Hippo135

AN UNOFFICIAL KILLIE FANZINE

ISSUE NO. 135

EREMENKO, MENKO MENKO... ...WANTED - KILLIE IRON MAN ...WE WANT OUR CLUB BACK ...HAVE A KILLIE HEART £2.00

THE KILLIE HIPPO IS ON SALE AT HOWARD ARMS, GLENCAIRN SQUARE, KILMARNOCK FOG’S SNACK BAR, KILMARNOCK RUGBY CLUB CAR PARK KILLIE TRUST DESK (PARK HOTEL FOR HOME GAMES) MATCH DAYS AT RP + AT ALL AWAY GAMES

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SHOOTING FROM THE HIPPO

Long time readers may have heard us refer to our Harlow chums. We met them in the Killie Club after a game in 1985 and some lifelong friendships were forged.

Some have dropped away and others have came on board over the years but it was great to see one of the originals (Andy the West ham fan) make his latest jaunt for the Dundee Utd game at Tannadice. It’s incredible to think he has been up, normally 2 or 3 times a season since 1985 and we really feel old when he also brings his son Josh. It reminds me of my mate D2 at an Ayr cup tie a number of years back. The guy next to him was shouting on Killie but D2 noticed he had a strong cockney accent. It turns out the guy (another West Ham fan) loved ex killie keeper Bobby Ferguson who joined West Ham so he adopted Killie as his Scottish team. Yes there really are Killie fans all over the place and it’s great to hear their tales of following Scotland’s finest.

I’m writing this the day after our Tannadice defeat and it really was a sore one to take I thought we played well for most of the game but we ultimately lost out due to bad defending. We looked decent going forward and I’m sure Boydie will benefit from the vision and artistry of Eremenko. Unfortunately we can’t go dishing out three goals in every game and the whole complexion of the game changed when they scored their second immediately after we had taken the lead.

There has been quite a bit of discussion about where our defensive problems lie and there are wide and varied views on the subject. Some folk point out that Samson has cost us a few soft goals and that cannot be denied. However he has been outstanding in other games and the reports I’ve heard about Reguerro have not been glowing. Personally I think our biggest problems are elsewhere specifically in the full back areas. Irvine has been taking a lot of stick and I do feel a bit sorry for the lad as he isn’t a right back. AJ seems intent on finding a place for him in every game but if there isn’t a better right back on our books than Irvine then I’m a teetotal stick insect.

AJ has been a bit unlucky in the centre back positions with both Barr and Bouzid getting injured when they looked as if they were forging a decent partnership.

Ashcroft has done pretty well since coming in and will only get better but I’m sure he would benefit with one of the above two playing next to him. It will be interesting to see AJ’s preferred partnership if/when everyone is fit however I do think he needs to address the full back issues before anything else.

Thanks to everyone for your ongoing support and you will see in this issue we have a couple of articles about fundraising for the “Killie Family”. Please do your best to help or donate wherever possible and if you know anyone who is up for the Killie Iron Man challenge, please get in touch. It won’t be until sometime in 2015 so there is plenty of time to get into training….. I would do it but I’ll be too busy with the Glasgow and London marathons!!

Sandy

WE WANT OUR CLUB BACK The old saying will tell you “no news is good news” but I don’t think that applies to the current mess at our beloved Killie. Since our last issue it must have been almost impossible for fans to keep a track on what is truly going on with the consortium walking away, the community group stepping up to the mark, BB still confusing everyone with his stance and MJ, as ever, telling porkies on a daily basis……are there still any Killie fans out there who believe anything he says?

I’ll do my best to give my latest take on each of the players in this shambles of a mess but by the time this gets to the printer the situation will probably have changed again. Lets start at the bottom….or the horses arse would be more accurate: M.J. Regardless of your viewpoint on everything I think we could all maybe agree on one thing…….money is at the root of all this and in MJ’s case he wants to squeeze as much out the club as he can. Some fans are getting to the stage where they are saying “someone just needs to give him what he wants so we can get rid”. If only it were that easy, but that won’t happen for a couple of main reasons: Firstly, successful business folk don’t make loads of cash by chucking insane sums at a failing business. There appears to be an acceptance from many fans that he should get something but it seems MJ’s valuation is on a different planet from the real world.

Secondly, in the case of the Killie Trust, he won’t even tell folk a figure so that can be worked towards. Through a very well respected legal firm, the Trust sent a letter to MJ last May asking how much he was looking for. A non-disclosure agreement was required therefore this was sent off to be agreed to allow meaningful discussions to begin.

Well that was last May and after several attempts to get a response we still haven’t heard a cheep. MJ is always seeing he is keen to step aside for the right bid…….does ignoring letters from potential investors sound like the behavior of a man who is willing to sell?

