Transcript
KILLIE HIPPO AN UNOFFICIAL KILLIE FANZINE
ISSUE NO.119
LET THE PARTY BEGIN
• CUP FINAL REFLECTIONS
• OUR DAY IN THE SUN
• A HUGE HIPPO ANNOUNCEMENT £1.50
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SHOOTING FROM THE HIPPO I’m not one to repeat stuff in every issue (aye right) but here are the final words in the editorial in issue 118……” The players and management have a chance to be raised to legendary status if we can win the major trophy that has thus far eluded us get yourself along to Hampden and play your part in Killie creating a wee bit of history……MON THE KILLIE!” You may think that enough time has elapsed to return to normal but I simply can’t wipe the big daft grin off my big daft coupon. I honestly never thought a League Cup win would ever compare to 1997 but this really was every bit as good. I think the fact we were massive underdogs meant nobody was expecting anything so when big Dieter propelled himself to legendary status the huge outburst of celebrations was totally understandable. Our season effectively ended at that point given our mid-table safety although I’m sure KS won’t see it that way. I’d just like to give a massive thanks to every single player and every member of the management team who have created history and completed Killie’s major honours treble. Many great players and teams from the past have tried their utmost to win this trophy but it’s the current crop of players and management who will go down as legends in the history books. The post split fixtures have just started and the best we can hope for is to finish top of the bottom six. There is still pride and some cash to play for as every league position is worth circa £90k and every penny is a prisoner at Killie these days. We have a run of three home games in a week and it would have been nice to see the club come up with a promotion to try and get more fans through the gates but I’m not aware of anything at the time of writing. That’s us completed another season of dodgy fanzines and I never fail to be impressed by the quality of articles submitted by Killie fans from all over the town/county/globe. You will see the article in this issue explaining about the improvements we are making to the Hippo for next year. The KFCSA has made giant strides over the last couple of years and rather than doing their own magazine it was decided they could help with the Hippo. The upshot will be a regular income for the KFCSA which will mean a benefit to the members as there will be more funds to help clubs, run competitions, hold events etc. Please keep sending your articles as it really does make a difference. There have been a few rumours about pre season friendlies in July. I believe we ae trying to secure games with Wrexham and Oldham however we have failed to agree a suitable date with Tranmere. I’m sure details will be known shortly and I’ll publicise anything I hear on ther websites as sson as I know anything. Hope you all have a great summer and keep sending your thoughts on anything that’s Killie related. Sandy
KILLIE’S HAT-TRICK HEROES –
part three Writes Mark McNaught
Hat-tricks have been a bit of a rarity in "the modern era", which began on 1
January 1970 for the purposes of this article. Killie had of course scored 30
hat-tricks (or better) in the 1960s – the club’s most illustrious era – and this
figure has yet to be matched in the years that have passed since then. There
have been 27 hat-tricks in the last 41 years, but – on the “up” side – every
one has seen the team win!
In many ways the figures for multiple-goal exploits mirror Killie’s fortunes
over all. There were nine in the 1970s as the club suffered relegation from
the “old” First Division just eight years after being crowned champions of
Scotland, went part-time and became a “yo-yo” team in the restructured
league, bouncing between the new 10-team Premier Division and the “new”
First.
Eddie Morrison hit Killie’s last-ever hat-trick in the pre-restructuring top
division in a 1970 4-2 home win against Partick Thistle. He got another two
for a Killie career total of three, the last one coming in the “old” Division
Two as Eddie grabbed 25 for Killie in the 1973/74 promotion season, but he
was outgunned by Ian Fleming, who notched 33, including two hat-tricks, as
Killie hit a record 96 goals in the league. Fleming added another in the
following season’s League Cup for a Killie career total of three hat-tricks,
making him and Morrison the third and second-last players to record a hat-
trick of hat-tricks for the club.
But things were about to get a lot leaner for the Rugby Park team. They
finished 12th in the last-ever Division One, missing “the cut” for the new 10-
team Premier Division, but finished second in the new First Division the
following season to rejoin the top flight. There wasn’t a hat-trick in either
season.
The 1976/77 season was a bit of a disaster. Killie won just four matches and
accumulated only 17 points, finishing bottom, but at least Ian Fallis got a
hat-trick in a 6-1 home win against Ayr United, the last Killie player to get
one in a derby. Iain “Cowboy” McCulloch scored his only Killie hat-trick as
Killie failed to bounce back in 1977/78, and John Bourke did the same the
following season, although this time another second-place finish saw Killie
return to the top league.
