Steven Naismith warns Hearts are 'doomed to fail' if they get mindset wrong in battle for third

Hearts interim boss Steven Naismith admits finishing third IS the goal but insists his side are doomed to fail if they get their mindset wrong.

The man who replaced Robbie Neilson raised eyebrows when he claimed finishing best of the rest behind Celtic and Rangers was not the be all and end all – despite Jambos chief Andrew McKinlay stressing the importance of overhauling Aberdeen after axeing the manager in the wake of five consecutive defeats.

Naismith's first game in charge did not go to plan as they were downed by rivals Hibs and they now sit five points behind the Reds with six games remaining. And the former Scotland star is unbowed and reckons a change in approach will reap rewards as they chase down Aberdeen. Speaking on Sky Sports, Naismith said: "From the club's point of view third is the aim. It has got to be the aim because three years ago we were in the Championship. Strides have been made, you get the taste of European football and what comes from that is expectation. Now the club has got to strive to be better. In the background there are lots of good things going on.

"For me, if you don't win games you are not going to be in the mix for that. What we first need to think about is to enjoy playing football, which then gets you more chances in games and gets you wins. Then we will look come the last few games of the season and say, 'are we in the pack for it, or are we not?'

"That's got to be the way you look at, if you look at any other way, or you set it up any other way, I think you are doomed to fail. You can't look beyond where you are at this moment in time. So, for me, it's about first performance, secondly getting the result which will come from a good performance and after the split you play