Substitute Alex Lowry struck two minutes into injury time to send Hearts into the Viaplay Cup semi-finals with a 2-1 win away to Kilmarnock.
Steven Naismith’s men had forged in front through Jorge Grant’s first-half strike only to be pegged back by Brad Lyons’ equaliser.
With extra time looming, Lowry – who had been on the pitch for less than two minutes – took a pass from Liam Boyce before rolling his shot into the far corner of the net.
It was the on-loan Rangers forward’s first goal for Hearts since arriving at Tynecastle on loan last month and will ease some of the pressure that had been mounting on Naismith.
Kilmarnock had made just one change from the side that drew with Dundee at the weekend with David Watson coming in for Marley Watkins, the match winner against Celtic in the previous round.
There were three changes from the Hearts team beaten by St Mirren. In came Grant, Toby Sibbick and Alan Forrest, replacing Nathaniel Atkinson, Boyce and Beni Baningime.
The Tynecastle side came into the tie on a run of just one win from six games and the travelling support made their feelings knows as they unfurled a banner before kick-off that read, “funded by fans, ran by clowns, we deserve better”.
It was Hearts who had the first chance but a drive from Lawrence Shankland drifted well wide of goal.
At the other end Matty Kennedy’s mazy run carried him into the box only for Zander Clark to make a strong save to keep out his shot.
Five minutes before half-time, Hearts were ahead. Kyle Rowles carried the ball forward before feeding Shankland. The Hearts captain laid it off for Grant whose first-time finish found the bottom corner.
Kilmarnock replied with a Kyle Magennis volley that sailed off target, with the same player then coming even closer with a good chance early in the second half.
Hearts almost doubled their lead when Stephen Kingsley’s inventive effort struck the crossbar. The impressive Magennis then teed up Kyle Vassell at the other end and the striker’s driven effort was well pushed away by Clark.
The home side, though, would not be denied after 67 minutes. Vassell found Kennedy wide on the left and the winger’s trickery fooled Sibbick to earn himself a bit of space. The former Aberdeen man then weighted the perfect cross for Lyons to head home.
The home side looked the ones most likely to win it within the regulation 90 minutes but instead it was Hearts who will be heading to Hampden after Lowry’s dramatic late intervention.
Al-Nassr 1-1 Al-Hilal: Mitrovic scores last-gasp penalty
Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a penalty in the 10th minute of second-half stoppage time as Al-Hilal denied Cristiano Ronaldo's Al-Nassr victory in a 1-1 draw.
Mitrovic netted his 27th Saudi Pro League goal of the campaign after Sadio Mane was harshly judged to have fouled Saud Abdulhamid in the area.
Mane stuck out an arm to shield the ball, catching his opponent in the throat, though the contact appeared to have been outside of the box.
Mitrovic made no mistake to keep Al-Hilal's unbeaten campaign going.
The Serbian's spot-kick cancelled out Otavio's first-minute opener, with Ronaldo having set up his compatriot.
Champions Al-Hilal remain 12 points clear of Al-Nassr at the summit of the Pro League standings.
Data Debrief: Ronaldo the provider
Ronaldo leads the scoring charts in Saudi Arabia this season, though he had to settle for an assist on Friday.
That came from the only chance he created, with the 39-year-old limited to 25 touches, though he did have four shots.
Al-Ittihad pegged back as winless run rolls on
Mohamed Sherif scored late on as Al-Ittihad's winless run in the Saudi Pro League stretched to four games after a 1-1 draw with Al-Khaleej.
Al-Ittihad have endured a miserable title defence, and with just two games remaining, the highest the big-spending, PIF-backed club can finish is fourth.
Muhannad Al Shanqiti put them ahead on the stroke of half-time, yet despite having a further eight shots and accumulating 1.07 xG in the second half, Al-Ittihad could not add another.
Their profligacy proved costly in the 81st minute, with Egypt international Sherif snatching an equaliser for 11th-placed Al-Khaleej.
Al-Tai moved out of the relegation zone with a surprise 3-1 win over seventh-placed Al-Fateh, with Bernard Mensah scoring twice.
Al-Raed, meanwhile, claimed a 1-0 win at Al-Wehda.
Data Debrief: Kante the creator?
On the day he received a surprising France recall, N'Golo Kante created three chances for Al-Ittihad, leading the team.
On the flip side, Kante only attempted one tackle, with the midfielder showing a different side to his game, not that it proved fruitful for his team.
Ronaldo motivated to keep playing at top level
Cristiano Ronaldo has no intention of stopping as he says he is still motivated to compete with the "young lions" coming through in the game.
Ronaldo is reportedly considering signing a contract extension to keep him at Al-Nassr until June 2026, taking him past his 41st birthday.
The Portugal international has scored 42 goals in 41 appearances for the Saudi Pro League club this season, and he insists he is still motivated to keep going.
Speaking on the Whoop podcast, he said: "I feel proud to have this age and still compete at the highest level. It's great, and it gives me motivation to carry on.
"If you look at my career for the last 20 years, my level is high. If you are top for 20 years, it's unbelievable.
"I do that, and I continue to do that. For me, it's a big achievement."
Ronaldo has scored an incredible 891 goals in his career and is the all-time leading scorer in men’s international football with 128 goals.
"My biggest motivation is to carry on," he added. "It's not easy to be at this level.
"To still push, to still motivate, to carry on, to score goals, to be in good shape, to compete with the young lions that are coming and that when they play against me, they want to show me that they are stronger and faster than me.
"You have to prepare very well, not just physically but mentally, too. This is the challenge.
"Talent without work is nothing and work without talent is nothing. They have to work together at the same time. I have both. I can't say that I have more of one than the other.
"Small details will make the difference. Consistency is the most difficult thing.
"Are you willing to do that? That's the main point, because everyone wants to be Cristiano, but doing it is difficult. Discipline is the most difficult thing."
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