Kelty Hearts were held to a 1-1 draw in the Highlands against Inverness Caledonian Thistle.  Luis Longstaff opened the scoring for the hosts after four minutes, before Ross Cunningham’s stunning free-kick cancelled it out.

It took only four minutes for Caley Thistle to take the lead through Longstaff. The winger took a corner which was initially cleared.  However, Longstaff picked up the ball on the right, waltzed into the box and side footed an effort past Ruaridh Adams.

It took only ten minutes for the equaliser to come through Ross Cunningham’s eighth of the season. Luke McCarvel was running at the Caley Thistle defence with real pace and aggression, so was subsequently brought down 25 yards from goal.  From the free-kick Cunningham placed a strike into the top corner past the helpless Musa Dibaga in goal.  Kelty’s number ten leads the way as the division’s top scorer – and this one may be the pick of the bunch.  

In a relentless first half, chances came in spells for both sides.  For Kelty, Cunningham had a few chances from distance which went just over the bar.  Another good Kelty move came when Connor Allan slipped in Brody Patterson down the left with a good pass.  The cut back was aimed for Craig Johnston but just missed the striker at full stretch. 

Caley Thistle came close to regaining the lead in the 37th minute.  From a free-kick the ball floated into the box towards Billy McKay, the experienced forward couldn’t go for goal but did loop a ball back into the middle.  There, Inverness captain Danny Devine volleyed onto the bar and back into the arms of Adams.  

Minutes later, a similar chance came to Inverness midfielder Keith Bray.  This time Longstaff was the provider, Bray controlled the cross and volleyed goal wards but Ruaridh Adams was there with a terrific diving save.  

The second half was quieter for goalmouth action, with Inverness looking the most likely to snatch a winner.  The closest Kelty Hearts came to finding a winner was through Scott Mercer in the 65th minute.  Connor Allan picked up the ball in the midfield and found Mercer making a forward run, the full-back cut onto his left and curled an effort towards goal – the goalkeeper done well to palm the shot away.

The game finished as a 1-1 draw despite good chances for both sides.  Kelty Hearts captain Tam O’Ware was given man of the match for a dominant and commanding display at the heart of the defence.  

Written by: Jamie Szmitz

Photography: Kevin Marshall (@KayemPhoto)