At the recent meeting between KFCSA and Billy Bowie, BB told us that money wasn’t the issue for MJ….I beg to differ.

MJ wants a pension fund after being handed a huge asset from his pal Jamie and I’m afraid we will all suffer for as long as he remains.

It is no secret that the banks want out Scottish football hence Dunfermline had a huge debt write off after their administration event. Dundee Utd are the latest club to benefit from the banks desperation to escape, the article below briefly explains how it worked for the arabs: Dundee United have completed a major restructuring of its financial position. Following negotiations, the club has reached a settlement with its bankers, Bank of Scotland, to close off its debt position. At peak the sum owed was £6m.

It represents a major coup for chairman Stephen Thompson and his family.

Now, after complex and lengthy negotiations the chairman and his family have been able to wipe out the remaining three million, plus an overdraft that stood at around the £1 million mark.

To do that the Thompsons, £6 million investors in United during their 12 years in charge, have had to dip into their own pockets once again. There’s also been help from as yet unnamed investors, although Thompson remains firmly in control at Tannadice.

It’s a move that will also see the club switch bankers and while the club has made no comment on that, it’s understood their financial business will now be conducted with the Santander group.

MJ denied in the paper that he was trying to agree a deal with the bank however at another recent meeting between BB and Baz (Killie Trust Chairman), BB stated they were trying to get a deal with the bank…….yes another porkie it would appear from the parasite. I have absolutely no doubt that MJ was trying to get a huge write off deal with the bank but if the latest whispers are to be believed I don’t think MJ will get what he wanted.

The language being used at present is there will be a “restructuring” of the debt which will probably see the club and the hotel being separated, some debt being written off however we will not be debt free and it remains to be seen if BB is here for one thing only…..to get the hotel.

MJ has held off the AGM again as he desperately tries to get some positive spin, he simply doesn’t get that as long as he hangs around there will never be unity among the fans.

CONSORTIUM For those of you still confused about all the separate groups in all this, the consortium was kind of born out of the Ayrshire business group (ABG). The ABG was the group set up by John Gall who were basically saying they would not be giving any more financial support to the club as long as Johnston was there.

Within the many business folk who were involved, three folk emerged who wanted to take things a step further and actually take over the club.

The three folk were Chris McMail (Microtech), Alan McLeish (QTS) and Kenny Alexander, a lifelong Killie fan who had been reported as wanting to buy the club a couple of years back. Due to all the non-disclosures we are not privy to the specific details however it appears they were relatively close to getting something done……..or as near as anyone can be with someone who really doesn’t want to budge. They were on the verge of walking away before Xmas however something must have lured them back to the table and there was reportedly lots of meetings and discussion over the last 5 or 6 weeks. It appears all to be have been in vain however as they publicly stated they have walked away and I don’t think they are trying a bluff…….time will tell.

Regardless of what went on between them and MJ the working party group will be seeking to speak to these guys. It would be criminal if three successful business guys who were willing to stick significant money into our club, were simply allowed to walk away and potentially be lost forever.

BILLY BOWIE I’m not quite sure where to start with BB but his name has been rumoured in connection with the club and he did eventually get involved earlier this season.

There have been all sorts of figures being put about as to how much he has invested. He did tell Baz the reason he got involved was due to all the NAPM stuff and protests etc and he was just wanting to help the club.

There’s no doubt all the various actions have had an effect but sadly the root of all the problems remains in place and at present BB seems happy to stand shoulder to shoulder with him. All the stuff about him putting in £1.4m are utter nonsense, we had a meeting with BB a couple of weeks ago and he confirmed that the exact amount he has coughed is £361k but he is looking at putting in more……..he also confirmed he is not a director!!!

Once again we come back to Johnston’s lies as he made various statements welcoming the new director on board when in fact that has never been the case. I find it very hard to get my head round BB’s motivation in all this…..if it isn’t hotel ownership, If he is simply in to help MJ asset strip the place then he can expect a similar reception to MJ when he takes his seat in the directors box every week.

However I’ve only met the guy once and he did seem to want to help the club although he didn’t appear to like any mention of community ownership.

Prior to the meeting I was warned by some not to believe a word he says whilst others tell me he simply wants what is best for the club. I’ll reserve judgment and will simply judge him on his actions in the coming weeks and months. He is the sole director of the Ayrshire Park Hotel business that was set up so I can fully understand the scepticism in certain quarters. I did point out at our meeting that as Killie fans we want guys like BB plus the consortium guys to get together and we can all work together for the good of the club………but it will never happen as long as Johnston hangs around.

WORKING PARTY/COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP Just to clarify again, the working party was proposed at the grand Hall meeting and was tasked at looking at how we could bring community ownership to the club. There are a lot of myths regarding this type of ownership and in my experience when you sit and explain exactly what it entails, fans see it is the way ahead.

