Goals from Colin Nish and Mehdi Taouil were enough to give Kilmarnock only their second Clydesdale Bank Premier League win in 14 games as they held on to beat Hibernian at Rugby Park.

Nish headed a Jamie Hamill cross past Hibs keeper Yves Ma-Kalambay in the 35th minute then in the 75th minute he set up Taouil to volley home from around 10 yards out.

It seemed as if the Ayrshire side would cruise all the way to the final whistle but some hapless defending left the home fans in the 6,372 crowd praying for full-time.

Hibs' half-time substitute Dean Shiels, on for Patrick Noubissie, scored an 89th-minute penalty after he was brought down by Killie keeper Alan Combe but the home side held on through three minutes of added time for three welcome points.

A tepid first 45 minutes - a good goal aside - showed why both sides have struggled in recent months.

The odds favoured one of the teams taking all three points and it took only 30 seconds for Killie's Moroccan midfielder Taouil to test Ma-Kalambay with a left-footed drive from 14 yards out, the Hibs keeper saving at the expense of an unproductive corner.

Kilmarnock's early promise gave way to a more evenly-contested match which did little though to involve either Ma-Kalambay or Combe.

Midway through the first half a driving run from Hibs midfielder Merouane Zemmama took him 40 yards to the edge of the Killie box but the little Moroccan slipped just before getting his shot away and the danger was quickly over.

The next attempt at goal came from Zemmama on the half-hour mark when he turned smartly at the edge of the Kilmarnock penalty area but his shot was yards wide of the target.

But in the 35th minute, with a piece of play that was out of kilter with the rest of the first half, the home side took the lead through Nish.

Gary Wales sent the willing Hamill down the right with a smart pass and when the Killie defender's whipped-in cross came to the front post, Nish beat Hibs skipper Rob Jones to flick it past Ma-Kalambay, the ball tantalisingly striking both posts before rolling over the line.

Hibs brought on Shiels for the start of the second half and in the 47th minute the Irishman calmly set up Jones to blast his 25-yard drive over the junction of bar and post.

The sound of referee Mike McCurry's whistle, mostly for niggly fouls, continued to punctuate the play, but Nish almost grabbed a second when he beat the Easter Road side's offside trap wide on the left and took a David Fernandez pass.

The former Dunfermline striker's lack of pace forced him inside but he skipped past the back-tracking Jones and fired in a powerful drive from 20 yards which Ma-Kalambay did well to beat away.

The introduction of Shiels, however, had obviously fired up the visitors and he began to cause problems for Killie on both flanks as the Leith men went in search of the equaliser with some conviction.

But Killie were holding out and indeed Taouil even afforded himself a spectacular over-head attempt from the edge of the box which Ma-Kalambay stretched to grab low down at his right-hand post.

In the 74th minute, as the Leith revival began to wilt, the Rugby Park side grabbed a second through Taouil.

Nish twisted and turned on the left-hand side of the Hibs box before he flighted the ball over to the back post, where his team-mate volleyed home from around 10 yards out.

It should have been over but Kilmarnock almost let the visitors back into the game.

In the 89th minute Hibs pulled a goal back after Combe brought down Shiels inside the box when there appeared no real danger, the Irishman sending the Killie keeper the wrong way from the spot.

It set up a fraught last few minutes but the home side were rewarded with the three points they just about deserved.

Teams:

Kilmarnock Combe, Fowler, Ford, O'Leary, Hay, Taouil (Johnston 88), Bryson (Locke 83), Hamill, Wales, Nish,Fernandez (Koudou 86).

Subs Not Used: Harpur, Gibson, Clancy, Flannigan.

Goals: Nish 36, Taouil 75.

Hibernian Ma-Kalambay, McCann (Gathuessi 90), Jones, Hogg, Noubissie (Shiels 46), Zemmama (O'Brien 72), Kerr, Beuzelin, Stevenson, Donaldson, Chisholm.

Subs Not Used: McNeil, Morais, McCormack, Antoine-Curier.

Booked: Donaldson, Jones, Hogg.

Goals: Shiels 90 pen.

Att: 6,372

Ref: M McCurry (Scotland).