Hearts v Rangers: Hearts braced for Old Firm double-header

• Ranger smanager Walter Smith puts his players through their paces at Murray Park yesterday ahead of today's trip to Tynecastle. Hearts also face Celtic next Wednesday

FOR all their apparent rivalry, the Old Firm can act at times like a mutual benevolence society. Or at least, that is how they are likely to seem to Hearts, who are at home to Rangers today then visit Celtic in midweek.

Even if they get the better of one, they will have practically no time to recover before the other is at their throats. They could be forgiven for feeling like a wrestler in a tag match whose partner has failed to turn up.

A ten-game unbeaten run in the SPL has taken Jim Jefferies' team to within a handful of points of the two Glasgow clubs. So far, the Hearts manager has preferred to emphasise the lead that run has given his team over fourth-placed Kilmarnock, and played down their title ambitions.

That caution is understandable. Not only does Jefferies want to prevent his players from indulging in dreams of glory, his experience makes him all too aware of how difficult it is for one challenger to go it alone against the duopoly.

Hearts succeeded in splitting the Old Firm five seasons ago, but in modern times no club has gone one better on its own. The last time the title left Glasgow - in fact, the last four times - it was partly because Celtic and Rangers had two challengers, not one. Aberdeen won three championships in the Eighties, Dundee United one, and although they were fierce rivals, there was an element there, too, of mutual assistance.

So can Hearts do it on their own? The Old Firm are certainly more vulnerable than they have been for several seasons, but retain the knack of picking up points when well below their best.

That is partly a result of their own ingrained self-belief and the high expectations they have of themselves. But it is also aided by the nagging self-doubt from which their domestic opponents invariably suffer: the belief, born of decades of defeat, that they cannot get the better of the Glasgow clubs over the course of the season.

So far Hearts have won one of their two meetings with Celtic, and lost their only match to date against Rangers. The Celtic victory, however, was in only the second match of their current run, and their resilience has grown considerably since then.

That much was evident in midweek, when, without Kevin Kyle and Rudi Skacel, they gave Kilmarnock a goal of a start and left Rugby Park 2-1 winners. It was an impressive performance overall, achieved thanks to two goals by half-time substitute Stephen Elliott, yet it was far from flawless. Kilmarnock had a chance to take a two-goal lead, and had later opportunities to score as well. Hearts goalkeeper Marian Kello arguably played as big a role as Elliott in claiming the three points for his team. A seriously self-critical man, he is convinced that he and his team-mates will have to keep improving - above all, by becoming more consistent - if they are to emerge strengthened from their next two matches.

"We saw in the last game the first half wasn't good, but the second half was fine," Kello said this week. "We need to produce more football like we did in the second half.

"We have to play from the first minute to the 90th. You have to play at 100 per cent for the entire game if you want to get results against the Old Firm. We need to make sure we don't make mistakes.

"I think we believe in ourselves and have confidence. I think everyone in the dressing room thinks we are competitive with the Old Firm."

Although well aware that self-confidence is an essential ingredient of a successful side, Kello is also conscious of its limitations. Hearts' morale was high a couple of weeks ago, too, but just as they began to think they could be due a decent run in the Scottish Cup, they hit an off night and were knocked out by St Johnstone. It is an experience which makes the keeper, like his manager, wary of being too assertive.

"I believe we can compete with the Old Firm," he continued. "I also believed we could achieve something in the Scottish Cup, but we didn't and now we are out.

"I have a good feeling with the team and we have good confidence. Obviously these games with the Old Firm can decide everything. If we can get some results against them then we can think about second spot or even more. We will see over the coming weeks."

Kello was disinclined to talk too much about his opponents, but accepted that Rangers' loss of Kenny Miller to Turkish champions Bursaspor could only be a boost for Hearts, just as the expected return of Kyle and Skacel should lift them.

"We only have to think about ourselves, because obviously we need to try to get victories. After that we can think about other teams at the end of the season," added Kello.

"But it is definitely better for us that Kenny Miller has gone. He has scored 21 goals, so it is a big loss for them and is better for us."

Rangers defender Madjid Bougherra, on the other hand, said that the club's Croatian international striker Nikica Jelavic, who has recently returned from a long-term injury, could fill the void left by Miller's departure.

"It's going to be difficult to find a player who can score as many goals, but I am very confident about Jelavic," Bougherra said. "I think he can arrive at 20 goals by the end of the season. We also have Kyle Lafferty and James Beattie but I think Jelavic is a goalscorer more than Beattie or Lafferty. He is clever - his movement is very clever.

"He is strong, so he can keep the ball. When he came here, he started to score goals quickly and he is very confident.

"Kenny is a very good player and he has scored many goals. He did a fantastic job.

"But Jelavic has come back and he is like a new signing. I'm very confident about him and I know he is going to do very well.

"He can score many goals. He is a different type of player from Kenny Miller but he can replace him."

Jelavic suffered ankle ligament damage the last time Rangers played at Tynecastle in early October, when they staged a late fightback to win 2-1, but Bougherra believes a return to the venue will hold no fears for the striker.

"He was injured four months ago on this pitch with this team, but I know he has a big motivation to score quickly," said Bougherra. "When I see him in training he is very hungry, to score, to play."