Ruby Mace equalised with the last kick of the game to rescue a point for Birmingham and deny fellow strugglers West Ham a crucial Barclays FA Women’s Super League victory.

The Hammers looked set for just their third league win of the campaign going into injury time but Mace’s tap-in ensured the shares were spoiled in Dagenham.

The point was enough to lift the hosts off the bottom of the table above Bristol City on goal difference, while Blues remain three points clear of danger.

Birmingham took the lead with the first chance of the game on eight minutes when West Ham failed to clear a short corner and Emily Murphy drove a shot into the net from close range.

Ruesha Littlejohn went close moments later, skimming the crossbar with a dipping shot from 20 yards out as the visitors looked to double their advantage.

West Ham almost equalised on 15 minutes as Kate Longhurst struck a fierce first-time volley just wide from long range.

In the closing seconds of the first half, Jamie-Lee Napier raced on to a loose ball but saw her first-time shot fly into the side netting.

West Ham were back on level terms immediately after half time when Gilly Flaherty’s long ball forward was spilled by Hannah Hampton into the path of Emily van Egmond, who tapped in the equaliser from six yards.

Martha Thomas nearly added a second for the Hammers on 55 minutes as she sprung the offside trap and almost caught Hampton out with an early shot only for the goalkeeper to recover before the ball rolled over the line.

Thomas flashed another shot just past the post moments later after working an opening from a tight angle and the hosts’ pressure paid off when Katerina Svitkova fired them into the lead on 72 minutes.

Van Egmond was the creator on this occasion, playing in the winger, who drilled a low shot in off the post from 10 yards.

There was still time for a further twist, however, and it came in the dying moments as Birmingham broke down the right wing and a deep cross fell to Mace, who tapped in a dramatic leveller.

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West Ham manager Olli Harder said: "There were patches in the first half that were decent. We responded well in second half, obviously, scoring a goal, and the second one was excellent.

“They got one right at the end and if that's the other way round we'd be celebrating like this – that's why you play football.

"You've got to play right to the end, we played 94 (minutes) today when we needed to play 95. But it's a big point for us in terms of the bigger picture and it's important for us to keep getting points.

"We started really well but conceding an early goal again shakes you in your boots. It's a psychological hump we have to get over. The only positive to take out of the first half is that we stayed in the game and not make it's something that's unreachable.

“The reaction in the second half is what you want as a manager but unfortunately we couldn't hang on to the end."

Birmingham manager Carla Ward said: “The late goal is a huge moment in our season. It was important not to lose the game and for Ruby to put that in the back of the net at that moment, I'm honestly delighted. We showed real character at the end.

"Our message was to relax, be patient and it would come but it was almost frantic, so we wanted them to just relax and get back to playing the way we wanted to play.

“I felt after that we settled a little bit. In the last five minutes, we threw the kitchen sink at them and got the goal that on the balance of 90 minutes was a fair point.

"Hannah's save one-on-one (from Martha Thomas) was game changing, it was huge. Hannah Hampton has that in her locker and she's made sure we stayed in the game, so credit to her. She's a young keeper and learning every day."

West Ham (4-3-2-1): Courtney Brosnan, Laura Vetterlein, Gilly Flaherty, Grace Fisk, Katerina Svitkova, Dagny Brynjarsdottir, Kate Longhurst, Kenza Dali, Cecilie Redisch, Emily van Egmond, Martha Thomas
Substitutes: Maz Pacheco for Dali 89, Hawa Cissoko 90
Substitutes not used: Emily Ramsey, Nor Mustafa, Maisy Baker, Anouk Denton
Goals: van Egmond 46, Svitkova 72
Bookings: Flaherty 13
Birmingham (4-1-4-1): Hannah Hampton, Sarah Mayling, Ruby Mace, Christie Murray, Ruesha Littlejohn, Georgia Brougham, Claudia Walker, Lucy Whipp, Jamie-Lee Napier, Rebecca Holloway, Emily Murphy
Substitutes: Mollie Green for Napier 62, Gemma Lawley for Whipp 78
Substitutes not used: Sophie Whitehouse, Chloe McCarron, Emma Kelly
Goals: Murphy 8, Mace 90
Bookings: Whipp 27
Referee: Stacey Pearson