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Hearts assistant coach John McGlynn last night called upon the quartet of players who scored in a 5-0 win over Falkirk reserves in Stirling yesterday afternoon to keep up the momentum behind their performances, and in doing so force the hand of boss Graham Rix.

John, who will continue to look after the reserves despite his most recent promotion, hailed the performance of his side who simply swept the Bairns away. Deividas Cesnauskis scored two goals, while Michal Pospisil, Graham Weir and Hjalmar Thorarinsson bagged the others.

Roman Bednar also came through 45 minutes of action unscathed and looks to be in a strong position to feature against Livingston at Tynecastle on Saturday.

The most notable face amongst the starting eleven, however, was Graham Weir, who was featuring for the first time since he broke his ankle against St Patrick's Athletic in Dublin on July 10th.

"It was great to have both players back," John told Hearts News last night when asked about the Bednar-Weir partnership.

"I am pleased about the fact that Graham took his goal well and contributed a lot to the game, as well as showing us his usual effort, commitment and endeavour. He also showed quality which was there to be seen. I am delighted for him to get back in."

Graham Weir might be particularly pleased with that endorsement when you consider that first team coach Graham Rix and another one of his supporting cast Valdas Ivanauskas were watching on from the stands. That said, the diminutive striker who will forever be remembered for his double salvo against the Hibs in the 4-4 game, will have a tough time to get back into the first team.

John explained: "It was unfortunate for Graham in that he got injured and then Bednar, Jankauskas and Pospisil came in. Then Calum Elliot probably went ahead of him, too. He's gone down the pecking order, but if he can get two or three performances in the reserves then he'll have a chance of catching the coach's eye."

Another who performed well was Michal Pospisil. Although the Czech striker was left out of the squad to face Motherwell after a disappointing showing against Aberdeen, John was quick to reinforce that Michal can force his way back into the side.

"If the coach thinks that Michal played well today - he did score a goal and he worked hard, but there were parts to work on - then he will have a chance of coming back into things. He is not one to hold a grudge," he explained.

"Hopefully the manager can find the time to watch the games and see how the players perform. He is the type of guy who will want to see that. He is keen to see players who are not in the first team - both the fringe players and the youth players."

Another player who has not featured for the first team this season is Icelandic hitman Hjalmar Thorarinsson. "He did not start the season very well," John reflected. "He lost a lot of confidence during the tour of Ireland. He just did not do well.

"The manager at the time [George Burley] felt he was a good bit away, but he is slowly regaining his confidence and hopefully, maybe sometime in the future he might be able to get back into the first team.

"People have to make an impression on a new manager. If you do badly the door is not shut in your face, you always have an opportunity."

Meanwhile John McGlynn also confirmed that the presence of the players at Riccarton on Sunday was not an indication that they were being punished by Graham Rix for their performance against Motherwell.

The assistant boss explained: "Graham thinks that a recovery session on a Sunday morning is the best thing. As a result the first team are off on a Monday, but the reserve team are in on a Monday because it is the day before there game.

"On a Sunday the players all have a massage. We do some conditioning work such as a slow jog or walk. The Sunday before that we went to the David Lloyd Centre and worked on the bikes or in the pool. It is a recovery session which is supervised by the sports science people."

This new routine, coupled with his responsibilities with the reserves means that John McGlynn currently works seven days a week. When Hearts News asked him if he was feeling the effects he laughed off the idea as if it was ridiculous. "Graham has been very good to work with, and so I love it," he smiled. "But like everything else we know it is a results business."