Hippo137

AN UNOFFICIAL KILLIE FANZINE

ISSUE NO. 137

BOYDY AMUSED AT ONE ARM REF........ ..GLASS HALF FULL OR EMPTY? ..HOW OTHERS SEE US ..SPFL MANAGER SACK RACE

£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

HUGE THANKS TO ALL ADVERTISERS, SUBSCRIBERS, DISTRIBUTORS AND KILLIE FANS FOR THEIR SUPPORT. All views expressed are those of the contributors.

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SHOOTING FROM THE HIPPO It’s been a horrific season so far both on and off the pitch but perhaps events n the last week or so will trigger a reversal in fortunes for the Killie fans. I’m writing this the day after our win at Motherwell, arguably our most vital win of the season. There is no room for complacency as we know since there are still 18 points to be won and lost for the teams down there battling to avoid the play-off spot. However we now have a 5 point gap over 11th placed St Mirren and a win over St Johnstone in the final pre-split game will see us climbing our way to safety.

It’s been a four way scrap for 11th for a while now but you can now add Hibs to the mix. They have been on a pretty horrendous run of late and have just been gubbed by Hearts once again. They find themselves one point above Killie so it’s fair to say if Killie are still in the play-off scrap then so are Hibs. Lets wait and see what next week brings since Ross County, Partick and Hearts are all at home in games they could win so it could all change again very quickly.

The big news since our last issue was the announcement that Johnston is no longer majority shareholder, he is stepping down as chairman and we are getting four new directors on board. We had been aware that changes were due but as always under Johnston’s tenure we will wait for the meat on the bones rather than just accept the headline grabbing sound bites. It goes without saying that looks like a step in the right direction and both KFCSA and Killie Trust have both issued statements welcoming the news and looking forward to working together with the new board. The AGM is on May 5th so I look forward to hearing the views and plans of the new board. With no hotel income (or very little) now the need for fans through the gate is greater than ever so the board need to sell the club to the missing thousands. You will see an article in this issue (Glass half empty/full) that looks at the changes in more detail.

Some folk seem to view the changes as a victory for all those taking action but I simply don’t see it that way. This whole sorry season has been a lose/lose for Killie and its fans and has been the least enjoyable year ever as a Killie fan.

There has been untold damage over a number of years now in terms of losing fans and the biggest challenge the new board face is trying to get those missing fans to fork out their hard earned cash to return to the Theatre of Pies. I’m looking forward to getting back to the East Stand for the St Johnstone game and hopefully another vital win that will help secure our top league status for another season.

We still don’t know the post split games however there will be at least one more issue before the end of the season. Thanks again for all your fantastic loyalty throughout this season and please send me those articles and share your views on all that is happening at Scotland’s oldest and finest.

Sandy

GLASS HALF EMPTY OR GLASS HALF FULL I’m sure we are all aware of the recent announcement from the club and changes that have been sought by most fans appears to be in the process of happening. I think we all have to embrace the change and hopefully it’s the catalyst for better times ahead however if there is one thing we have learned throughout MJ’s tenure it is never to take what Johnston says at face value. The AGM has eventually been announced and will take place on 5th May and there should be much more detail available by then.

It’s important that we get to know as much as possible about the new directors and in the case of David Moran and Russel Smith, they are genuine Killie fans who want to turn the club around.

They are now both involved with KFC (chicken variety) and KFC (football variety) so expect the sponsorship rumours soon.

Here’s the statement from the club regarding the changes:

Kilmarnock Football Club has today completed a deal to clear its debt, the club's Chairman Michael Johnston announced this evening.The deal which has been agreed with the club's bankers, Bank of Scotland, includes three key steps: 1. The arm's length sale of The Park Hotel for full market value with the proceeds going towards reducing the club's debt with the bank 2. Billy Bowie purchasing the balance of the bank's debt and turning this debt into equity in the club, resulting in the chairman's 87% stake being reduced to below 50% - so no single investor has a controlling interest in the club

3. The permanent write off by former Chairman Jamie Moffat of the balance of his loans to the Club, which originally totalled ÂŁ1.8m.

As part of the restructuring, a new Board of Directors has been formed to manage the affairs of the club and these will include new investors Billy Bowie, Jim Mann, David Moran and Russel Smith (personal details will be issued separately). Michael Johnston intends to stand down as Chairman by the end of the current season but will retain his place on the Board.

A new Community Engagement Board is to be formed to work alongside the main Board of Directors of the Club in terms of a new constitution (Articles of Association) which will be delivered to all shareholders early next week.

