St Mirren triumph on penalties against Hearts

Claudio Braga's penalty miss proved crucial

St Mirren prevailed on penalties against Hearts to reach the Premier Sports Cup quarter-finals after a tense match in the Paisley sunshine.

Shamal George's save to deny Claudio Braga resulted in the only unconverted spot-kick in the shootout as the Buddies avenged last season's loss on penalties to Hearts in the Scottish Cup.

St Mirren will visit either Kilmarnock or Dundee United, who play on Sunday, in the last eight.

In the first half, Alex Gogic capitalised on woeful Hearts marking to acrobatically volley the hosts in front from Declan John's chipped cross.

Killian Phillips was denied by goalkeeper Zander Clark as Stephen Robinson's men pushed for a second.

Substitute Braga and Lawrence Shankland forced saves from George but Hearts' pressure told in the 78th minute when Harry Milne's corner was nodded home by Oisin McEntee.

There was no further scoring in regulation or extra time, leading to spot-kicks.

For Hearts, Shankland, Stephen Kingsley, Alan Forrest and Beni Baningime all scored but Braga, the third taker, could not beat George.

Richard King, Marcus Fraser, Jonah Ayunga, Evan Mooney and Malik Dijksteel gave St Mirren a 100% record from 12 yards.

Progress is a further boost for for the Paisley outfit after manager Stephen Robinson agreed a new contract to keep him at the club until 2028.

What they said

St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson: "If you're gonna win it, that's the way to win it. A wee bit of luck at last in the cup and hopefully a decent draw.

"We pressed properly today, the way we always press. Hearts have got millions of pounds beyond our wildest dreams, but we've got charatcer, we've got quality.

"I don't think I have my best team on the pitch yet, but overall delighted with the character they showed."

Hearts head coach Derek McInnes: "We've lost the game because we've not taken advantage of being in control of the game.

"We've got to find more, we've got to find within ourselves, somebody to make that extra run, first contact, the confidence to go and take people on more, and just to try to force the game a wee bit.

"Coming away to Paisley, maybe I started one or two too many who are still new to the Scottish game, and that's something for me to resonate with and think about over the next few days."