Berwick Rangers lose seven-goal thriller to Hearts B despite Greg Binnie hat-trick

Not even a hat-trick of Greg Binnie penalties could prevent Berwick Rangers from suffering a second consecutive 4-3 loss in their KDM Evolution Trophy league stage outing against Hearts B on Tuesday evening.

Having succumbed to a heart-breaking late defeat by the same score-line against Brechin City on Saturday afternoon, the Borderers once again found themselves on the wrong end of a seven-goal thriller in midweek.

Ravaged by injuries, Berwick fell behind after a quarter of an hour, only for a breathless spell to turn the contest on its head as the home side were awarded three spot kicks in 10 minutes. Binnie subsequently stepped to convert all three, catapulting Rangers into a 3-1 lead at the break.

In the second half, however, Hearts would rally, tucking away a penalty of their own shortly after the break, before pulling level in the 63rd minute courtesy of Cormac Daly’s second of the evening. From there, the visitors would kick on again, and Daly wrapped up his hat-trick with a well-taken volley to complete the turnaround 12 minutes from time.

Reflecting on a chaotic affair after the final whistle, Berwick boss Kevin Haynes said: “A game of two halves is probably the only way I can describe it. First half I thought we were so good. The way that we pressed, the way that we denied space, the way that we put pressure on Hearts, denied them time on the ball... We were in their faces, we were aggressive. Everything was great, first half. Obviously we scored three penalties, but you've got to be in the opposition box to win the penalties.

“The second half was just totally different. Maybe a lack of energy, distances were too big, we allowed Hearts to play. Hearts changed the way they played in the second half. I felt they were a bit more direct and had us turning more, which meant that we had to deepen in the game, which allowed us to create spaces which they exploited. Fair play to them, they worked out a way how to win that game. Disappointing to lose the game, but for spells I thought we were alright.”