This new body will have up to eleven members comprising two elected minor shareholders (holding less than 2,000 shares); two elected season ticket holders; the Club's Community Engagement Manager and Supporter Liaison Officer; and a main Board Director, with further places reserved for Kilmarnock's four leading politicians - the Member of Parliament, the Member of the Scottish Parliament, the Leader of East Ayrshire Council and the Leader of the official opposition on East Ayrshire Council, all as ex officio members who may or may not take up their appointments from time to time. A member of the CEB will be appointed to the main Board.

A more detailed announcement will be made early next week, when it is also planned to announce a date for the club's Annual General Meeting.

Let’s have a look at this in as much detail as we can at present and try to look at the pros and cons in each case. Without the full information I suppose it depends if you are a “glass half empty”or “glass half full” type of fan. This type of deal has been the plan for a while as it is well known the bank wanted rid of its Scottish football clubs and had struck similar deals with other clubs in the recent past………Dundee Utd struck a deal a matter of weeks before us.

The obvious message that Johnston was trying to get out there was that we are debt free however having spoken to several folk I suspect this may not be the case. On the face of it we have separated the club from the hotel therefore we lose the debt of the hotel but also lose an asset and the income it generates. Time will tell how this pans out, my big concern is that at every AGM for the last 6 or 6 years Johnston has stressed how important the hotel income is to the club, especially in the summer when there is little other income.

The plus is that we have a reduced monthly “bill” to the bank so we will see how one balances the other. In effect, we are the same as every other club in the hotel as the hotel was a unique asset. We will simply need to survive on “normal” footballing in come therefore more fans through the gate is essential…….therein lies a potential problem as many folk who have simply stopped going over the last decade simply won’t return.

Regarding the actual ownership of the hotel you wont be surprised that its owned by the recently set up Park Hotel Ayrshire Ltd who did have Billy Bowie as sole director. I’m led to believe Johnston also has an interest in the hotel aand the club may still have a token interest.

To cot to the chase in terms of the deal that was done there were two key elements that made it happen. Firstly the bank wanted out and have written off a few million of the debt to let the deal happen……the exact amount may or may not become apparent. The one person who made the deal happen was Billy Bowie. At a recent meeting he told us he got involved as he read about the unrest at the club and didn’t want to see us go under.

His intervention and more so his investment allowed the bank to take a deal and effectively stopped us going into administration.

Of course he now has a similar shareholding to Johnston (probably around 40% each) and he is the majority owner of the hotel…….it will be interesting to see what changes are made to increase the revenue and footfall at it.

I was contacted by a newspaper recently who were trying to get me to heap praise on Johnston. They seemed a little disappointed when I explained that it was basically the bank and Bowie that made the deal happen although I expect Johnston will still try and grab the newspaper inches.

Another journalist was also trying to tell me it was a great victory for the fans but I’m afraid I don’t think there has been a “victory” or anyone here. I’m delighted that MJ will no longer be chairman (allegedly) and that the shareholding is spread about (allegedly) but this has been the most horrible season imaginable.

I’m crossing my fingers that everything is heading in the right direction and that the new directors understand what needs to be done to pull everyone together and to ensure everyone works together going forward.

My biggest fear is that we are more reliant on fans now than we ever were and I’m afraid the damage done in recent years may never be fully repaired……….it certainly wont be a quick fix!!

The two big fan groups are keen to embrace the change and we will be speaking to the new directors just as soon as they get their feet under the table. I’ve spoken to folk who know two of the new directors and they are genuine Killie fans who want to play their part in turning things around. It has been a disgraceful situation with the club refusing to work with its fans and that has to change and I’m sure it will. There always has to be a compromise situation and hopefully that is what we have at the moment.

One aspect that has gone down like a lead balloon is the Community Engagement Board. This has been established purely to tick the “community” box with the bank but is simply a sham.

I’m sure everyone has heard about the management committee, a non elected group of MJ puppets who were toothless and decided what soup was needed in the chairmans club. Well this board is simply management committee mark two unless it is opened up to everyone and actually has a bit of clout. Johnston stated there was a place for four politicians but apart from one (maybe) it seems they don’t want to be a part of it…….in its current format at least. Once again I hope the new directors see that the CEB is liable to cause problems rather than solve them. I’m sure we all want a structured set up where we can all work together but it has to be transparent and all inclusive rather than a closed shop.

