Scottish Football: McLeish eager to follow the Hearts example as he tries to improve Motherwell's fortunes

The Motherwell manager, Alex McLeish, recognises that Heart of Midlothian are the example his own club must follow - but is still determined to upset their title momentum at Tynecastle today.

McLeish cites the building of a formidable squad by the Hearts manager, Jim Jefferies, as the crucial factor to the Edinburgh club's impressive rise, and is anxious to emulate that at Fir Park, where consistency remains a problem. Motherwell are yet to win at home in the Bell's Scottish League this season, and McLeish admits his team are finding life easier on their travels.

A win at Celtic and a hard-fought draw at Hibernian are both a testament to that, and McLeish is confident of causing an upset at Hearts, who are aiming to lift themselves four points clear at the top of the Premier Division.

"Our recent run started in that game against Celtic and since then our approach has been more focused and positive," McLeish said. "I think a lot of our younger players grew in stature after that game and now they have got to develop the right level of consistency."

Celtic face Kilmarnock at Rugby Park keen to build on only their second domestic trophy this decade, after lifting the Coca-Cola Cup last Sunday with a convincing 3-0 win against Dundee United at Ibrox.

The Kilmarnock manager, Bobby Williamson, believes the much-improved form of the former Chelsea man Pat Nevin could be a crucial factor. "Pat has done really well for us lately including three goals in the last two games," he said.

The Dundee United manager, Tommy McLean, has resolved to forget last week's flat Coca-Cola Cup performance and return to winning ways at home to Dunfermline.

"Nobody at Tannadice can deny that the last couple of weeks have been a big let-down for the club," McLean said. "But we have got to pick ourselves up from that and react in the proper manner. The best way for us to prepare for Tuesday's clash with Hearts is to get a good performance and result against Dunfermline.

Elsewhere, the bottom club, Aberdeen, have encouraged supporters to arrive early for the home meeting with St Johnstone because they are anticipating a higher crowd than usual to welcome their new manager, Alex Miller.

Tomorrow's televised fixture sees Rangers take on Hibernian at Ibrox without their England midfielder, Paul Gascoigne, who begins a four-match suspension.