There would be only four hat-tricks in the 1980s – Killie’s most inglorious
decade, both for hat-tricks and in general, although Bobby Street got the
decade off to a good start with all the goals in a 3-1 home win against Hibs
on 5 January 1980 as part-time Killie “survived” in the top league.
The next Killie hat-trick was scored by Brian Gallacher as the Scottish
League experimented with the League Cup format, with four four-team
sections deciding the semi-finalists. It wasn’t popular, with just 1,046 at
Rugby Park to see Gallacher’s hat-trick against Airdrieonians, and the
competition has been settled by knock-out ties ever since.
Killie stumbled on in the First Division for another five seasons without a
hat-trick until the very last match, when of course Willie Watters scored five
against Queen of the South at Palmerston as a 97th-minute penalty kept
Clyde in the league and sent Killie down.
Willie got another two in the Second Division, the last Killie hat-trick of the
1980s and the first of the 1990s, making him the most recent Killie player to
notch a hat-trick of hat-tricks. John Sludden then got one in the Challenge
Cup and Bobby Williamson became the last Killie player to score two
trebles, getting one in the First Division and another in the Scottish Cup.
The 10 Killie hat-tricks since the club returned to the top league have all
been “singles” for the scorers. John Henry got one against Morton as Killie
won the Scottish Cup in 1997, Ally McCoist did the same against Hearts in
1998 – Killie’s first top-league hat-trick since Bobby Street in 1980 – and
Paul Wright’s only senior hat-trick came at a fog-bound Love Street in a 3-1
Boxing Day win in 2000.
Gary McSwegan then got four against Hibs in 2003, but Kris Boyd went one
better the following year with five against Dundee United. Colin Nish got a
hat-trick against Livingston in 2005, and three of the last four Kilmarnock
hat-tricks have come in the League Cup thanks to Steven Naismith and most
recently the two Dubliners, Connor Sammon a year ago and Paul Heffernan
in this season’s glorious competition, with Kevin Kyle getting Killie’s last
league hat-trick to date in April 2009. Heffernan’s hat-trick was the 164th in
Killie’s history.
Details below. Home matches in BOLD CAPITALS, away matches in caps
lower case, with the one "neutral venue" hat-trick indicated under
"Competition".
"Div. One" and "Div. Two" refer to the two Scottish divisions prior to
reconstruction for the 1975/76 season, "SLC" = Scottish League Cup, "SPL"
refers to the post-reconstruction top league in its many guises.
Date Scorer Goals Opposition Score Competition
13
8
25 February 1970 Morrison 3 PARTICK
THISTLE
4-2 Div. One
13
9
26 August 1972 Morrison 3 STENHOUSE
MUIR
3-1 SLC
14
0
16 March 1974 Morrison 3 STRANRAER 4-1 Div. Two
14
1
23 March 1974 Fleming 3 Forfar Athletic 5-3 Div. Two
14
2
16 April 1974 Fleming 3 QUEEN’S
PARK
5-0 Div. Two
14
3
14 August 1974 Fleming 3 Stranraer 5-0 SLC
14
4
30 October 1976 Fallis 3 AYR UNITED 6-1 SPL
14
5
15 March 1978 McCulloch 3 MONTROSE 5-1 1st Div.
14
6
23 January 1979 Bourke 3 HAMILTON 4-0 1st Div.
14
7
5 January 1980 Street 3 HIBERNIAN 3-1 SPL
14
8
7 September 1983 Gallacher 3 AIRDRIEONI
ANS
3-0 SLC
14
9
13 May 1989 Watters 5 Queen of the
South
6-0 1st Div.
15
0
23 December 1989 Watters 3 ARBROATH 3-0 2nd
Div.
15
1
24 February 1990 Watters 3 Berwick Rangers 4-1 2nd
Div.