I’m writing this a couple of hours a couple of hours after a superb win at Fir Park so our on field issues don’t seem as bad but one swallow doesn’t make a summer. It will be interesting to see how the new board view our management team because I have no confidence in them whatsoever regardless of where we finish up at the end of the season. If AJ + SC are still here in the summer I can see season ticket sales being affected!!

The new board has 101 issues to sort out and I’m assured they will be looking at making improvements in every area of the club.

Here are just a couple of glaringly obvious areas that need urgently reviewed but which can bring in much needed extra revenue: LOTTO The fact that the scum have more lotto members than us is disgraceful and although this has been “relaunched” several times it has never really improved. The Trust and several fans offered to take this on board before but predictably we were ignored…..maybe the ideas should now be taken on board as we should have thousands more members than we currently have.

SHOP The recent big sale suggests sales at the shop have had a similar downturn to the home crowds so again we need to look at changing things. I see no reason why we cannot keep the shop at RP but have a modern sports style shop in the town centre. The council were very helpful when the Trust discussed this before so maybe they will have a better relationship now with the club and its new faces.

As I say I could write a full issue of ideas but it would be a pretty crap issue to read……..what new I hear you say!! Anyway, lets see how things develop in the coming weeks and see if we can get some momentum going for the close season to get fans back.

I’m staying positive for now and cant wait to get to the St Johnstone game but I’m realistic too and I suspect the crowd will still be disappointingly low……….once again J really hope that I‘m proved hopelessly wrong.

PREMIERSHIP SACK RACE You really can get a bet on anything these days and if you visit sites likes Paddy Power you will get 66/1 that Alan Pardew will be an Anger Management Expert after he leaves Newcastle. He could then get in tow with a good dentist and the two of them would have the task of sorting out Lennon at the San Giro!!

Anyway, another popular market is always what manager is next to visit the Job Centre, I could find one for the English Premiership but not ours. So I’ve made up a wee list myself and I’ve suggested an unusual replacement for each of those poor wee souls in the Scottish SPFL: NEIL LENNON 10/1 The wee fud has been dropping a few mentions about not being interested in jobs down south….he doth protest too much I fear.

He has a good number all the same as he is almost guaranteed to win the league for a few years yet so I don’t think he will be next to go.

The job at the big Soup Kitchen will attract a big name who is paranoid and obnoxious…………Wenger sounds made for it.

DEREK MCINNES 20/1 This ned has done a decent job and will only go if someone bigger poaches back down south. His replacement would need to learn a foreign language and like farmyard animals…..Arsene Wenger?

STUART MCCALL 12/1 The ginger whinger has done a decent job but appears to be working on an ever decreasing budget. That may eventually piss him off and see him head to a lower league job down south.

To replace him you need to be ginger, like a beer and have the ability to dance on car bonnets……I reckon Cilla Black could be the answer.

JACKIE MCNAMARA 12/1 Another manager who has enjoyed a decent season with a good young team who they have a real chance of Scottish cup glory as they got a bye in the semis. It took him a long time to understand Jim Spence’s accent but he is up and running now.

I don’t see him leaving any time soon but the job up there requires someone who likes a greasy peh and whose fave colour is tangerine…..Jimmy Calderwood?

JOHN HUGHES 10/1 The annoying twat has had an inconsistent start up north following Butcher but they will probably give him time to get things right so I don’t see him moving. This job needs someone who talks pants and likes running about in the buff…Jordan?

TOMMY WRIGHT 10/1 The little known Saints boss has them in top six and his position looks safe for now. Buzz Aldrin is the obvious replacement as he has experienced the McDiarmid atmosphere on the moon.

TERRY BUTCHER 7/1 The bandage worshipper did a fine job in Inverness but he has been brought back to reality in Embra. They are bottom 6 and in danger of getting dragged into the play off scrap so who knows what will happen.

I don’t expect he will lose his job but its possible and his replacement needs to understand Hibs hand out contracts in hours rather than years……….Jimmy Calderwood never lasts long anywhere!

DEREK ADAMS 6/1 Another manager stuck in the back of beyond but he is a bit of a dick so I’d leave him up there. If they stay up he will probably keep his job but again there are no guarantees. I have to say that earlier in the season I thought they looked rank but they signed a few in January and they have just managed a draw at Parkhead.

He is another one of those blinkered managers who blames everyone else and conveniently misses his own teams misdemeanours……perfect gig for Arsene Wenger?