If you want to break it into simple terms in our current situation we have a sole owner who takes money out the club whilst community ownership would deliver a structure that ensured any money would be ploughed back into the club and no individual would benefit……..we are KFC not MJFC!!

The working party includes Paul Goodwin and Richard Atkinson from Supporters direct, reps from KFCSA, Killie Trust, Young Kilmarnock, Cathy Jamieson and the consortium have also been represented. Other folk were invited initially but have not been at any meetings. It will be interesting to see who is on the handpicked “community involvement” committee and it will be interesting to see who they represent. This “committee” will simply widen the divide among the fans and I cannot wait to hear what they have to offer. Make no mistake, this is being done to try and demonstrate some kind of community aspect to MJ’s underhand plans and we all know how much genuine backing he has. The worrying thought is that the bank are so desperate to get out of Scottish football that they will just accept any token attempt at involving the community.

Anyway you may have read in the papers and seen on TV that the community group issued a letter of intent to MJ however it seemed MJ couldn’t wait a minute to state he has no interest in selling/talking/discussing with the fans. He did offer that the group could cough up a few hundred thousand to buy unallocated shares and get a seat on the board. Many fans groups, especially have found out to their cost that this is way too risky and the best advice is buy 51% or none at all.

We are under no illusions and have always known this was always going to be a marathon rather than a sprint. We will continue to speak to businesses, politicians and of course the fans to ask everyone to get on board and there will be a launch type meeting where everyone can see how they can help. Finally here are the thoughts of a Financial Expert on Scottish football – Alistair Dickson, of BTG Financial Consulting, said: "The majority of troubled clubs in Scotland can no longer rely on wealthy benefactors swooping in as white knights.

"Some clubs are likely to conclude that it makes financial sense for the fans, who support the club week in and week out, to take a long-term stake in the clubs themselves and help secure their future by extending their reach to the wider community.

"The community club model has been shown to work all over Europe, from the amateur ranks all the way to the mighty Barcelona and is an integral part of German football. The model has a real future in Scottish football.

"In fact, aside from merging and consolidating clubs together, or allowing those that fail to create a reduction in the number of clubs, it is possibly the only hope for many."

ADMINISTRATION EQUALS RELEGATION Following on from my recent blog regarding the rules which had been put in place by the newly formed Scottish Professional Football League (the "SPFL"),1 it has been reported that the SPFL are considering the implementation of a new set of rules in line with what was discussed previously.

As previously outlined, the current rules do not provide an effective penalty for clubs entering into an insolvency event and do not appear to reward those clubs who are financially prudent and avoid reaching unmanageable levels of debt.

The current punishment for a club entering into administration in the four professional leagues in Scotland is an immediate fifteen point deduction.3 If the proposals being considered by the SPFL board are approved, clubs who suffer an insolvency event face the prospect of immediate relegation. The creation of this more stringent rule has been made possible by the 42 professional clubs in Scotland all being brought under the same governing body, the SPFL, during the past summer.

By having one united governing body rather than the Scottish Premier League governing the top league and the Scottish Football League governing the three lower leagues, it is now much easier for clubs to be moved from one division to another through immediate relegation, without arguments ensuing between different governing bodies as to which clubs can participate in which leagues.

In the Football League in England, as Coventry City have found to their cost this season, the penalty for an insolvency event is a ten point deduction.4 Rule E.38 of the Premier League handbook for this season, provides that the penalty for one of its member clubs or its parent company entering into an insolvency event is only a nine point deduction,5 as suffered by Portsmouth in the 2009/2010 season.

Were the English governing bodies to consider an amendment to the insolvency rules which are in place, and seek to follow what is being considered in Scotland, the difficulty which such proposals would have, would be that the Premier League and Football League are two distinct organisations and it may prove problematic for the Premier League to force the immediate relegation of one of their member clubs onto a separate governing body. As the rules currently stand in England, the penalty for clubs experiencing financial difficulty are not as stringent as they are north of the border and arguably need to be tightened up.

As with the position in Scotland outlined in the previous blog regarding the position of Hearts and their survival in the SPL last season, it seems somewhat unfair that clubs in England are able to live out with their financial means and find themselves with a penalty, in the case of the Premier League, which is the equivalent to losing points gained in potentially only three matches. By gaining an unfair advantage through financial mismanagement, clubs should surely be subject to stronger fixed penalties than at present.

In Scotland the position is now more flexible and the proposed new rule, despite the practical difficulties which may be associated with it, could be created with relative ease.

There are some clubs for whom the introduction of such a rule would have potentially disastrous affect in both the short and long term as a result of the difference in television and commercial revenue through the Scottish leagues and the additional money which is in place for those who compete in the Scottish Premiership.

However, it can only be hoped that the severe penalty which is being proposed and the nature of the punishment which may be enforced, will help to ensure that Scottish clubs will continue to cut their cloth to prevent the potential for immediate relegation through financial mismanagement.