15
2
2 October 1990 Sludden 3 STIRLING
ALBION
4-1 Challenge
Cup
15
3
2 February 1991 Williamson 3 CLYDEBANK 3-0 1st Div.
15
4
9 January 1993 Williamson 3 RAITH
ROVERS
5-0 Scottish Cup
15
5
8 March 1997 Henry 3 Greenock
Morton
5-2 Scottish Cup
15
6
30 August 1998 McCoist 3 HEART OF
MIDLOTHIAN
3-0 SPL
15
7
26 December 2000 Wright 3 St Mirren 3-1 SPL
15
8
5 April 2003 McSwegan 4 HIBERNIAN 6-2 SPL
15
9
25 September 2004 Boyd 5 DUNDEE
UNITED
5-2 SPL
16
0
27 August 2005 Nish 3 LIVINGSTON 3-0 SPL
16
1
30 January 2007 Naismith 3 Falkirk 3-0* SLC
(Neutral
venue)
16
2
11 April 2009 Kyle 3 FALKIRK 3-0 SPL
16
3
25 August 2010 Sammon 3 AIRDRIE
UNITED
6-2 SLC
16
4
20 September 2011 Heffernan 3 QUEEN OF
THE SOUTH
5-0 SLC
Killie’s all-time hat-trick heroes (I list only those who got three or more – a
hat-trick of hat-tricks, so to speak).
Culley 10
Kerr 8
Maxwell 8
Campbell 7
Cunningham 6
McIlroy 6
Collins 4
Robertson 4
Fleming 3
Maitland 3
McInally 3
McLaren 3
Morrison 3
Watters 3
Weir 3
As for the opposition, Killie’s biggest “victims” have been Queens Park and
Airdrieonians, who have both conceded eight hat-tricks, with Airdrie United
also conceding one.
As for this season’s SPL, Dundee United have conceded seven (curiously,
there has only been one Killie hat-trick against Dundee), while Hibernian
and St Johnstone have both conceded six. There has never been a Killie hat-
trick against either Celtic or Inverness Caledonian Thistle.
8 Airdrieonians (also one against Airdrie united)
8 Queens Park
7 Dundee United, Falkirk
6 Hibernian, St Johnstone, Morton, Hamilton, Clyde, Partick Thistle,
Raith Rovers
5 Ayr United (also one against Ayr), Dumbarton
4 Hearts, Motherwell
3 Dunfermline
2 Rangers, Aberdeen, St Mirren
There’s more on this (and Killie, Scotland and football in general) on my
blog, thefuturesbrightitsblueandwhite.blogspot.com, and an article will also
appear on Wikipedia.
Hippo says – Huge thanks to Mark for all the hard work he has put into the
“hat trick” articles over the last three issues.
A couple of the hat tricks mentioned stick in my mind for different reasons.
Lord Watters goals at Palmerston were fantastic but of course the game will
always be remembered for our relegation.
A great and more recent memory was Naismith’s tremendous trio in the semi
final against Falkirk………I prefer to think about the semi final rather than
the final!!!
Reflections from
Dunblane Hi Sandy
I know that you will receive lots of stuff on this, so here is a very brief
summary:
"My daughter Caroline & I started off with breakfast in Dunblane and a lift
from my wife (thanks Maureen) who dropped us outside Clockwork just
before 12.00.
Several drinks and a light lunch later, we meandered up to Hampden in the
company of a great guy (Dan) who happens to be a Celtic supporter.
The game takes care of itself; suffice to say that it almost felt surreal as we
are not expected to beat Celtic in Glasgow!
Possibly the best bit was later at night. We arrived for a few refreshments at
the Tappit Hen pub in Dunblane, where we are well-known Killie fans.
There was a bit of karaoke going on. Neither of us can figure out how it
came to pass that the whole pub ended up singing Paper Roses, but it was
f***ing brilliant!"
Best wishes
Dave Howie
Hippo says – Superb mate and I never thought I’d say a Lague Cup win
would be better than a Scottish Cup win……but this was every bit as good if
not better.Perhaps the after match celebrations in the town were better back
in 1997 however the game itself was far more enjoyable. We were probably
more relaxed as we were underdogs….. I was as relaxed as a newt come
midnight!!
