With one win and two losses from their opening three games, it may not look on paper as if Partick Thistle have much reason to be pleased with the start to their league season.

Those two defeats though came in narrow losses to Aberdeen at Pittodrie and Hearts at Firhill - matches where the Jags could easily have taken at least a point on the balance of play and chances created.

That’s why Thistle’s assistant manager Scott Paterson has declared himself satisfied with the opening weeks of the new campaign as he prepares to enjoy the international break.

“We got the win against Inverness, which we felt would be important when we looked at our next set of fixtures,” Paterson said.

“We then had Celtic taking the day off, then we went to Aberdeen and created a lot of decent chances.

“Had we taken some of those then it might have been a different game completely, but there were so many positives to take from that game.

“Looking at the Hearts game as well, I think we created a lot of chances in that game too and I don’t think there was too much between the teams if I’m being honest with you.

“I thought we caused Hearts problems, particularly in the first-half. They are a good team and they will be up there at the end of the season, there’s no question about that.

“There wasn’t too much between the two teams though. They’ve got a lot of good players and they are a threat at set-plays as you saw on Saturday, but it was fine margins that cost us taking anything from the game.

“A last minute goal, a little ricochet that takes the ball past Tomas Cerny, these little things cost us on Saturday but we’re definitely in a positive frame of mind.

“When you do go into these international breaks it is important usually to be on the back of a positive result. Alright, we didn’t get that this time, but the performances have been very positive.

“We certainly take heart from that, I think the players have and hopefully the fans have as well.

“We’ll get over this break now, and our next three games are decent. They’ll be hard games, but Hearts and Aberdeen will be up near the top of the table you would imagine.

“So there are many positives to take from the 90 minutes we’ve just played, and we’ve told the players to just keep believing in how they are playing and in what we’re trying to do, and I think the results will come.”

Despite being pleased with the way the team is performing, Paterson admitted that in an ideal world he would still like to see two new faces join the Thistle squad – one in defence and one in midfield.

“I think it would be good to add a couple more, and hopefully that will happen before the window closes,” he said.

“If it doesn’t happen though then it doesn’t, and we’ll just have to get on with what we’ve got.

“Obviously the long-term injuries to Stuart Bannigan and Mustapha Dumbuya have been a bit of a pain, but we’ve got Gary Fraser back running now and we just have to get on with it.

“If we can add the right type of player to the squad though then we’ll certainly try to do it.

“The break gives the guys who are carrying little niggles a rest as well. The likes of Callum Booth and Abdul Osman have been through surgery, and they’ve played a lot of football in a short space of time.

“These breaks can be a blessing in disguise in that regard, and hopefully the players will put it to good use.

“We’re just waiting for the right option. We’ve had a few in on trial but nothing concrete has come from that so far, so we’ll keep looking.”