Hearts stirring

York Hearts won again.
To read the first three words in that sentence was once improbable. To add the fourth would have seemed positively ludicrous.
But times they are a-changing down at Huntington. York Hearts' Tuesday night team, once a source only of frustration, appear to have turned a corner.
Tonight's win over Elegant Homes, courtesy of a fourth-minute penalty by Sam Outing, was the Jambos' third victory in succession. The past eight league games have brought just one defeat and the defence looks more resolute with every passing week. One can only wonder where Hearts might be if they had started the season as they are ending it, but if this form can continue into next term, the future could be maroon.
A swirling wind meant this game was far from pretty. The ball was battered this way and that with much vitriol and drive but little flair or accuracy. Outing and Aitchison again worked well together up front, posing a constant threat to Elegant's defence, if not their goal, while behind them, Turnbull and T'other Sam battled for everything. Calum, once again the lone defender, once again mopped up anything that came his way.
When it mattered, Outing was clinical. A swift Hearts attack saw him one-on-one with the keeper, who saved only by coming out of his box. He claimed momentum was to blame, and he was perhaps right, but it was a penalty nonetheless and - for the third week running - Sam scored from the spot.
Thereafter, the two sides huffed and puffed, creating little. Calum again took the Man of the Match accolade and, with it, the player of the year title. An Aberdonian scooping the York Hearts honours? These are strange days indeed.