Hearts held by Crawley Town in pre-season as Dom Telford bags quickfire double

The Jambos went ahead in the eighth minute. Stephen Kingsley picked the ball up and rifled home from 25 yards.

Kingsley and the Gorgie Boys added their second of the afternoon just six minutes later. The midfielder found his way through a sea of red shirts to fire a ferocious header past Crawley Town keeper Corey Addai from a Hearts corner.

Addai was called into action on two occasions to deny the Jambos as the Reds went into the break two goals down.

But Crawley Town were much-improved in the second half. A Reds trialist rattled the woodwork from close-range after a good ball from Jack Payne from the left.

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The same Crawley Town trialist then made a great run into the box to receive a pass before squaring to Telford, who tapped the ball home on 50 minutes.

And the contest was all-square just three minutes later. Tom Nichols jinked past a Hearts defender before playing in Telford. The former Newport County man brought the ball back onto his left foot and curled a delightful effort into the top corner.

The Reds comfortably saw out the rest of the pre-season fixture to claim an excellent draw against the Europe-bound Gorgie Boys.

Crawley Town face Charlton Athletic under-23s in a friendly at East Grinstead Town’s East Court this Tuesday (July 19, 7.30pm k.o.)