Craig Gordon addresses his Hearts future, clean sheet record and entering the 'bonus stage'
Craig Gordon has kept so many clean sheets for Hearts across two spells spanning a quarter of a century that keeping count has proved tricky.
The big goalkeeper was unsure whether his two big saves in stoppage time against Motherwell provided him with his 100th or 101st such distinction in Tynecastle colours. What was not in doubt was the magnitude of Gordon's heroics as Hearts secured a crucial 1-0 win to quell talk of fan protests and ease relegation fears following a disatrous end to 2024 that saw a Boxing Day derby defeat to Hibs followed by the loss of two late goals in a 2-2 draw at Ross County.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad"[Clean sheets] have been few and far between this season so they're easier to count, but it was an important one," he said. "If we'd managed to throw that game away for the second week in a row I think the atmosphere would have been a lot different. It was very important that we held on there. I thought at times we played really well and deserved to win by a bigger margin than what we did. So it was very pleasing to get that clean sheet and to contribute towards it at the end."


Gordon brilliantly batted away a close range effort from Moses Ebiye as the clock ticked beyond 90 minutes then somehow turned a point-blank header from Jack Vale over the crossbar to ensure Musa Drammeh's seventh minute opener proved the matchwinner.
"It's something that's always been a strength throughout my career - the short reaction saves,” Gordon added. “Those were two good ones in such a short space of time but they were needed for the team. That's the most important thing. At times I've made saves this season and they've not helped towards getting three points. To get that against Motherwell is a huge turning point for us."
This Sunday will see Gordon return to Tannadice for the first time since the double leg break suffered in a collision with Dundee United striker Steven Fletcher on Christmas Eve 2022 that threatened to end his career. His recovery and comeback since then - for both club and country - has been nothing short of remarkable. "It's just another game," he insisted. "It won't bother me going back."
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad

Gordon celebrated his 42nd birthday on Hogmanay. He is already the oldest player to represent Scotland but will need to keep playing well into next season to overtake former St Mirren defender Andy Millen as the oldest player to play in the Scottish top flight aged 42 years and 279 days.
Gordon is out of contract in the summer but he is no rush to resolve his future. "It's too early for that,” he stressed. “We'll have a discussion over the next few months but at the moment I'm just happy to be doing everything I can to improve our situation as a club.
“This is absolutely a bonus stage of my career to still be here playing at this level. To play at Tynecastle was always my dream as a youngster so to still be doing that is incredible. I honestly can't believe that I'm still doing it and still have that opportunity.
“All I can do is my very best for as long as I possibly can and we'll see how long that is. But it's got to be worth it. We've got to move up the table and finish the season as strong as we possibly can to put ourselves in a better position going forward."
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.