Abject defending cost Kilmarnock dearly as a 3-2 defeat at Hearts sent them into the relegation play-off spot.
The away side had a helping hand in all three Hearts goals, who jumped above their opponents in the process.
While Elton Kabangu’s seventh minute opener had a touch of fortune to it the Belgian striker was still left unmarked to open the scoring.
Hearts passed up some decent chances to add to their lead but Killie answered back early in the second half when Bobby Wales fired home at the front post.
But just 10 minutes later the hosts were 3-1 to the good as Jamie McCart was left unmarked to head home from a corner before Jorge Grant inexplicably beat Kieran O’Hara in the air to double the lead.
Fraser Murray cut the deficit in half with a fine headed finish at the back post while Craig Gordon produced a sensational late save to deny David Watson late on to keep the points in Edinburgh.
Derek McInnes handed a debut to loan signing Calvin Ramsay with O’Hara being recalled to the starting line-up in goal following Robby McCrorie’s fractured cheekbone last week against Celtic.
A youthful looking bench for the visitors included Aidan Glavin, Aaron Brown, Ethan Brown and Ben Brannan – a total of a single first team appearance for the quartet.
Kilmarnock started brightly and were first to every loose ball, but it was Hearts who opened the scoring in fortuitous circumstances on seven minutes. Grant’s attempted volley was mishit into the path of James Wilson. He fired back across goal with the ball falling kindly to Kabangu to tap home his first league goal for the Jambos.
That strike settled the hosts who took control of proceedings, although they were unable to further threaten O’Hara despite working themselves into some decent attacking opportunities.
Wilson blazing over the bar from a Blair Spittal cutback and then seeing a later effort blocked by Robbie Deas was the closest they came despite creating plenty of pressure. When they did have the ball in the net just after the half hour mark, McCart’s header was flagged for offside.
At the other end,Gordon was alert to deny Wales as the striker nodded a Corrie Ndaba cross on goal searching for a leveller but Killie often looked disjointed both on and off the ball during the first half.
Killie were in desperate need of a regroup at half-time. And it provided the change in momentum desperately needed as they bagged an equaliser within five minutes. The Watkins-Wales partnership up front offered little in the opening 45 minutes but provided the leveller as the 34-year-old Watkins fired a cross in from the right that Wales duly tucked away at the front post.
Unfortunately for Killie, that did little to alter the pattern of the contest as Hearts continued to look the more threatening – and a quickfire double either side of the hour mark swung the game back in their favour with the away side providing more than a little helping hand.
A corner needlessly given away allowed James Penrice to float in a delivery that found the somehow unmarked McCart to head home on 58 minutes with Grant proceeding to outjump the keeper three minutes later to turn a blocked cross into the net.
Hearts have rarely made things easy on themselves this term, though, and they allowed the Ayrshire men a glimmer of hope midway through the half when Danny Armstrong’s deep cross to the back post was nodded beyond Gordon by Muray for his first goal of the season.
The back and forth nature of the second half continued as Musa Drammeh looked well placed to make it 4-2 as he raced through on goal, only to see his effort clip the outside of the woodwork while Gordon was alert to palm away a whipped Armstrong free-kick that he looked to sneak into the near post.
The Scotland keeper showed his class in the latter stages when Watson’s sweeping strike looked destined to nestle in the far corner, only for the 42-year-old to dive low to his right at full stretch and tip it wide to keep the points in Edinburgh and send the visitors into the relegation play-off spot.
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