Kilmarnock and Hearts serve up raging inferno in the rain - with Nathaniel Atkinson's last-minute fireball saving Jambos' bacon

Three goals in a quarter-of-an-hour threw fuel on this game between Kilmarnock and Hearts at Rugby Park that was already well alight – and not even the torrential rain that fell could extinguish it as both teams went full out in search of a win.

In the end, a fourth and final goal, deep into time added on, meant that they both had to settle for a point in a 2-2 draw. Although this must have felt more like defeat for Kilmarnock, who had been eyeing up their first back to back wins’ since they last faced Hearts, in League Cup duty, in August.

It took the hosts until the second half to break the deadlock, but then the floodgates opened as play ebbed and flowed in relentless fashion.

All-action, it was hardly the match Hearts will have wanted, sandwiched as it was between Thursday’s bruising defeat to Fiorentina and this week’s return trip to Florence.

Nathaniel Atkinson scored in stoppage time to earn Hearts a point at Rugby Park.

A win could have seen it serve as a psychological tonic, but in the end even the draw, coming so late in proceedings, will have lifted spirits and demonstrated the character of the players, who have admitted that they failed to deliver in their last couple of outings.

But even a point looked like it might be beyond them as the game charged to its climax.

That was partially due to Kilmarnock’s attitude and performance, but there were also moments of self-harm, from Barrie McKay’s missed opportunity in the opening few minutes by ballooning the ball over a largely open goal as Hearts took the game to their hosts, to Craig Gordon’s slip that allowed Kyle Lafferty to plunder the ball from his feet in the 59th minute and slot away the goal that ultimately gave the capital side too much to do as they tried to fightback.

By that stage, Derek McInnes’ men were already a goal to the good. A tight first half, where Hearts narrowly edged the possession stats and the home side carved out an extra couple of shots as play raged from one end to the other in an open contest, Killie made a decisive move just two minutes after the interval.

Craig Gordon looks dejected after the Hearts goalkeeper was dispossessed by Kilmarnock's Kyle Lafferty.

A 47th-minute corner was delivered into the danger area by Dan Armstrong and after a bit of a frenzied stramash, Chris Stokes was the man who managed to force it over the goalline.

It may have been scrappy, but it proved more effective than several neater opportunities that had been passed up by both teams.

Kilmarnock did not have long to wait for the second goal, which arrived in the 59th minute.

Lafferty did well to press up on the Scotland goalkeeper, who slipped on the greasy artificial surface. He then slotted into the empty net.

Stephen Humphrys got Hearts back into it.

Had they taken the chance to simply consolidate their position, the result may have been different, but Hearts were in no mood to simply swallow their medicine and immediately came back at them.

The started the comeback in the 62nd minute, when Robert Snodgrass played a long ball over for Stephen Humphrys to run on to and he rounded goalkeeper Zach Hemming and calmly buried an angled finish.

Reducing the deficit gave Hearts the impetus to keep going and with second remaining of time added on, the ball dropped for Nathaniel Atkinson and the right-back sent an unstoppable left foot volley into the corner of the net.