Hippo says – Several clubs have benefitted over the years from the “loopholes” in these laws, Motherwell probably being the best example. I’m sure most folk will welcome a tightening of then laws. I just hope we are not one of the first to be affected by them.

SPOT THE SIMILARITIES I was trawling through t’internet recently and was fascinated to read the following article on the demise of Coventry City. It may be down south and the circumstances are different however there are loads of similarities in many aspects of this famous club’s fall from grace: Back in the mid-1990s Coventry City were financially stable, the perennial ‘Houdini’ club of football with only Arsenal, Everton and Liverpool having stayed longer in the top-flight for a continuous spell.

By the late-90s, CCFC Directors had grandiose dreams for the club which outweighed their business sense and started to spend on transfer fees and wages at a rate that far exceeded the income the club received. One of these dreams was to leave Highfield Road with a capacity of 23,000 for a much larger stadium, a strange decision you might think as Highfield Road was only sold out two or three times per season. Eventually, this was to see the club move into the magnificent Olympic-standard Ricoh Arena in 2005.

However, before a single piece of earth was turned on the construction project, the risks taken by the Directors had put the club into real financial crisis. The money that would be raised from the sale of Highfield Road had been squandered and when the club was relegated to the second tier in 2001, there were reportedly debts of £60million.

Coventry City Council stepped in at this point to rescue the new stadium project and funded the construction at a total cost of £113million. Coventry City would therefore have their new home, however the Club Directors were in a weak negotiating position and the terms of the lease were very steep.

Although the football club paid an annual rent of £1.3m+ covering matchday expenses, Coventry City did not enjoy any of the matchday revenues apart from ticket and merchandising sales; the club was deprived of the benefits from food and beverage, car-parking etc.

Also, there was no access to profits from other events such as conferences and concerts, or from the hotel and casino which were part of the complex, as these were not part of the tenancy arrangement.

In 2007 Coventry City FC were on the brink of going into administration. At the last minute, Sisu Capital, a London-based Hedge Fund with investment operations sheltered on the Cayman Islands, arrived on the scene and bought the club. A lot of big promises were made about re-investment in the football team to bring about a return to the Premier League but little was delivered. In 2012 the club was again relegated, this time to League One. Following relegation, the owners declared that the terms of the lease for the Ricoh Arena were unacceptable for a League One club and stopped paying the rent with immediate effect to force a re-negotiation. This is despite the fact that the lease was legally binding and although Sisu had not been the original signatories they had effectively accepted the terms when they bought the club.

The ‘rent strike’ continued for almost 12 months and although the landlords offered significantly reduced rent to reach a settlement, Sisu refused to accept.

In March 2013, with court decisions in place in favour of the landlords, the owners put Coventry City Football Club into administration before the creditors could do the same. They also announced that the club would be leaving the Ricoh and would seek an alternative venue for home games for the 2013/14 season, although the team were permitted to complete fixtures for the last season at the Ricoh.

Eventually, it was announced that the new venue would be at Sixfields, home of Northampton Town, 35 miles from Coventry. This move was sanctioned by the Football League for a period of three to five years, despite vociferous protests from supporters' groups.

Just before the current season began, the Football League also agreed to the transfer of the ‘Golden Share’ which confers rights to be a member of the League to a different operating company, also owned by Sisu. So the same people who put the club into administration were now back in control of the football club having bought the relevant assets from the Administrator. Again, the majority of supporters were totally dismayed at this turn of events.

Attendances at Sixfields for ‘home’ games average around 2,000 compared to 10,000 in League One at the Ricoh. For some it is impractical to attend, for most of us it is an active decision not to attend; many of us extend this boycott to not purchasing any club merchandise, a campaign known as ‘Not One Penny More’ at least until we are playing back at the Ricoh, or for some until Sisu have exited from the club.

This is a hard choice as we know that an economic weapon hurts the team we love but it is the only effective tool that we have to use against owners who are ruining OUR club. The sad irony for supporters is that while this is going on, the team are playing the most attractive and successful football seen for at least 15 years. This partly explains why the away following has been massive by comparison: 7,000 at MK Dons; a 5,000 sell-out at the Emirates for a televised game on a Friday night (which could have been more if CCFC had taken a bigger allocation); and almost 4,000 to Notts County on 8th February, the largest away following in the country that weekend.

Supporters generally feel betrayed by the club’s owners; for many people the City Council are considered to have some share of the blame; former Directors certainly have much to answer for; and the Football League has failed us totally by not acting to regulate properly in this matter, partly because their rules are inadequate, partly through incompetence and largely because they place the interests of club owners and their own self-interest far above the wishes of the mass of supporters.