ALAN ARCHIBALD 5/1 He has created a team that are the Helen Flannigan of the SPFL…….easy on the eyes but they are all t*ts. Having said that they have nothing up top so I might need to reconsider the Helen tag!!

Archibald likes his team to play the ball all around but ultimately they flatter to deceive……a job for Arsene Wenger?

DANNY LENNON 7/2 Another wee ned who, when interviewed, gives the impression he has a bottle of bucky stuck in his back pocket. His job is under threat regardless of what happens this season. There was talk of him getting bumped last season and they are no better this time around.

I suppose the worry thing is that they deservedly gubbed us recently in Paisley. They currently occupy the dreaded 11th spot but I’m sure there are a lot of twists and turns to follow once we hit the post split games. Lennon’s replacement needs to talk with a glesga accent and have the look of a weegie ned….Rab C Nesbitt?

ALAN JOHNSTON 7/2 We have just had a great win at Motherwell but overall AJ and his arse of a sidekick have failed to impress. Regardless of our off field problems, we have struggled nearly all year on the pitch as well and I’m afraid that I have no confidence that the current management team are capable of improving us if they are still here next year.

It may sound a bit brutal but I’d punt them in the summer regardless and bring in some good qualified Killie folk. How about a Gary Holt/Dylan Kerr/Kris Boyd dream team?

GARY LOCKE 4/9 FAV Their troubles are well documented but I’m afraid JJ’s long lost son will be sacrificed in the summer. Any new boss coming in will have a reduced budget and a lot of hard work…….I’d give it to Helen Flannigan…..at least she’d bring the crowds in!

HOW OTHERS SEE US? If you are on t’internet you will probably be aware that some football fans visit as many grounds as they can and post a blog about each trip, We have printed a few of these in the past and it’s always interesting to hear someone else’s take on our hallowed ground.

Here’s a blog from a guy who made the pre-season trip to the Newcastle game, it makes for some good reading – Probably for the only time this season, a chance to see Newcastle United on an unvisited ground as the club sent a development team up to Rugby Park to face a Kilmarnock XI. Also after the exploits in Europe last season, this is the closest I’ll get to see the club play in another country for quite a while, as I continue to slowly work my way through the Scottish 42.

The football club's foundation dates back to that same old chestnut of local cricketers looking to keep themselves occupied in a sporting capacity during the long winter months. During this time football was in its infancy in Scotland, playing a game similar to rugby, hence the connection to the oval shaped game giving the club its eventual ground name. The cricket club formed to play the associated rules of football on the 5th January 1869 during a general meeting at Robertson's Temperance Hotel on Portland Street.

Kilmarnock joined the Scottish League in 1885, twice becoming the Second Division champions to gain election to the top flight. They had originally made their competitive bow in the Scottish Cup in 1873, a trophy they went onto lift in 1920 against Albion Rovers and a second success in 1929, beating the mighty Rangers 2-0 in front of a 114,708 Hampden crowd.

The club's greatest achievement came in the year of this author’s birth when under the management of Willie Waddell, the club were Scottish champions for the first and only time in 1965. Since then they’ve won a third Scottish Cup in 1997 and more recently the Scottish League Cup in 2012.

Kilmarnock played matches at The Grange, Holm Quarry and Ward's Park before the club moved to Rugby Park in 1877, a ground situated on South Hamilton Street which was shared by the local cricket and rugby teams. Kilmarnock moved a hundred yards to the present Rugby Park in 1899, kicking off in August with a 2-2 draw with the then-reigning champions Celtic. The club’s very first game in the top division was watched by a crowd of 11,000.

The ground was originally constructed with a running track, a pavilion and a barrel-roofed main stand along the west side. In 1935 a covered structure, later known as the Johnny Walker Stand (because of its roof advert) was added to part of the south terrace which brought the capacity up to 35,000.

Floodlights first came to light in 1953, before a roof was added to the east enclosure in 1959 and the opposite stand was renovated during the 1960–61 season. It was during this era that Rugby Park witnessed a record gate, as 35,995 fans saw Kilmarnock lose 4–2 to Rangers in the Scottish Cup in March 1962.

After the Taylor Report in 1990 the club’s trio of new directors discussed the possibility of relocation to a new 20,000 stadium elsewhere, but after three years of pursuing this possibility, the board decided to redevelop Rugby Park by replacing the three sides of terrace with seated stands, plus replacing the banking and surrounding track.

The new Rugby Park was rebuilt during the 1994–95 season, the capacity significantly reduced as the construction of three new stands gave the stadium a capacity of 18,128 on completion.

