Steven Naismith wants Hearts to keep cultivating a winning mentality ahead of tomorrow’s visit of Motherwell to Tynecastle Park.
The boys in maroon are on a remarkable eleven game unbeaten streak, including seven consecutive wins, with the boss at lengths to stress the need for Hearts to maintain such rigorous consistency.
Another challenge lies in wait when Stuart Kettlewell’s Steelmen visit Gorgie tomorrow. With a team packed with quality, Naismith says the Jambos need to anticipate their threats keenly.
“It’ll be a tough game; they’ve shown that in every one of their games this season,” he told the media ahead of the game.
“The personnel may change in their system but the structure and approach to games doesn’t. They’ve recruited well in January, so we anticipate a tough game.
“As always at home, we expect to put in a good challenge for them. They’re a team full of good footballers who can spot clever passing opportunities. We need to guard ourselves against that. Hopefully we can pin that back as we look to attack, get a goal, and then win the game.”
The boss was also able to provide an update on the squad, with some positive news on defender Craig Halkett who came off against Airdrieonians at the weekend.
“The initial scans back are good. This whole process is part and parcel of coming back from a long-term injury for Halks,” he added.
“The squad’s in a pretty good place. The only two absentees will be Halkett and Kyosuke, who picked up a concussion a few days ago and needs to follow the protocols. Everyone is fit and we’ve got a good number in training so there’s real competition for places.
“I’ve consistently said throughout the season that playing at Tynecastle brings its own pressures. We need to deal with that tomorrow, start the game well, and hopefully pick up the three points.
“Every game we go into we want the three points. We want consistent wins both home and away. It drives us all on to continue the run and make this the norm rather than being a one-off.”