With no sign of a resolution in sight, the ‘Keep Coventry in Coventry’ campaign has launched a petition on the Parliamentary web-site called ‘Without Fans There Is No Football’. It calls on the Select Committee for Culture, Media and Sport to re-open its inquiry into Football Governance following an ultimatum that they issued in January 2013 to the governing bodies – FA, Premier League, Football League – to bring about self-reform in the interests of supporters within 12 months or face legislation to enforce appropriate changes.

Since that report was issued, the whole Coventry City saga has erupted so we are asking for it to be used as a case-study to demonstrate the manifest failings in governance procedures. But we are not alone. Cardiff City, Hull City and most recently Leeds United fans can all claim that they are being let down by football governing bodies who support owners against the demands of fans - dare I say customers! - on every occasion. By far the largest group of participants in the national game – the paying supporters – are mostly ignored by those who should be standing up for us.

Please bear in mind that if this can happen to Coventry City it could be your club next.

Hippo says - Good luck to their fans in what is clearly a nightmare of a situation.

Who would have thought owners could get so bitter they simply want to destroy a famous club for the hell of it.

TOKEN SCUM GAG‌‌ One day, a Killie fan was walking along the beach and came across an odd-looking bottle. Not being one to ignore tradition, he rubbed it and, much to his surprise, a Genie actually appeared.

"For releasing me from the bottle, I will grant you three wishes," said the Genie. The man was ecstatic. "But there's a catch," the Genie continued. "What catch?" asked the man, eyeing the Genie suspiciously.

The Genie replied, "For each of your wishes, every A*r supporter in the world will receive double what you asked for."

"Hey, I can live with that! No problem!" replied the elated man.

"What is your first wish?" asked the Genie. "Well, I've always wanted a Ferrari!" Poof ! A Ferrari appeared in front of the man.

"Now, every scum fan in the world has been given two Ferraris," said the Genie. "What is your next wish?"

"I could really use a million dollars..." replied the man, and Poof!

One million dollars appeared at his feet. "Now, every scummie in the world is two million dollars richer," the Genie reminded the man.

"Well, that's okay, as long as I've got my million," replied the Killie fan.

"And what is your final wish?" asked the Genie.

The man thought long and hard, and finally said, "Well, you know, I've always wanted to donate a kidney..."

KILLIE BITS + PIECES If you bought the last issue we did a “where are they now” article focusing on ex Killie players, managers etc. He took charge at Dutch 2nd division side De Graafschap in January but sadly for JC he only lasted 29 days and is now signing on again. It seems he was furious at coaching changes and the departure of two players on coaching days. If nothing else turns up in the football world Jimmy will need to go back to the Tango adverts. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> It’s good to see that the Killie youngsters are still being recognized at national level. The Scotland under 17’s took on their Serbian counterparts at Rugby Park on Feb 11th and there were three Killie youths included, McKay, Pooler and Kiltie. Young Greg Kiltie has tasted some first team action recently and it was great to see his name on the score sheet as Killie ran out 2 – 0 winners. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> There’s been a lot of talk on the forums about the club AGM and how it gets later and later every year. It seems that MJ is desperately trying to get some debt restructuring in place so he can try and put some positive spin to what in all honesty has been my worst year as a Killie fan. Apparently there will be an EGM as well as the AGM (mid March) and I’m sure this will be concerning the debt and probably the hotel. God knows what is going on in the background but you can guarantee it will be to the benefit of certain individuals. As part of trying to convince the bank he has some community involvement, MJ is trying to hand pick a few individuals to get involved with a committee……….he simply ignores the democratically elected fan groups and does what he wants. It stinks to high heaven and will simply cause an even greater split among the fans.

WANTED – KILLIE IRON MAN You may be aware that over the last couple of years we have taken a keen interest in former Killie fave Mark Reilly and more specifically his fundraising efforts on behalf of his daughter who suffers from Retts Syndrome.

The Killie Trust Ball last September gave all profits to charity and it was Retts and the Ayrshire Hospice who benefitted from what was a great night.

We are looking at doing other Killie related fundraising (see Have a Killie Heart article) so please get in touch if you can help in any way possible.

Anyway Mark recently posted on his Facebook page that he was lining up a huge challenge for next year, here’s what he had to say: “I have decided that my next big challenge for Reverse Rett and all the little princesses out there will be an iron man in 2015. Venue to be confirmed.

This consists of a 2.4 mile swim in open water, 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run to finish.

This is a big ask for me as I can't swim 25meters freestyle, hav'nt been on a bike since I was about 10 and have never ran a marathon.

But I will complete this... Because I can..”

Now we could simply do some fundraising for Mark but I contacted him and suggested we get a Killie fan to take on the challenge as well and raise funds in that way. So there you have it, is there a Killie fan out there who is fit enough to take on this massive challenge?