For this game the only survivor from the old era was opened; the Main Stand on the west side of the ground, which also has a quartet of floodlights on the roof, which are more prominent in appearance. The stand is smaller than the rest with the blue seats split into three small sections. The team dugouts are on this side, changing rooms and the Sports Bar (opened 2004) towards the south side of the stand. The toilets and refreshment bars are tucked under the stand and I especially liked the memorabilia and programmes on display as I bought my Killie Pie and half-time cuppa.

I left Newcastle on the 0926 Northern Rail rattler to Carlisle, then after a brief breakfast stop caught the First ScotRail service to Glasgow Central via Dumfries service, arriving at my destination at 1pm Before match time I had a few drinks in the GBG listed Wheatsheaf Inn (another ‘Spoons) and the Brass & Granite, although the sign outside read ‘Bas & Gr’.

When I travel away for games I'm always well organised, equipped with a printed map; plotting the pubs to visit and obviously directions to the ground. As far as this brand new season is concerned I'm just not in the groove yet, no thorough preparation made and just relying on Google Maps on my phone to get me through the afternoon. So as sods law would have it, I couldn't get a GPS signal or an internet connection, having to rely on a town centre info board map to find the B*a*s & Cr***** and Rugby Park.

Kilmarnock Rugby Football Club was clearly marked on the town map so I headed off in that direction, until it dawned on me that no floodlights had yet to come into view, plus I had an inkling that I was going the wrong way. I approached a lad and asked if I was heading on the right track and he told me it was in the opposite direction, but he would show me to way.

As it turned out this canny lad was a Killie fan and he told me he’s one of many supporters to give up his season ticket until the removal of the current regime, only supporting the club away from home, with a trip to Aberdeen next week his first match of the season. I told him that I understood, as I too gave up my season ticket which I held for donkeys’ years, because of my own club’s inept and pathetic hierarchy. (I was heading towards a rugby ground by the way) Rugby Park hosted its first game of the season the previous evening in a 2-2 draw with Carlisle United, so for their second fixture in the space of 24 hours a Kilmarnock U-20 team hosted the Newcastle U-21 side. The match itself definitely won’t rank as the greatest I’ll see this season as the game looked to be heading for a 0-0, as far as quality is concerned, a potential goalless draw in a pre-season friendly sums up how poor it was.

Kilmarnock were the brighter side throughout and carved out the better chances, their efforts finally rewarded with 20 minutes remaining when Craig Slater capitalised on misplaced back pass to poke the ball home from close range, then in the final minutes Stewart ran on to a through ball and calmly lobbed to ball over Alnwick to seal the win.

Peter Beardsley’s young side looked out of sorts, with too many passes going astray and attacking play easily snuffed out by the young Kilmarnock side. The U-21 team aren't playing in the image of their manager, as one of the greatest players to wear the black and white shirt, more like the mirror image of the great man – not too pretty in the looks department!

The return home was a long slog. I usually like to get back as quick as possible but I had to wait until 6.25pm to catch the train to Carlisle, where I then had an hour and a quarter to kill before catching the last train home. The 2126 to Newcastle is the train journey I hate the most, the terminated stop being the thirteen along the drunk and disorderly trek through the Tyne Valley. I only spoke to one other Geordie all day, a bloke who seemed lost and pissed up outside the ground asked me how to get to the turnstiles. I saw him again at all three train stations on the route home.

It seems like we were the only two to make this trip as everyone else wearing Newcastle colours had Scottish accents, although the NUFC first time play at Blackpool today, so I imagine the Toon Army have invaded the north-west holiday capital instead of seeing the stiffs north of the border. I finally arrived back home at Gallowgate View at 1130 totally cattle-trucked but it was well worth the effort in achieving my 28th Scottish League tick and my 121st ground watching NUFC, at the splendid arena of Rugby Park.

(MORE) WHERE ARE THEY NOW? We have done a couple of these articles in the past and will continue to do so as long as we can come up with some hidden gems. As things stand many Killie fans would like AJ to be included on one of these articles shortly but the boss is getting plenty of stick elsewhere so we wont put the boot in.

ANTONIO CALDERON Many of you will remember the classy midfielder who made 50 appearances for Killie during 2001 – 2002 scoring 3 goals in the process. Calderon had been brought to this country by Steve Archibald who was bringing some Spanish players to Scotland. The midfielder initially signed for Airdrie before signing for Killie then moving to Raith Rovers as player manager.

