Aberdeen 0 - 1 Heart of Midlothian

Neil Cooper's side, who welcomed Ashley McInnes, Grant Fraser and Andrew Considine back in to the Under 19 starting line-up, began well and had a great chance to take an early lead. Good work by the lively McGuire and Grant Fraser on the left side of the field created the first real chance of the match but Brian Neill's cross was cleared by the Heart's defence.

That was as good as it got for Aberdeen in the opening period as Hearts began to impose themselves on the match and the Young Dons struggled to get any possession.

Donald did well to close down Hearts midfielder Kennedy and his shot from 25 yards skimmed just past the Greig Kelly's post. Minutes later the Dons had a real let off when the Hearts Centre Half (5) rose unchallenged to power a header off the post with the keeper beaten. It was all Hearts at this stage and Brian Neill did well to head a shot off the line. On the half hour mark it was Kelly to the rescue as he reacted well to snap shot from Hearts Calum Elliott (9) pulling off the save of the match. Kelly was again the hero on 41 minutes when he turned a fierce drive around his right hand post.

Hearts deservedly took the lead just before half time when Bobby Thompson failed to clear the danger and the impressive 9 fired in the only goal of the game for the Edinburgh side. Neil Cooper's half time team talk did the job and it was a much more determined team that took to the field. Aberdeen were the better side in the second half forcing Hearts back without creating any clear chances. Considine was unlucky to be booked in the 54th minute for an innocuous challenge.

McGuire worked hard to chase down a lost ball and put Hearts defender Sives under pressure forcing him to scythe down McGuire what appeared to be inside the box. Strong appeals from the Aberdeen players for what looked a certain penalty resulted in the referee awarding a direct free kick well outside the box.

The young Dons made a change on 65 minutes with John Bruce replacing the hard working Bagshaw. Aberdeen continued chasing the game with Shields replacing Grant Fraser with five minutes to go. Despite the changes and a much improved second half performance the equalising goal proved to be out Aberdeen's reach as Hearts held on to win the game.

Coach Neil Cooper speaking to RedWeb said: 'We were disappointed to lose but I cannot fault the team. We are a very young side and I was encouraged by the attitude and commitment of the lads against a side who are top of the under 19 league. Most of the Hearts team today are in their last year of under 19 football whereas the majority of our team are in their first or second years. Chris McGuire, for instance is still eligible to play under 19 football for the remainder of this season and another three seasons after that. When it comes to the physical nature of the game the difference in age at this level can work against you as it did today. We lost the physical battle but we played well individually and as a team.'