You will understand there will be no volunteers from the Howard troops for obvious reasons but I’m sure there is someone out there who is u for it. If interested drop me an e-mail killiehippo@aol.com

HAVE A KILLIE HEART As alluded to in previous issues the KFCSA has launched a new initiative called “Have a Killie Heart�. You will all be aware that there have been several tragic incidents at Killie games in recent years and the association wanted to do something simply to increase awareness about what we can all do in emergency situations.

We were very much starting from scratch and we contacted the British heart Foundation for some advice and guidance. The West of Scotland is particularly bad for heart disease and the NHF were only too happy to help us. The first thing we did was facilitate a Heart Start training course which was help last week, here is the report:

Kilmarnock Football Club Supporters Association (KFCSA) in partnership with the British Heart Foundation have launched the "Have a Killie Heart" initiative aimed at raising awareness among Killie fans around what to do in a life threatening emergency.

There has been a number of tragic incidents over the years at Killie games and KFCSA are keen to ensure as many as fans as possible know what to do should another unfortunate situation occur.

With this in mind a Heart Start training course was held last week in St Marnocks church and there was a great turn out on a freezing cold night.

KFCSA would like to thank Linda, Anne and Alex for hosting such an enjoyable and worthwhile evening. KFCSA are already making plans for a second training night, if you would like to participate e mail info@kfcsa.org or call in to see Stewart at Rainbow Ink, Bank Street, Kilmarnock.

I can safely say that every person who attended enjoyed it and learnt plenty.

Please volunteer for the next course by using the contacts above or simply drop me an e mail killiehippo@aol.com Apart from the training courses we are hoping to hand out leaflets at Rugby Park and may do some bucket rattling as well.

On a related matter I have been in touch with the Haswell family, big Jim sadly passed away at the Hibs game last year. Jim’s family are hugely appreciative of the support they have had from “the Killie family”. I am meeting with im’s wife Aileen and daughter Nicola this week and we will be discussing how we can do some fundraising. Nicola has chosen to do fundraising for the Headway charity and has a sky dive planned for Saturday 7th June.

Check out the details below and please give generously, here’s what Nicola has to say: Hi, I’m doing a skydive in memory of my dad James Haswell.

Please sponsor me if you can, donating through this site is simple.

My charity will receive your money quickly and easily and if you are a UK taxpayer an extra 25% in tax will be added to your gift at no cost to you.

Many thanks for your support, Nicola Haswell To donate please visit www.doitforcharity.com/nicolahaswell and give whatever you can afford.

We will publicise all future events but please get in touch if you need more info or if

you have any fundraising ideas.

WINDOW REFLECTIONS The January transfer window has been and gone so erhaps it’s a good time to analyse then business done by AJ. The window is traditionally a time for the manager to earn his corn and with things tight for the play off spot the ins and outs are especially vital.

Without doubt the headline grabber for Killie fans was the reacquisition of Alexei Eremenko. The guy was a class act first time around and from the evidence at Tannadice on Saturday he has lost none of his old ability. He even weighed in with a fine goal……who cares if was well offside, we got away with it!

The only slight doubt concerns his fitness as he hadn’t done any training or played any games since November but lets be honest, he was never the fittest in the team. Eremenko is on a different planet to most players in the SPFL so even at 75% fit he can give us something a little special that may just save our season.

As much as its great to see him back I think the most important decision of the window was Boydie confirming he will be here until the summer at least. The big man has been superb on his return to Killie and I’d love to see him sign a longer contract. Recent comments suggest he could be up for a move in the summer window but lets hope he is happy back in Ayrshire with his family around him.

Elsewhere there were more “outs” than “ins” but we have kept Irvine, Gardyne and Bouzid. We don’t have a huge squad but AJ appears to have sussed that we have a good crop of youngsters and many of them will have a part to play between now and May…lets hope we open a bit of a gap from the teams below us as I don’t want another last game of the season nerve-fest.

SPL 25/1/14 KILLIE 2 V 0 I.C.T. KILLIE – SAMSON, IRVINE, TESSELAAR, PASCALI, ASHCROFT, SLATER, KILTIE, CLINGAN, MUIRHEAD, MCKENZIE, BOYD SUBS NOT USED – REGUERO, JOHNSTON, GROS, NICOLSON, CLOHESSY, MAKSIMENKO + GARDYNE BOOKED – NONE GOALS – ASHCROFT 16 + BOYD 74 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> INVERNESS – BRILL, RAVEN (DRAPER 77), TREMARCO, SHINNIE, MEEKINGS (DEVINE 68), WARREN, DORANS, WILLIAMS, MCKAY, ROSS (WATKINS 70), POLWORTH SUBS NOT USED – ESSON, VINCENT, TANSEY + CHRISTIE BOOKED – NONE GOALS – HEE HAW REF – W COLLUM

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DICK OF THE DAY – TERRY BUTCHER

It would be fair to say that our record in recent years against this lot has not been good. I’m sure everyone has their own views on why that is but I put it down to one person…Terry Butcher.

