HIBS manager, Paul Heckingbottom, admitted he was infuriated to see his side let a two-goal lead slip to draw 2-2 with Ross County at Easter Road.

Hibs have not been comfortable front-runners this season, and so it proved once again.

The first 45 minutes of this clash was as cagey as one may have expected, with Hibs being winless in the Premiership since the opening day of the season, and Ross County coming off the back of a 6-0 hammering by Celtic last weekend.

Heckingbottom, who was confined to the stands as a result of his touchline ban, made three changes to the side that drew with Hamilton last weekend with Jason Naismith, Scott Allan and Flo Kamberi all returning to the starting line-up, while Ross County made four changes to the team that lined-up at Celtic Park, with Billy McKay, Ewan Henderson, Lewis Spence and Sean Kelly coming in.

Hibs had the better of the chances in the first 45 minutes, with Melker Hallberg hitting the bar in the opening five minutes, Jason Naismith and Flo Kamberi missing decent chances and Josh Vela being denied by a great block by County right back, Keith Watson.

However, with the home side lacking in any real firepower, and the highlanders also leaving something to be desired as an attacking threat, the sides went in at half-time goalless.

The second half did not take long to come alive though, with Hibs substitute Daryl Horgan making an almost immediate impact, racing away from the County defence onto a ball over the top by Naismith to blast it past Ross County keeper, Ross Laidlaw, and put Hibs in the driving seat.

Heckingbottom’s men are not brimming with confidence these days though, so it must have been a considerable relief for the home crowd to see Allan double their lead just a few minutes later, with the midfielder finding the bottom corner with a delightful right-foot shot.

Ross County made sure the Hibs’ fans nerves were jangling for the last quarter of an hour after former Hibee Brian Graham found the net from the edge of the box and from there, Hibs looked incredibly fragile. And, with mere seconds left on the clock, Joe Chalmers rescued a point for County with a low shot into the corner from 20 yards.

The full-time whistle was met with a chorus of boos by the home crowd, with the draw leaving Hibs languishing in eleventh place in the league. Heckingbottom, who admitted he felt somewhat helpless watching from the stand, admitted his side have only themselves to blame for this run of results.

"I’ve had frustrations at decisions that have cost us before but that was just us," he said.

“We’re two up and their first goal changes it, then when it goes to 2-2 suddenly it’s us with the energy again. For me that shows it’s a metal approach to the game that costs us. It was a kick in the teeth and we can't look at anyone other than ourselves."

The Hibs players are severely lacking confidence at the moment but there is no quick fix to that.

" It's the magic question," said Heckingbottom, when asked how to renew the players' confidence.

"Wins is the way but if that was easy to do, we’d all be doing it, dealing with the anxiety. I've told the players and the staff the only way to change it is to win."

Ross County manager Steve Ferguson was delighted with his side’s comeback and admitted the draw felt like a win, with the result even more important coming off the back of his side’s thumping by Celtic.

“It would have been easy for our players to feel sorry for themselves after not only last week but also going two goals down,” he said.

“It feels more like three points and the players deserve a lot of credit.”

Ferguson was particularly pleased to see his players score from long range, which is something he and co-manager Stuart Kettlewell have been encouraging them to attempt.

“We felt we would get a chance but it’s not just about that – it’s about taking it. It was great to see Joe (Chalmers) take the shot on," Ferguson said.

“We say to them they need to shoot more so to see Joe step onto it and hit it like that was great. Maybe they’ll listen to us now!”

With County hosting Rangers on Wednesday, there will be no respite and Ferguson is looking for a better showing from his players than he saw against Celtic.

“We’ve seen how Rangers are domestically this season and they are more than capable of doing what Celtic did,” he said.

“Nobody expected us to win (against Celtic) but for us the disappointment was how passive we were. Celtic even beat us on fouls and that should NEVER happen!”