He left Raith in 2004 and returned to Spain to continue his management career and has been boss at Huesca (twice), Albacete and Tenerife. His second spell at Huesca in the Spanier second tier ended in December so can I be tye first person to throw his name in the hat for the Killie job if/when it becomes available.

JESUS SANJUAN We’ll keep it Spanish and have a quick look at Calderon’s fellow countryman who came over to Scotland at the same time. Jesus was another midfielder who could also play at sweeper. He retired at the relatively young age of 32 and the story was that he was one of the guys who continued to receive a wage from the club long after he stopped playing.

Jesus also returned to Spain and since leaving football he has set up a charitable foundation with his brother to help in the fight against cancer and he also runs a leisure company organising golf trips to Scotland. Keep your eyes peeled if you ever pay a visit to Royal Caprington Golf and Country Club.

DAVID FERNANDEZ We may as well complete the Spanish trio with the classy Fernandez. He was a superb player for Livingston and earned himself a move to Celtic before the pinnacle of his career at Killie. He was never the same player after thug Gary Caldwell did him at RP, it still makes my blood pressure rise.

DF also returned to Spain (whats wrong with the Killie climate?) and is currently working as a scout for none other than Man City.

RYAN O’LEARY Ryan had two spells with Killie and was one of those players who looked to have all that was needed to be a decent centre half…….he just never really showed it consistently. Perhaps motivation was part of the problem as his family weren’t short of a quid and I don’t think he was waiting on his Killie pay packet to pay the mortgage.

His second spell ended at Killie last summer and it appears he got himself a contract with LA Blues in America. Now here is an interesting bit of tittle tattle that may or may not be true. One wag in the Howard reckons that as well as playing over there he is also doing some modeling work!! Can any of you Killie fans out there confirm or deny? If true it will make him the first Killie model since Stevie Murray was snapped up by Mothercare.

RORY BOULDING This is a little bit different but bear with me and you will get the drift. Boulding signed for Killie in July 2012 but was a bit of an invisible man. He is credited with four appearances but he didn’t manage to find the net and after only six months he was punted in January 2013.

That’s where the whole thing gets interesting as he signed for Dundee Utd. He was equally popular up there and made five appearances before getting released last summer. The one omission is that he scored one goal and a huge goal it was as well. Deep into injury time in the final pre split fixture he scored the goal that secured Utd’s place in the top six and left us in the bottom half……..he wont be Kenny Shiels favourite player I bet. He appears to have been lost to football but please get in touch if you know what he is up to now.

GEORGES SANTOS Ok folks, this is a wee bit of a brain teaser for you as this guy never actually signed for Killie/ Rewind to our first pre season game in July 2002. We travelled to Dumfries to face Queen of the South and if my memory is right it was chucking it down.

We fielded Santos as a trialist (I think) and the big man scored both goals in a 2 – 1 win. Our next games were in Ireland and I think that was the one and only appearance he made for Scotland’s finest. He is a name that may appear in Killie quizzes, Which Cape Verde striker scored twice for Killie?

We’ll keep sniffing around for old Killie players and management but if you can come up with some little known info then please get in touch. I’d also like to know how many different nationalities have played for us but that may create more questions than answers.

KILLIE BITS + PIECES As you will have read elsewhere the club AGM has finally been announced for May 5th……only about five months late this year. It should be a bit different as we now appear to now have a five man board so I’m keen to hear their thoughts.

It will also be interesting to hear what the manager has to say as he has never had a meeting with any of the fan groups since he came on board. I’m surprised the meeting is being held on a bank holiday Monday but everything should be fine as long as there isn’t a shareholders Monday Club in the afternoon!! >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> There has been plenty happening on the player front so here’s that latest as far as I know. James Fowler has completed his loan spell and was back on the bench at Fir Park. I’d expect him to be here for the rest of the campaign as we don’t really have too many well experienced players. Rory McKeown is still at Cowdenbeath and I think his loan runs until the end of the season.

On the injury front it was bad news this week for young Greg Kiltie. The wee Galston lad has been doing well for Scotland under 17’s and has helped them qualify for the under 17 euro finals.

Sadly he has picked up a nasty ankle injury that will see him miss the rest of the season as well as the finals with Scotland…..get well soon Greg.

The biggest mystery on the injury front has to be Bouzid. He apparently proved his fitness in Januray and earned himself a further six month contract…..but he hasn’t kicked a ball since.

