For a team who could not, in the vernacular, buy a league goal, it was appropriate that Dunfermline had to profit from their opponents selling one to notch their first SPL score in more than 14 hours.

It was a hard-won point but one that was cancelled out by St Mirren's result in Edinburgh. The East End Park side are still trembling on the trapdoor, eight points behind the Love Street men and with a game more played.

An undeniable penalty resulting from a fit of fevered madness did it, neatly tucked away by Stevie Crawford.

But the home side could and should have won against 10-man opposition if Scott Wilson had not managed to fire past after a cut-back from Crawford in an almost unmissable position.

But although Killie played for a little more than half the game after Simon Ford was sent off for his role in conceding the penalty, Dunfermline fashioned few chances. They were too reliant on high balls into the box and nerves were evident given the nature of their finishing, although their application was not at fault.

Kilmarnock's apparent over-confidence after their early score nearly finished them and only a half-time dressing down - a "kick-up the backside", as goalkeeper Alan Combe put it - brought them back to order, necessary, given their depleted state.

Predictably enough the Pars went behind but after more than 854 minutes of trying they finally managed to hit the net, albeit through the penalty caused by suicidal Kilmarnock defending.

Crawford tucked the kick away smartly, but the award really was a gift bestowed by defender Ford. He is a gifted player but has a tendency to believe it and, under no pressure whatever, he decided to dribble out of defence, rather than lump it forward. He turned into Adam Hamill who easily dispossessed him and ran in on goal and the defender's despairing lunge led to the award and his justified dismissal.

Hamill, the Liverpool loanee and England Under-19 midweek scorer, was the pick for Dunfermline. He's quick, tricky, with two feet and a Cristiano Ronaldo stepover. And he clearly doesn't lack self-confidence.

"Wee Adam asked for the ball off me at the penalty,"said Crawford, "but no chance". Hamill might have scored, too, but for a remarkable save from Combe, the goalkeeper admitted was "not bad". He was being harsh on himself, and but for him Killie would have left pointless.

The second half promised to be mighty difficult for the visitors. However they defended deep and adroitly. By then Kilmarnock had been ahead and should have been cruising, Steven Naismith scoring his sixth goal in four games, aided by defensive ineptitude.

The young forward had just missed an easier chance - hitting the goalkeeper after a cute through ball from Colin Nish - but 30 seconds later he made up for it. Rocco Quinn hefted in a long ball which seemed to mesmerise the central defenders, Naismith bullied Phil McGuire, cracked the ball on the half-volley from just inside the box and it skipped home.

But rather than capitalise Killie became sloppy and de-motivated until the penalty and half-time rollicking.

The second half followed a predictable course, the hosts attacking constantly and fruitlessly, Kilmarnock swatting away the surges. Nish, the ungainly in pursuit of the unlikely, might have scored and pinched all three points, but for a Dorus de Vries block. It would have been unjustified.

The traditional Pars pre-match howff is the East Port, which has framed jerseys, rosettes and signed photographs dotting the walls, testimony to the past small glories of the club. There are programmes too, of stirring historical events, like games against Borussia Dortmund, Newcastle and Dukla Prague, although a cynic might put it that the way the team have been going it will be Dukla Pumpherston next term.

A dwindling band of black-and-white fans now peel out from there and tramp the half-mile to East End Park, burdened by a lack of expectations and the crowd was derisory.

It's too early to say if the shoots of recovery are edging through at East End Park but at least one abysmal record has been obliterated.

The other positive is that they have uncovered two incisive wide players - James O'Brien also had a fine game - and with better delivery, and sharper strikers, they will even score in open play.