HEART OF MIDLOTHIAN are ending the season in style and another win over Championship side Greenock Morton would leave their fans dreaming of Scottish Cup glory at Hampden.
Plenty of fans were unsure about Stevie Naismith earlier in the campaign, especially when he was playing musical chairs with Frankie McAvoy in the dugout because he didn't have the UEFA qualifications to take charge of the side in the Conference League qualifiers.
But the former Scotland striker has won them over now, with the Jambos on an incredible run that has seen them lose just once – to Rangers at Ibrox – in their last 15 games.
They've claimed back-to-back wins over Celtic during that run, with last weekend's 2-0 triumph at Tynecastle bringing up two bets for me. Third-place in the Premiership looks pretty much nailed on with closest challengers St Mirren now 13 points behind the capital side.
A place in Europe seems guaranteed but Heart of Midlothian supporters want a trophy as well and will be confident of seeing off a Greenock Morton side whose own impressive form has ground to a halt in recent weeks.
Dougie Imrie's side claimed the scalp of Premiership Motherwell at Cappielow in the last round and that was part of an impressive 16 game run without defeat for Morton. But they crashed to a surprise 2-0 loss at home to Inverness last weekend and followed it up by losing 1-0 at Cappielow to Championship leaders Dundee United on Tuesday.
Greenock Morton fans will be desperate to regain some momentum as they bid to claim a place in the promotion play-offs and shocking Heart of Midlothian in the Cup would be the perfect pick-me-up.
How the bookies view it
With Heart of Midlothian in such impressive form it's no great surprise to see them as Bet365's 4/9 hot favourites to reach the semis. Backing the Jambos to win inside 90 minutes boosts the odds to 17/20 with QuinnBet. Greenock Morton are 31/10 at Betfair for a win without extra time or penalties and 7/4 at SkyBet to go through. The draw at 90 minutes pays 11/4 at Bet365.
Head to head
These sides faced off in the Championship three seasons ago and they were all pretty tight games, with two draws following a 2-0 win for the Jambos at Cappielow. The last meeting before that was a Scottish Cup tie at Tynecastle way back in 1988, with the Jambos winning 2-0.
Players to watch
It's probably no coincidence that Morton's recent slump has coincided with an injury to striker George Oakley, who has sat out the last three games. With the Englishman a doubt for the cup tie, Robbie Muirhead looks their best bet for a goal at 3/1 with Bet365.
It's hard to look past red-hot Lawrence Shankland for a Heart of Midlothian goal but he's just 5/6 with Bet365 to add to his season's tally of 28. Winger Alan Forrest is usually a threat so he might be the shout for better value at 4/1 with Bet365.
Anything else catch the eye?
Hearts scored four on the road against Championship opposition in the last round but Airdrie play a much more expansive game than Morton. This match is less likely to be easy on the eye so I fancy under 2.5 goals at 57/50 with Unibet. Betting against BTTS also appeals at 6/5 with the same firm.
Morton's win over Motherwell produced 10 corners and we could see plenty of them in this match too. Over 11 corners pays 11/8 with Bet365 while Morton could be worth a punt at 6/5 with the same firm to win the first flag kick.
This could be a fiesty game so the card markets are worth a look too. Morton -1 in the card handicap looks good at 21/10 with Bet365 and the same firm price over 4.5 match cards at 10/11.
This Scottish Cup match between Greenock Morton and Heart of Midlothian will be played on Mar 11, 2024 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Greenock Morton vs Heart of Midlothian prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
