Hearts were impressive against Rangers despite coming up short in both boxes and therefore with the result.
One thing the perhaps missed was the bite and intensity of Cammy Devlin in midfield.
After suffering a concussion during the Scottish Cup penalties win over St Mirren, the Aussie was forced to sit out the clash against the Ibrox side.
Neil Critchley had hoped to have Devlin available but, as always with concussions, the protocols were followed and the club remained on the safe side.
The 26-year-old has been a key man this season and Critchley told how much he wanted to keep him at Hearts during the January transfer window.
That came after the manager fumed at an “unacceptable” leaking of information around a reported release clause in Devlin’s contract.
He remained at the Jambos beyond the winter window and it will be hoped he can soon take his place in the side again.
Neil Critchley gives Hearts Devlin latest
As with the Rangers game, Critchley is hopeful of having Devlin available to face St Johnstone on Sunday as they work through the concussions protocols.
The midfielder has taken part in some light training and still has some stages to go through to prove his readiness.
And while a top performer for the side under the Englishman’s charge, he may now face a battle to get back into the XI.
Critchley told the Edinburgh Evening News: “Everyone came through Sunday’s game fine. We are hopeful Cammy will be available for this weekend.
“He is just going through the concussion protocol but we are expecting him to be okay. We are hopeful he will be back in full training later in the week. He has been part-training. He has to go through the protocol doing exercises unopposed, then semi-opposed and then fully opposed.
“Cammy has been one of our top performers and he has been integral to how we want to play. We feed off of his energy on the pitch because of how he plays the game and so do the supporters.
“He has been a huge influence so you are going to miss somebody like that. I have to say the players who played against Rangers did themselves no harm at all, including the players who came off the bench, so Cammy has got a fight to get back in the team now.”
Dhanda’s hip injury
Yan Dhanda completely missed out on the Jambos squad for the games against St Mirren and Rangers, leaving fans wondering about the reasons.
But he has a hip flexor injury and will be given time to allow it to heal, with Critchley not expecting him to face St Johnstone.
“I don’t think Yan will make Sunday,” said Critchley. “His hip flexor is bothering him a little bit so we are giving it a chance to settle down.
“It’s not too serious. It won’t keep him out for a long period of time. We just need to manage it so he doesn’t come back and make it worse.”