Joel Pereira says 'sorry' to Hearts team-mates after 3-2 defeat by Kilmarnock

Joel Pereira apologised to his Hearts team-mates in the dressing room following the 3-2 defeat by Kilmarnock at Tynecastle Park.

The Portuguese took responsibility for the decisive goal in the game, which Eamonn Brophy scored to put the visitors 3-0 ahead five minutes after half-time.

Sean Clare's penalty and Craig Halkett's goal encouraged hopes of a late Hearts comeback but time ran out on the hosts.

Stuart Findlay and Chris Burke put Kilmarnock 2-0 ahead at the interval. Pereira - who has now lost six goals in his last two outings - said sorry after Brophy's left-footed finish appeared to go through him past his trailing arm in a moment which proved critical to the final outcome.

"Joel apologised in the changing room but it was not his fault that we lost the game," explained the Hearts manager Daniel Stendel. "We know that he can save this ball but as a team we must do better in a lot of situations.

"Situations like that can happen. It is disappointing we came from half-time with motivation and conceded a goal like that. It is hard for me to explain what happened tonight. To concede three goals against Kilmarnock is not what we expected."

Stendel also bemoaned some poor defending from his side on a costly night which returned them to the foot of the Ladbrokes Premiership.

"All we expected from Kilmarnock was in the game - set-pieces, long balls to [Nicke] Kabamba," said the German. "The preparation was good but the defending was not so good. We started the game with good situations up front, we controlled the game, we won second balls and a lot of things were really good.

"After 1-0, it was not so easy for us. We do not score in the right moments when we have the chance and also it is too easy to score goals against us at the moment. The second goal [by Burke] is only a long ball and we did not defend this. It's a little bit too easy and really disappointing.

"At half-time, we talked about our ideas for the second half and what we could do to come back in the game and change the result. Then we are 3-0 down and the game is normally decided.

"It was a crazy game after this and maybe for the supporters it was intensive. For me, it was not how we want to play. After the penalty we had a chance to come back. There was not much time, we had some situations but it was not enough to get points. It is very disappointing for us and the fans."

The Kilmarnock goalkeeper Laurentiu Branescu also apologised to his colleagues for a red card in the aftermath of Clare's goal. He knocked the ball away and received a second caution, reducing his team to ten men.

"He stood up and apologised and that's all we ask," said the visiting manager, Alex Dyer. "The lads gave him a round of applause and we move on. That's football, that's life."