David Marshall is experienced enough to know that the immediate wake of a derby defeat is not the ideal time for knee-jerk analysis. As he tried to process the team’s last-gasp 1-0 Premiership loss to Hearts at Easter Road on Wednesday, he said it was important to take a wider view of the improvements that have been made in recent months.

“Obviously it’s a hard one to take when you lose the derby, especially when the goal comes so late,” conceded the Hibs goalkeeper. “I don’t know how it looked but I felt we played relatively well. There were spells in the game where it was scrappy, which was understandable. The fast start, the two penalties, it took a bit for the game to settle after that – because everybody was a bit shell-shocked, to be honest. I don’t think we deserved to lose the game. But that’s the way it goes. The ball has ricocheted around, it’s fallen to him – and it’s a good finish.”

There was a similar sense of injustice and frustration when they succumbed by a similarly small margin to Aberdeen in the League Cup semi-final and even more recently to St Johnstone in the league, while late equalisers cost them two points against Ross County and then against St Mirren. “But I think we have to look at the bigger picture,” said Marshall. “It’s hard just now because we’ve just lost a derby and it’s all very raw. But we have to look at where we were when the manager came in – and where we are now.

David Marshall is refusing to dwell on negatives after Hibs' loss against Hearts.

“We’re in a better place. I totally believe that. And it’s the halfway point of a season where we lost our first nine points, which left us chasing it. But I think everyone can see we’re heading in the right direction. This is the first time the manager has lost at home, since he came in. And I think everyone can see the steps we’ve taken.

“We lost 1-0 to St Johnstone, the same in the semi-final against Aberdeen, as well. We’ve also dropped a couple of points from being 2-0 up in games, so there is still lots of room for improvement. But the manager came in mid-season, he’s not had a transfer window yet, so there are a lot of things we can look at. But there is still a lot in that dressing room. I still feel we can have a successful season.”

To aid those ambitions, there may have to be some swift work carried out when the transfer window opens in a few days, though, according to Marshall – who has watched numbers dwindle due to injuries and is aware that international duties – at the Asian Cup and the Africa Cup of Nations will place an even bigger strain on resources. Lewis Miller and Martin Boyle will be away with Australia and Rocky Bushiri is expected to be called up by DR Congo.

“Yeah, we’ve potentially got a few out, with Josh [Campbell] getting injured against Hearts and three or four heading away to tournaments,” Marshall added. “I think some of them will even miss the Motherwell game. There is enough in the squad to be successful and be consistent but looking at the transfer window, it’ll be surprising if there aren’t ins and outs. That’s probably the same as every other club – but we need to get back to winning ways. We’ve got a chance to do that against Motherwell and go into the winter break on a high.”

Hibs look at bigger picture in wake of painful derby defeat by Hearts