Hearts "aren't too far off" competing with Celtic and Rangers, according to Kye Rowles.

The Australian defender reckons the Edinburgh giants are getting closer in terms of reducing the gap between the Glasgow pair and themselves.

Rangers are currently 22 points ahead of the Jambos in the Premiership table, while Celtic are a shopping 31.

Robbie Neilson's side are aiming to finish third for a second consecutive season. They will also be aiming to qualify for European football next season.

Hibs are hot on their tails, though, with Lee Johnson's men hitting a decent patch of form. The Easter Road outfit are only five points behind their Edinburgh rivals.

However, while Rowles is under no illusions over how tough an ask it will be, the centre-back reckons Hearts should be looking above their current station moving forwards.

He told Edinburgh Evening News: “That gap is still there. We don’t just want to come third every year. You want to challenge the top two so the first step towards that is competing against them when we play them.

READ MORE: Why Hibs vs Rangers won't be shown live on Sky Sports

"Not only that, we have to turn into a team like them. Home or away, against every other team in the league, they get the job done.

“If we have a bad game but still win like we did during December and January, that’s the level we need to get to. If you get results game in and game out, then we start turning into a team that others will sit back against.

"They won’t come out thinking: ‘Yeah, we can get something.’ Once we get to that level that’s when the gap will start closing. We aren’t too far off it. Our consistency has been good for extended periods this year so hopefully we can keep building on that.”

Rowles will come up against his Australian teammate Aaron Mooy tonight.

He added: "Aaron will leave it and see us after the game. If we get close enough on a set piece, he might have a cheeky little dig. I haven’t heard from him yet but I’m sure we’ll get a good chat tonight."