Hearts may have just completed jigsaw puzzle - will Hibs, Aberdeen and the rest catch be able to catch them?

Coming off the back of a defeat, there is usually a ceiling on the amount of positivity that can be conjured up.

But, at Hearts, there are reasons to be upbeat as they look ahead to a week which could all but cement their place in third come the end of the campaign.

Next up are tough and testing fixtures against nearest challengers Motherwell and city rivals Hibs, who have not given up hope of hunting down their foes and reprising last season’s league finish.

Both of those teams, though, have lost key personnel in the transfer window, and while there have been additions, they are still a work in progress.

Hearts, with the advantage of a strong summer window, have had less to do and, sitting high in the league table, they are doing it from a position of strength.

Thus far unwilling to let one of their main assets go any earlier than they have to, they have also focused their efforts on addressing the one area of the team that lacked depth. On the evidence of 45 minutes in Gorgie on Wednesday night, they have successfully done that.

Already the best of the rest behind the big two, while some clubs have reached this stage in the season looking like a jigsaw box with the wrong pieces included, the recruitment of Ellis Simms could complete the picture on the lid of Hearts’ carton, with every component looking like it will slot in nicely.

It makes them a dangerous proposition.

A tough team to beat, they have lost just five of their 22 games in the cinch Premiership this season, but with half a dozen draws, a number of which could and should have been upgraded to wins if they had shown a sharper cutting edge.

But while there is pace, width and creativity in the ranks, there has been a heavy reliance on Liam Boyce to spearhead