St Mirren sunk by Hearts as two superb strikes can't seal Buddies progression in Scottish Cup

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Two sublime St Mirren strikes weren't enough to seal progression to the Scottish Cup semi-finals as Hearts edged a breathless tie.More than 1,500 Saints fans made the trip through to Tynecastle and they certainly got value for money, if not the result they were hoping for.In an end-to-end first half the Jambos fired themselves into a two-goal lead thanks to close-range finishes from Beni Baningime and Peter Haring.The Buddies fought back before the break, with Eamonn Brophy netting superbly from Richard Tait's pinpoint cross to halve the deficit.The Saints levelled in emphatic fashion when Connor Ronan picked the ball up around 25-yards from goal before unleashing a thunderbolt that fizzed past Craig Gordon and into the top corner.While the Paisley side looked to push on, Hearts punished some slack defending when substitute Aaron McEneff found space in the box to guide an unorthodox finish past Jak Alnwick.And Ellis Simms put the final nail in the coffin when he netted from close-range, ending St Mirren's Scottish Cup dream of a return to Hampden this season.Stephen Robinson made just one change from Wednesday night's dramatic late win against Dundee, with number one keeper Jak Alnwick returning between the sticks after recovering from Covid-19.Eamonn Brophy was charged with leading the line in the capital, with winger Jay Henderson forced to make do with a place among the substitutes despite his impressive impact at Dens Park.

Brophy was in the thick of the action within just two minutes, clashing heads with Hearts centre back Craig Halkett.Both received treatment before continuing as the quarter-final literally started with a bang.Brophy tested Craig Gordon's reflexes with an early sighter from the edge of the box