It’s all very strange but along with Darren Barr he spends more time in the treatment room than he does on the pitch and I fancy both will be released in the summer. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Former Killie player Matthew Kennedy has been getting good reviews for his performances with Everton under 21’s however he has been getting shipped around England to gain experience. He recently spent a couple of months at Tranmere in League One and after returning to Goodison Park he has returned to League One but this time with MK Dons, making his debut in a 1 – 0 defeat to league leaders Wolves……….will they now be called Matt Kennedy Dons? >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

NAMES NEEDED FOR TYNECASTLE As we reported in the last issue, the Killie youths have progressed into the semi final of the Scottish Youth Cup after the win against Morton at the Theatre of Pies. The reward is a trip to Tynecastle to face the jambos and we are hoping to run a minibus to hopefully cheer the killie kids to the final.The game was originally planned for April 6th but has been moved to Saturday 12th April with a 2pm kick off. Thats a free weekend so you won’t be missing any first team action. killiehippo@aol.com to book but be quick as it may fill up very quickly.

SPL 8/3/14 KILLIE 4 V 2 HEARTS KILLIE – SAMSON, CLOHESSY, O’HARA, TESSELAAR, PASCALI, ASHCROFT, SLATER, GARDYNE (MUIRHEAD 85), MCKENZIE (NICHOLSON 66), BOYD, KARLSSON (GROS 87) SUBS NOT USED – REGUERO, JOHNSTON, EREMENKO + MAKSIMENKO BOOKED – O’HARA, MCKENZIE + KARLSSON GOALS – WILSON (OG) 27, BOYD 49 + 51, GARDYYNE 72 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> HEARTS – MACDONALD, MCGHEE (MCKAY 86), MCHATTIE, ROBINSON, WILSON, MCGOWAN, PATERSON (KING 55), HAMILL (MCCALLUM 61), CARRICK, STEVENSON, NICHOLSON SUBS NOT USED – RIDGERS, HOLT, OLIVER + BEITH BOOKED – MCGHEE + MCHATTIE GOALS – CARRICK 30 + NICHOLSON 69 REF – E NORRIS

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DICK OF THE DAY – ROMANOV I could have given the gong to Gary Locke but the poor guy has enough on his plate just now. He may also read the other article in this issue and realize he is odds on to lose his job in the summer so

enough is enough.

This was a must win game for Killie and thankfully we managed it but sadly mad vlad has vanished somewhere in eastern Europe and we’ll never have the displeasure of welcoming him again to the Theatre of Pies. I’ve no idea how we will get the gong to the (not so) great man but if anyone is heading to Siberia for their summer holidays, give me a shout.

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This was a game we simply had to win and thankfully we did. It maybe wasn’t the greatest performance and there were a few flutters along the way but at this stage of the season the result is the only thing that matters.

If we retain our SPFL status this season the one man we have to thank is Boydy.

The big man has been excellent in his second spell at his local club and god knows where we be without him…….god bless Tarbolton!

DON’T MISS THIS FOLKS

SPL 14/3/14 KILLIE 0 V 3 CELTIC KILLIE – SAMSON, CLOHESSY, O’HARA, TESSELAAR, PASCALI, ASHCROFT, SLATER, GARDYNE (EREMENKO 62), MCKENZIE (MUIRHEAD 87), BOYD, KARLSSON (JOHNSTON 66) SUBS NOT USED – REGUERO, GROS, NICHOLSON + MAKSIMENKO BOOKED – PASCALI GOALS – NADA >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> CELTIC – FORSTER, MATTHEWS, IZZAGUIRE, JOHANSEN (BOERIGGTER 87), AMBROSE, MULGREW, BROWN, COMMONS, STOKES, GRIFFITHS (PUKKI 75), HENDERSON (KAYAL 82) SUBS NOT USED – ZALUSKA, BALDE, SAMARAS + O’CONNELL BOOKED – NONE GOALS – COMMONS 57, 59 + 86 REF – W COLLUM

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DICK OF THE DAY – CHELTENHAM BOSS It truly is an eye opener to stand and sell the fanzine while clocking some of the low life that pass themselves off as football fans. If the papers suggest again these are the greatest fans in the world I will invite the journo to come and stand with me at the next game.

Anyway this was probably worse than normal as it was played on a Friday night on the same day as the Cheltenham Gold Cup. Many folk make a day o it so I reckon there were twice as many drunk folk as normal. The award goes to the racing guru who moved the gold cup from Thursday to Friday a feew years back, they really need to consider fanzine sellers when making these decisions.