I’m no tactical genius but I could see that Killie found it difficult against what was always a big physical team.

Thankfully the head bandage model has moved on to pastures new and has been replaced with the east coast whining of Yogi. He annoys the boobs off me but at least on this evidence he hasn’t got the Indian sign over us like his predecessor. Good riddance Butcher, its just the Hibs games we need to worry about now.

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Our record against the top six teams has been pathetic especially when you consider it’s not a strong league and there are some very average teams out there. however this was a welcome three points and it was wonderful to see another youngster like Ashcroft get his name on the score sheet.

Boydie continues to do what he does best….score goals. As long as he remains for the rest of the season and stays fit we should have enough goals to keep us away from the dreaded 11th spot.

SPL 29/1/14 CELTIC 4 V 0 KILLIE CELTIC – FORSTER, FISHER, IZAGUIRRE, MULGREW (JOHANSEN 82), AMBROSE, VAN DIJK, LEDLEY, BROWN, PUKKI (BALDE 71), FORREST (BOERIGGTER 77), COMMONS SUBS NOT USED – ZALUKAS, BITON, SAMARAS + O’CONNELL BOOKED – BALDE GOALS – LEDLEY 11, ASHCROFT (OG) 21, MULGREW 68 + BALDE 90 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> KILLIE – SAMSON, CLOHESSY (O’HARA 53), TESSELAR, PASCALI, ASHCROFT, MCKENZIE, KILTIE (NICOLSON HT), MUIRHEAD (GARDYNE 76), CLINGAN, SLATER, GROS SUBS NOT USED – REGUERO, BOYD, JOHNSTON + MAKSIMENKO BOOKED – TESSELAR + PASCALI GOALS – NONE REF – B COLVIN

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DICK OF THE DAY – CROWD COUNTER You’ll be delighted to hear that after a recount it has now been confirmed that the full population of Scotland and Ireland travelled to Seville to watch Celtic in their Euro final a few years back. The number has increased by around 100k per month and will continue to do so as long as the Bullshit Dept is up and running at Parkhead.

It’s good to know that lessons have not been learnt all the same and the same lunatic who makes up the numbers is still gainfully employed. I do think he is getting mixed up between fans and green seats. I’m sure I counted around 44000 empty seats at this game but the official figures tell us something entirely different…….we need to get this dude down to RP and we will have a full 18000 at every home game. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> During the Jefferies era our record against the old firm was abysmal and we looked betaen before we took the park. Well AJ seems to have inherited some of JJ’s ability because that is how we looked from the first whistle. There was no sense of belief among the players and everyone seemed to accept the game was over when we lost an early goal. Not a game that will live long in the memory.

SPL 1/2/14 KILLIE 2 V 2 ROSS CO. KILLIE – SAMSON, IRVINE, TESSELAAR (JOHNSTON 83), PASCALI, ASHCROFT, SLATER, KILTIE (EREMENKO 68), CLINGAN, MUIRHEAD, MCKENZIE, BOYD SUBS NOT USED – REGUERO, NICHOLSON, O’HARA, MAKSIMENKO + GARDYNE BOOKED – CLINGAN GOALS – BOYD 48 + 90 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ROSS CO – FRASER, GORDON, SONGO’O, BRITTAIN, MCLEAN, OIKONOMOU, KISS, TIDSER (COOPER 65), ARQUIN (QUINN 88), SLEW (DE LEEUW 73), CAREY SUBS NOT USED – ESSON, VINCENT, TANSEY + CHRISTIE SENT OFF – KISS GOALS – ARQUIN 30 + SONGO’O 36 REF – C ALLAN

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DICK OF THE DAY – DEREK ADAMS I haven’t looked back but I suspect this gubby wee fud got the award last time as well…..he is fast becoming one of the biggest dicks we have in the Scottish game. Firstly, I’m not a petty geezer but if you look at the spelling of some of the surnames in the county team you will realize it’s not easy for a fanzine writer, The names sound like something nade up in a Monty Python film…..they will probably sign biggus dickus next season!

Secondly he is full of crap and comes away with all sorts of nonsense whenever his team don’t get a win…..which is fairly often. He likes to get on other managers faces and his blood pressure must have been going through the roof when Boydie popped in a late one. I don’t necessarily have anything against ross County as a team but just because their manager is a walloper I hope this lot are a division below us next season. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

This was one of those games which looked like a must win beforehand however at half time I’m sure most fans would have settled for a point. All the talk before the game was about the return of Eremenko and I’m sure if we can keep him and Boydie fit for the rest of the season we should be ok. A top goalscorer in the team can cover a lot of faults and nobody finds the net better than Tarbolton’s finest.

