Kilmarnock 2 Hearts 2

May 2 2011 By David McCarthy

THREE games to go and we still don't know if the Edinburgh Tattoo will be taking to the European stage next season. And Ryan Stevenson isn't too happy about it.

The 26-year-old former Ayr United midfielder has seen enough of the grubber to enjoy the glitter of a Europa League campaign more than most and is doing his best to get Hearts over the finishing line.

His goals in their last two matches against Motherwell and Kilmarnock should have been enough but Hearts have thrown away leads in both games.

Their run of five straight draws means Dundee United still have a chance of catching them - particularly as the Jambos now face both halves of the Old Firm before heading to Tannadice on the last day of the season.

Now if Stevenson, whose body is covered in artwork, had space for another tattoo it might just be a big maroon bottle to replace the ones that are crashing all around him.

Hearts were second best for long spells at Rugby Park but somehow found themselves 2-1 up thanks to a fluke goal from Rudi Skacel - he pounced to net when David Templeton's strike took a wicked deflection off the turf before hitting the bar - and Stevenson's bullet header from a corner.

But a week after blowing a 3-0 lead at home to Motherwell, Jim Jefferies' men again failed to see the game out and conceded an 85th-minute equaliser from on-loan sub Kieron Agard to give Killie, who'd taken the lead with a James Fowler piledriver, a deserved share of the spoils.

Stevenson knows, though, it wasn't good enough from Hearts, who at one stage this season were 15 points clear in third.

The midfielder, who has notched six goals this term after being shunted into the forward line due to Kevin Kyle's injury, said: "We are making it hard for ourselves and now have a tough finish against the Old Firm and Dundee United - it doesn't get any harder than that.

"We are maybe looking for other teams to do us a favour now but we will go to Ibrox next and try to get a result that will take us over the finishing line.

"We are kicking ourselves because we have been in winning positions and have been letting it slip away. It's not as if we are getting beaten and losing 3-0 every week - we've been drawing and stumbling at the final hurdle.

"It's very frustrating and we just want to get over the line now.

"It hard to say if we switched off after having that 15-point lead but it looks that way. I don't think we did. Every side has a bad spell in a season and we've had ours at the wrong time.

"We haven't played as well as we did in the middle part of the season. We lost a lot of key players through injury and suspension but we feel as if we have a big enough squad to get us over the finishing line.

"It makes for an exciting end to the season although we don't want to be going to Tannadice on the last day needing a result as that would be squeaky bum time.

"I've been in the play-offs with Ayr, which were one-off games, but to be playing for third spot with a European game up for grabs would be the biggest game of my career. But it's still a scenario I'd rather avoid."

Hearts didn't play poorly in Ayrshire but Kilmarnock were the team with the invention and guile.

Much of it was provided, as ever, by Alexei Eremenko and his volleyed backheel flick that led to Agard's equaliser was special but the Finn tends to take on too much. He was also booked for diving, not for the first time, but what a talent.

David Da Silva, operating wide left for Killie, was also a constant threat and when interim manager Kenny Shiels brought on James Dayton and Agard late on the home side looked really potent.

Shiels is still waiting for his first win since taking over from Mixu Paatelainen and there are vultures circling in the hope he doesn't get the job.

Ex-Hearts boss Csaba Laszlo was in the stand on Saturday and has already declared an interest in the position but if chairman Michael Johnston looks beyond the three draws and two defeats his team has suffered, he will see that Shiels has Kilmarnock playing attractive football that will get them more good results than bad ones over time.

The caretaker boss said: "We thoroughly deserved to win. I don't think anyone can argue with that.

"We played with expression, imagination, invention and we dominated the ball, especially in the second half. We got our defenders forward more and it was like the Alamo at times but all of a sudden we were 2-1 down.

"The first goal was a wicked deflection and we lost another from a corner, which I wasn't happy about.

"We've been hard done by but there was plenty of incident, action and excitement."

Hearts boss Jim Jefferies, who was forced to play midfielders Ruben Palazuelos and Eggert Jonsson at the back as well as Stevenson out of position, said: "We have given two goals away and that's something that didn't happen in the first half of the season when we were very resilient. All the upset and chopping and changing is maybe having an effect.

"We are probably going to do it the hard way now, against teams we are not expected to do it against, Rangers and Celtic."

Player ratings: Kilmarnock v Hearts

May 2 2011

KILMARNOCK

Cammy Bell 6

Fine save from Black but caught out at first goal.

Jamie Hamill 6

Gritty as ever, didn't give visiting wide men much joy.

Momo Sissoko 6

Couple of petty spats but defended reasonably well.

Manuel Pascali 6

Dodgy start but improved as the game wore on.

Tim Clancy 6

Performed solidly enough at left back.

Craig Bryson 6

Didn't influence the game but wasn't a failure.

James Fowler 7

Patrolled in front of back four but got forward for a terrific strike that gave his team the lead.

Liam Kelly 7

Got through a power of work in midfield.

Alexei Eremenko 7

Pulled all the strings. Great work for equaliser.

David Silva 8

Lively display and showed real quality in spells.

Willy Aubameyang 6

Decent touch and link play but tired after the break.

Subs: Kieran Agard - fabulous equaliser, 7. James Dayton - nearly scored with a free-kick, 6.

HEARTS

Jamie MacDonald 7

Wonder save from Eremenko but no chance at goals.

Craig Thomson 7

Great delivery at corner for Stevenson's headed goal.

Marius Zaliukas 5

Unusually unsure of himself and didn't dominate.

Eggert Jonsson 6

Ability to play well in number of positions shown again.

David Templeton 6

Couple of good runs. Deflected shot led to freak goal.

Adrian Mrowiec 5

Didn't really succeed in attempts to halt Eremenko.

Ruben Palazuelos 7

Did fine in a defending and attacking sense.

Ian Black 6

Offered little constructively after an early shot.

Rudi Skacel 6

Scored the leveller but too inconsistent.

Ryan Stevenson 7

Put in a good shift and scored with fine header.

Stephen Elliott 6

Not involved often enough but some neat touches.

Subs: Andy Driver - didn't do much, 3.

Ryan McGowan - got last 10 minutes, 3. Gary Glen - injury-time sub, 1.

MEN WHO MATTER

KENNY SHIELS

Set his team out to entertain and made his subs count as Dayton and Agard made a real difference and earned a well deserved equaliser.Defence not brilliant but middle to front they played some good stuff. 7

JIM JEFFERIES

Had to play Jonsson, Palazeulos and Stevenson out of position but they ground out a point and it could have been three. His team have gone off the boil but remain hard tobeat. 6

VERDICT

Strange game started well, faded badly then ended with a bang as both teams had chances to win before settling for a draw that was a little harsh on Killie who played the more entertaining football.

MAN IN BLACK

Euan Norris kept a lid on what was a fiesty encounter in the first half and dished out a total of eight yellow cards. 6

Taken from the Daily Record