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The vast majority of Killie fans expected absolutely nothing from this game and that is precisely what we got. We did ok in the opening half and there wasn’t a great deal between the teams. You just knew they would step it up after the break however and once the opening goal went in you visibly saw the heads go down…..similar to what we did at Parkhead. Anything we got here was always going to be a bonus so its just a case of putting it behind us and moving on to the important fixtures ahead.

SPL 22/3/14 DONS 2 V 1 KILLIE ABERDEEN – LANGFIELD, LOGAN, CONSIDINE, FLOOD, ANDERSON, REYNOLDS, MCGINN (MCMANUS 86), JACK, ROONEY, SMITH, LOW (ROBSON 61) SUBS NOT USED – WEAVER, TATE, SHAUGHNESSEY, ZOLA + VERNON BOOKED – NONE GOALS – ROONEY 17 JACK 72 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> KILLIE – SAMSON, CLOHESSY, TESSELAAR, ASHCROFT, PASCALI, MAKSIMENKO, MCKENZIE, NICHOLSON, BOYD, GARDYNE (EREMENKO 69), JOHNSTON (KARLSSON HT) SUBS NOT USED – REGUERO, IRVINE, O’HARA, SLATER + MUIRHEAD BOOKED – NONE GOALS – BOYD 11 REF – C THOMSON

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DICK OF THE DAY – JOHN HUGHES This was never going to be an easy trip as the sheep worriers are having a decent season.Probably the key to this game was six days earlier when the Dons faced Inverness in the

League cup final.

The best scenario for Killie fans was for Inverness to get a win and the dons would be coming into this game on a downer. Unfortunately Yogi’s mob bottled the penalty shoot out and Aberdeen won their first trophy for god knows how many years. The upshot was a big crowd on a high and another poor day for Killie. I could blame the Inverness players who missed the spot kicks but I’ll give the gong to yogi as the poor players probably never understood a word he said….just like the rest of us. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> This was another game where we weren’t really expecting anything but hopes were raised after Boydy fired us into an early lead following a lung bursting run from McKenzie. Sadly it was all downhill from there and in all honesty we never really looked like even getting a point. Most seasons we say there is nothing between most of the teams in the league but this time there is a noticeable gap between top 6 and bottom 6.

SPL 29/3/14 WELL 1 V 2 KILLIE MOTHERWELL – NIELSEN, REID, HAMMELL, LASLEY, HUTCHISON, MCMANUS, AINSWORTH (LEITCH 69), VIGURS, MOORE (ANIER 68), SUTTON, FRANCISANGOL (KERR 89) SUBS NOT USED – ERWIN, STEWART, MURRAY + THOMAS BOOKED – LASLEY GOALS – VIGURS 41 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> KILLIE – SAMSON, CLOHESSY (BARBOUR 55), TESSELAAR, ASHCROFT, MAKSIMENKO, MCKENZIE (NICHOLSON 84), SLATER, MUIRHEAD, IRVINE, EREMENKO, BOYD SUBS NOT USED – REGUERRO, FOWLER, GROS, GARDYNE + BOUZID BOOKED – CLOHESSY GOALS – MCKENZIE 66 + SLATER 90 REF – B MADDEN

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DICK OF THE DAY – CRAIG SLATER It was quite a difficult decision who to awrd this weeks award to as I basically had three contenders. My first thought was Keith Lasley, a dirty wee rocket who seems to gt booked every time we play them. Motherwell aren’t shy at sticking the boot in and Lasley normally leads the way. Secondly I thought of our manager for not picking Barbour all season. He came on today and showed what we have been missing, I hope he makes the right back position his own though I hear he doesn’t like AJ and may leave in the summer. However I gave the award to Craig Slater for his own good. He scored his first senior goal in the 90th minute to secure us three vital points…..you just need to bring these youngsters back down to earth once in a while. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Another tricky away fixture but we managed to upset the form book and grab a massive three points. It was all the more admirable since we went behind just before half time. The second half saw us show a bit of grit and there’s nothing quite like grabbing an injury time winner. If we win next week we may be within touching distance of safety……..thats a big IF.

LOOK WHO ELSE CAMPAIGNED

Here’s an exclusive recent pic from the Howard Park when anti Johnston fans clashed with the board (in disguise obviously). It’s a bit of a MJ v MJ situation but things broke up when stewards rushed the scene and chucked out folk who were carrying offensive cartons of diet ribena.