses penalty for visitors

Brian Graham missed a late penalty but Ross County still maintained an unbeaten start to their Premiership return with a draw away to Hearts.The newly-promoted visitors dominated on a patchy Tynecastle pitch, which hosted the opening to the Edinburgh Festival a week earlier.

Graham's spot-kick struck a post and Michael Gardyne's follow up also hit the woodwork for a profligate County.

But the draw means they have taken four points from their opening two games.

Hearts, meanwhile, have just one point from their first two fixtures and are without a win in nine league games stretching back to last season.

And they have further cause for concern after key player Steven Naismith was forced off at half time with a tight hamstring.

• Hearts 'lacking confidence & playing safe'

• Reaction & as it happened

• Hearts defend Tynecastle pitch

County's front four show up Hearts' struggles

The story pre-match focussed on the state of the Tynecastle pitch after it hosted a concert eight days ago to mark the opening of the Edinburgh Festival. But it did little to slow the pace or dampen the entertainment.

County's emphatic win against Hamilton last week suggested they will take to the Premiership this season with minimal fuss, and their performance against a Hearts team who will be hoping for a top-four finish only served to underline the point.

The dynamism of Josh Mullin down the right and Gardyne on the left set the tempo for them, and the only criticism they could fairly shoulder was their wastefulness. Graham's spurned spot-kick was the peak of their profligacy, but the substitute striker was not alone.

Mullin passed up several opportunities and Gardyne fired a first-time volley narrowly over, as well as striking the woodwork twice - once with a cross and also with the rebound from Graham's penalty. Ross Stewart impressed with his general play but also lacked a killer touch as he hooked one close-range effort wide and side-footed over the bar when clean through.

Nevertheless County's attacking four demonstrated how they can be a handful for any team in the Premiership this season, and it showed up Hearts' lack of attacking fluency.

Starting in a 4-4-2 with Steven Naismith playing off the left, they struggled to create chances, Conor Washington having the best of them early in the first half as he twice forced Ross Laidlaw into good saves after making clever runs off the shoulder of County's defence.

Naismith was withdrawn at half-time after an uncharacteristically quiet game, no doubt due to his tight hamstring. On came Jake Mulraney, a more natural winger, but his contribution could not match those of County's wide men, and Jamie Walker's move from the right into the number 10 position made little impact.

Given the players Craig Levein now has at his disposal in attack, he will hope for better once they bed in further, and the Hearts fans will demand it as they made their feelings clear at full-time.

Man of the match - Josh Mullin

BBC Scotland's Brian McLauchlin at Tynecastle

When you look at any goalless draw, your eyes are immediately drawn to the defenders on the pitch who have managed to keep their goal intact. However, it was only down to poor finishing by County's strikers that the home side kept a clean sheet.

The County central midfield pair of Iain Vigurs and Ross Draper won their respective battles but it was Mullin who stole the show. Although he too passed up golden opportunities, he was a real thorn in the side of the home defence and gave Hearts debutant Aidy White a torrid afternoon.

'A sense of frustration' - reaction

Hearts manager Craig Levein: "We were second best all over the park and on another day we'd have lost the match. I thought our defending was poor today, we created a lot of problems for ourselves.

"Then when we did defend well we couldn't control the ball in midfield and when we did that we did nothing with it in the forward areas."

Ross County co-manager Stuart Kettlewell: "There's a real sense of frustration - but a massive pat on the back for the players. They were really composed on the ball and battled well when they needed to.

"That's four points from the first two matches and when we play like that we showed we are a difficult team to beat."