SPL 15/2/14 ARABS 3 V 2 KILLIE DUNDEE UTD – CIERZNIAK, WATSON, ROBERTSON, RANKIN, GOOD, SOUTTAR, ARMSTRONG (DOW 56), PATON, CIFTCI (GOMIS 85), GAULD (EL ALAGUI 57), MACKAY-STEVEN SUBS NOT USED – DILLON, GRAHAM, WILSON + MCCALLUM BOOKED – MACKAY-STEVEN GOALS – MACKAY-STEVEN 10, GOOD 65 + RANKIN 71 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> KILLIE – SAMSON, IRVINE, TESSELAR, PASCALI, ASHCROFT, MCKENZIE, EREMENKO, MUIRHEAD (JOHNSTON 76), CLINGAN, SLATER, BOYD SUBS NOT USED – REGUERO, BOYD, JOHNSTON + MAKSIMENKO BOOKED – EREMENKO GOALS – EREMENKO 40 + BOYD 64 REF – J BEATON

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DICK OF THE DAY – CIFTCI

We’re never short on contenders when we travel to tayside!! As ever we could give it to the stewards, one fat lad stood right in front of us at the start of the game. After a few verbals and a word in his lug from his supervisor he reluctantly moved down the stairs. We could give it to the police who stopped one of the travelling buses in no less than 4 occasions.If they put as much resources into lifting junkies the country would be a better place..

I suppose we could have given it to the ref for chopping off Ashcroft’s goal but Eremenko was miles offside for the first so we will let him off. The award goes to Ciftci for no other reason than I don’t like the look of him. He’s got red card written all over him every time he takes the field……a big walloper. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Dit was not so long ago that this lot gubbed us in rapid succession in the league and cup so there wasn’t very much confidence around pre match. We did have eremenko making his first start though and in all honesty I thought we generally played well apart from one vital area….defence. If we had held our lead for a bit longer the outcome may have been different but when they equalized quickly they always looked the likelier. A disappointing defeat for the travelling fans and I’m sure nobody would have complained with a draw but it wasn’t to be……bring on the hibees.

GOD HOW I MISS….

As the years go by you start to reflect a lot on the “good old days”. Don’t get me wrong, they were probably crap but the ol’ memory just remembers the good things, so here’s a wee list of what I miss from yesteryear: 1. The old Theatre of Pies with its Johnnie Walker end, segregation fences, great atmosphere and the old enclosure where the hotheads and bampots would congregate to hurl some general abuse..

2. The wee scoreboard at the Rugby Road end. There was always great anticipation as the wee guy climbed the shoogly steps to fire up the half time scores from the other grounds. The Health + Safety dudes wouldn’t let the wee guy climb the stairs any more but just bring it back and I’ll volunteer to do it.

3. Who remembers the wee guy that marched about the terracing selling “macaroon bars + chewing gum”. I’m pretty sure there were no “sell by” dates on his produce but it didn’t really matter. The same wee guy used to be seen at every ground in the country…..I wonder if he was a closet Killie fan?

4. The Killie Club – we used to sprint (walk fast in my case) into the club after the final whistle, grab the fixed odds coupons out the pockets and wait on the old teleprinter churn out the results. Invariably a stream of Wm Hill coupons would bounce off the TV screen as Liverpool 0 v 0 Coventry burst every coupon in the country.

YOU’LL NEVER TAKE THE KILLIE….PIE

THE famous Killie Pie – from Brownings the Bakers - is officially the number one pie in Scottish football once again, after the football pie awards winner was announced.Pies from 42 different football clubs were judged and Brownings are delighted that the Killie Pie has retained the number one spot.

Brownings managing director, John Gall, said: “I’m ‘over the moon’ with this award as it shows what we have always known, in that our Killie Pie is the besttasting in Scotland.

“Following the Killie Pie winning the best savoury product recently at the Scottish Baker of the Year Awards, we were quietly confident that the fans’ favourite would take top spot again.

“With so much doom and gloom stories emerging about Kilmarnock as a town, recently, it’s great to give the people in this area something to smile about.

“We have also redesigned the Killie Pie packaging to include the slogan, ‘Kilmarnock’s Famous Killie Pie’, in recognition of its home town and the fact that it’s a national product eaten throughout the UK in areas where the name, ‘Killie’, is not known.”

WHO WAS MISSING AT TANNADICE

A healthy wee Killie crew headed up to see Eremenko’s first start and the picture above leads you to believe we were the only ones in the ground. You’ll be pleased to know that the stewards and cops are still as bad as ever and one steward felt it was ok to stand right in front of us to block the view.

However if you look at the photo closely it appears there are only 10 Killie players taking the pitch, maybe that’s why we ended up losing and we were all too bevvied to notice!!