Jordan McMillan had just been through a torrid afternoon.

The Jags defender was just one of many who had been dazed by the trickery and guile of Kilmarnock's Alexei Eremenko.

The Russian-born playmaker was a class above everyone else on the pitch, spinning and flicking, dropping the shoulder and bamboozling the Thistle players with an array of clever passes in a 3-0 victory.

For a brief period towards the end of the first half, though, the Jags had the home side under pressure.

Kris Doolan missed a good chance close in, and had he converted the end result might have been different.

But Kilmarnock found an extra couple of gears in the second half and accelerated away with two quick goals.

McMillan offered up no excuses. "Too many boys were off it in the starting XI," the full-back said.

"Personally and collectively as a team we weren't good enough. It was just an acceptance, really, and we let Kilmarnock get the goals.

"But we weren't too upbeat when we beat Inverness and Ross County, and we won't be too downbeat about this result.

"It's early in the season and we know where we want to be. We weren't good enough this time, but we will get where we want to be I'm sure.

"We've not been consistent enough. That is important in this league. You can see where Kilmarnock are, that's them broken into the top six after this win. We would like to be doing that and the consistency part is the most important, whether you are home or away.

"We just can't seem to get that just now, but I'm pretty sure it will come with the players we've got."

This was Thistle's third match in seven days, and their midweek League Cup win over St Mirren went the distance.

The teams were level at the end of normal time, before a Nathan Eccleston strike settled matters in the Jags' favour.

After 120 minutes of gruelling action, and then being asked to play on the energy-sapping artificial surface of Rugby Park, Alan Archibald said that too many of his players were feeling sorry for themselves.

It was put to McMillan, who said: "It could be. Personally, I'm not that type. It was the same for Kilmarnock.

"They had a cup game as well, it was just that ours went into extra-time. We are fit players, we are football players and that's what we are paid to do, so I would hope that wasn't the case.

"But, going on this performance, the gaffer has probably felt that was the case and he's right to say that us."

He dismissed the suggestion, though, that the artificial surface might have swung things in the home side's favour.

"The pitch was okay," he said. "It's the same for both sides, isn't it? They are training here and playing more on it so they will adapt to it a wee bit better than we did.

"But the are no excuses. We trained on [an artificial pitch] for a few days up the road just to get used to it so there are no excuses."