Graham Rix's tenure as Hearts head coach got off to a steady start with a 1-1 against Aberdeen in their Bank of Scotland Premier League clash at Pittodrie.
Jamie Smith's seventh goal of the season after 12 minutes gave the Dons a deserved half-time lead, the former Celtic player taking advantage of some sloppy defending by the Jambos to slam home a shot from 14 yards.
However, Hearts rallied after the interval with Rudi Skacel's deflected goal in the 63rd minute, his 11th of this campaign, levelling the scores.
Although Rix will be encouraged by his side's spirit, the Edinburgh side now find themselves two points behind leaders Celtic at the top of the SPL table.
Rix said afterwards: "I said to them at half-time I am embarrassed by the first 45 minutes but to be fair they responded.
"I asked them to lift their game, be 20% sharper, be quicker and close people down, just real basic stuff. But they responded in the second half to play really well. I am delighted to get my first game out of the way and with the lads for the way they responded to what I said."
