Elliot happy to get his ears bashed

Ian Black could be out of the squad for the game against the Buddies. The midfielder has broken bones in his hand and a late decision will be made over whether to risk him. Andrew Driver (thigh), David Obua (groin) and Lee Wallace (knee) remain on the sidelines. Calum Elliot is happy to be harangued in stereo as he believes the promptings of Hearts manager Jim Jefferies and strike partner Kevin Kyle are making him a better player. Elliot has scored four goals this season after forming a promising partnership with Kyle, who recently called for his team-mates to find their voice on the pitch to help each other through difficult games and cut out any problems instantly.

And Elliot believes he is learning from the former Sunderland striker, who scored the only goal last weekend as Hearts won at Aberdeen to set them up for home games against St Mirren and Kilmarnock. He said: "I've been doing better because the team has been doing well. It's good to play alongside Kevin, and the wingers have been supplying us as well. He wins his headers and you have to make sure you are there for the flick-ons, and put the ball in the back of the net. He's not exactly the shyest of guys. He will talk you through matches and if you make a mistake he will tell you to just get on with it. He has been good to play alongside and good to learn off. You can't have enough talkers on the pitch and Kevin is certainly a talker. If we're not getting results it's easy to say we are a quiet team. But, as long as we play the way we have been in recent weeks, I think we can do well.'' Jefferies has never been one to leave his feelings to himself and Elliot is happy for the manager to keep telling him where he is going wrong. The 23-year-old said: "He is always on at me on the pitch and I think that's probably a good thing because it keeps me on my toes and makes me do better. I feel as if we're doing better this season and long may it continue.''

St Mirren boss Danny Lennon is hoping to have Aaron Mooy in his squad for the game if he can finalise a financial agreement with Bolton. Goalkeeper Paul Gallacher is out after undergoing knee surgery while Steven Thomson (calf), David Barron (knee), Craig Dargo (knee) and Sean Lynch (knock) are still sidelined. Visiting defender John Potter believes "silly mistakes'' have left the Buddies propping up the table. Lennon refurbished the Saints squad when he took over as boss in the summer and his side began the season in decent form. However, that promising start soon gave way to the harsh reality of life in the SPL and the Paisley men picked up their first point in five weeks last Saturday in the 2-2 home draw against Hamilton. Potter said: "We are scoring goals and if we can tighten up at the back and stop leaking silly goals, we can start winning games. Everyone who has come to the club is learning quite quickly that silly mistakes are punished in the SPL. It might not be a silly mistake in front of your own goal, it might be a mistake further up the park and that leads to giving chances away. But we have found out this season if we give chances away, more often than not the ball is put in the back of the net. First goals in games are vital and in the run we have been on, we have been giving away first goals and sometimes two goals so if we can cut that out I'm positive that we can get results."