Steven Naismith ponders Hearts future amid Kennedy, Wilder and Robinson links - 'fate shouldn't rest on one game'

Steven Naismith accepts that there is a lot resting in the outcome of the final Edinburgh derby of the season but he says his managerial fate should not be counted among them.

Steven Naismith is hoping to secure fourth place when Hearts host Hibs on Saturday.

The Hearts interim boss will sit down with the club’s hierarchy in the coming days to iron out his future. However,, he does not believe that the outcome of Saturday’s battle for a fourth place finish and the last guaranteed European spot should be the determining factor. “It’s important just like the other results have been important,” said the 36-year-old, who had been coaching the club’s B team prior to Robbie Neilson’s dismissal early last month. Since then he has delivered two wins, two draws and two defeats.

“If I am getting judged on one game, I don’t think it’s the right approach to take. I think you’ve got to look at the bigger picture, you’ve got to look at everything. For the club, they need to understand what they want in their next manager, what they want long term. Since I have been at the club I have had an understanding that the club need attacking football, they need an identity and they need to have something that’s bigger. That’s what I believe and that’s what I have tried to do in the seven weeks since I have taken over. You need to get results or you’re giving yourself no chance but you do have to show what type of coach and manager you are in terms of style. It’s a fine balance but I think I’ve equipped myself very well.”

Other names have been linked with the Hearts hotseat, including former Sheffield United boss Chris Wilder, Celtic assistant manager John Kennedy and current St Mirren gaffer Stephen Robinson, but having enjoyed the experience, Naismith is unsure whether he would want to stay on at the club if he is passed over. “It’s something I will think about after the weekend because I have really enjoyed this process,” he added. “There could be an element of going backwards but what if a manager comes in that’s amazing and I’m learning again? Or, what if a manager comes in that’s totally different to me then I probably wouldn’t enjoy it. It’s different now than it was six or seven weeks ago”