Hearts cruised into the semi-finals of the Premier Sports Cup with a 3-0 victory over Stenhousemuir at Ochilview, with Rogers Mato, JJ Williams and Yan Dhanda all on target.
The strength in depth of Wouter Vrancken's squad was clear to see as a few of his fringe men impressed while swatting Stenhousemuir aside. New signing JJ Williams opened his Hearts account on his first start, the big American powering home for the first goal, and the Jambos never looked back.
Mato's lightning pace doubles the lead
Rogers Mato's lack of opportunities under Derek McInnes left fans baffled, and his exclusion will only seem more bizarre based on recent evidence. The Ugandan scored in the previous round against Inverness and showed lightning pace to double the visitors' advantage, turning on the after burners to race in on goal and slot past Darren Jamieson.
The capital club could and probably should have scored more, but a straightforward passage to next month's semi-finals and crucially, no further injuries made for a successful night in Stenny.
Dhanda scores first goal since January 2025
The lesser spotted Yan Dhanda came off the bench and got on the scoresheet for the first time since January 2025. The midfielder was perfectly positioned to slam home into a near-empty net after Williams' mighty leap and knockdown at the back post.
Vrancken had told his men before this one that excuses are for "losers" and was pleased to see his side respond in the right way. "We said it the last few days, maybe ten times or so!" said the Belgian. "Also before the game when we came out of the dressing room, you can live by excuses or you can see it as a challenge and battle with the emotions."
"You know in those games where you are not there, focused mentally then you get irritations. You think it's a simple game, all those things. So not the perfect circumstances, so when you think about those things then you get yourself down and it's very important that you be above those emotions, stay in your game and stay focused for 90 minutes. You don't have to finish at 15 but stay in the game plan."
Vrancken praises Mato's qualities
Vrancken was delighted with Mato's contributions and has urged the wide man to play more on instinct at times. He added: "He has a bit of pace, you can say that! He has qualities and is such a good guy. He wants to do everything perfect so he's really coachable but he thinks too much sometimes, especially in the beginning of the preparation."
"You see when he is finding his game inside what we want, then he can bring his extra quality. Not only the offensive part, but also defensively. He's really strong, in the second half they're just throwing balls into his area and he competes and wins those duels."
Opposite number Marvin Bartley couldn't help but be impressed either, conceding that Mato even outstrips one of his old Hibs pals for pure speed. "The second goal is really disappointing from our point of view," he told Premier Sports. "We've got a chance to play it first time but as soon as the ball is turned over, they're so athletic. I think Mato is the quickest player I've ever seen. I used to think Martin Boyle was fast, but wow!"