Reflections from
Singapore
I bet you wish you were here now!", so read a dozen texts after the final whistle. Of course I did, the memories of the '97 cup win and the celebrations on John Finnie street were as clear as they had been for years, although that clarity was a minor miracle based on the amount of scotch I had consumed during the match! Of course I wanted to be amongst the delirious celebrations I was watching on the internet stream. Thank god for a proxy which allowed my to revel in the celebrations (and in the sad bbc commentators faces on the final whistle). The game kicked off here at 11pm local time. I had been back for the semi but with the cup final on a Sunday it was going to require me to take about 1 week off work and I just couldn't take the time. If I'm honest, I also didn't want a repeat of the least two league cup finals I had attended. I thought there was a wee chance we could sneak it but I just didn't have the faith as I should have. My day was a pretty standard Sunday and the game was preceded by a couple of other matches which I could never recall any details on now. I settled down to watch the bbc stream with a large glass of Talisker and the usual nervous optimism. In the back of my mind I was just thinking about the two games against Rangers that I had watched from the same seat, we could do this couldn't we? I had thought about inviting some friends round to watch the game but I'm no company for others at times like this. I wish I had though, we could have had a new branch of the supporters club by now! The first few minutes were not good and then it got worse with big Momo, as he hit that awful pass I thought that was it, then Cammy came to the rescue. Was it a sign, no it was too early in the match wasn't it? The rest of the game is a bit of a blur to be honest, the Talisker was rapidly consumed and as the game went on I become more confident. It was starting to feel that it just might be our day. Deano then had his chance. I leapt to my feet screaming as he fluffed his shot…NOOO! How could you miss that!! The game wore on. I started to think extra time and penalties. The boys had done good. At least we could be proud of their efforts no matter what the result. Then we broke. The ball went out to the left, Johnson took the pass, moved to the line and swung a cracking cross in.
And, wait, there was a wall of yellow in the box, could it be, it could! Big DVT smacked the ball into the back of the net!! I reckon I woke my entire building up with my celebrations. That's a fair feat as we are 46 floors and I'm on the ground! The next minutes were the longest ever. Then the extra time, where did all that come from? And then their penalty shout. Reminded me a lot about a certain one they were given before, a dutch fellow that looked a bit like a horse. Karma? I'm not a big believer but as I'm in Asia maybe it's time to accept that perhaps this just does happen. It would be amiss to talk about my memories of the game without mentioning the sad loss of Jack Kelly. I noticed something not quite right about Kenny at the final whistle, I couldn't put my finger on it at the time but it really just appeared that there was something wrong. Now we know that, sadly, he had become aware of the tragic circumstances occurring at exactly the same time his team had given the whole town a joyous occasion. It has been said in many places that Jack was able to see his son reach such a highlight of his career, hopefully there is some comfort for the family in this fact. The text's came flooding in. Yes, I do wish I was there to celebrate but at the same time I was just so happy for the town and for all the fellow Killie fans who like me have waited so long. I started supporting the team the year we got relegated to the old 2nd division. Went to every game home and away until I left the country, witnessing our rise back to the top league. We, the fans, deserved this. Being over 10,000km away must have been really hard before technology. It's pretty easy now. Facebook, twitter, YouTube and others all make it feel as if your not far away. Yes I wish I was there but really, I did feel like I was. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
R.I.P. ARTHUR CAMPBELL
We mentioned in the last issue that great Killie fan Arthur was in poor
health, sadly Arthur passed away on April 17th at the ripe old age of 86. I
attended the funeral and was touched by the lovely words of son John during
the church service.
Arthur was a great family man and a massive Killie fan, something that was
mentioned at various points during the service. Arthur had been awarded the
KFCSA Fan of the Year award last year and it is very humbling to hear the
minister saying how much he loved the award.
Our sincere condolences and best wishes go to Arthur’s family and large
circle of friends at this very sad time.
OUR DAY
IN THE SUN
Well well, where do I begin with our jaunt to Glasgow on Sunday
March 18th……..just a little day out in the sun I suppose. There is
so much to write about (or gloat about) so we’ll bring into
different sections, each one contributing in its own way to one of
the finest ever days in Killie’s fantastic history:
EARLY ROUNDS
Much like our opening game in the 1997 Scottish Cup (home to
East stirling) we started off with a comfortable win against lower
league opposition. Queen of the South brought a decent wee
crowd and I expected a hard game but in all honesty we gubbed
them. Just as we scored a hat trick in 1997 (John Henry at
Morton) we managed a trick here with the Heff doing the
damage.
Next up was East Fife who also brought a decent crowd and they
put up a decent display but we won 2 – 0 and were suddenly in the
semis……..I wonder what the draw would throw up?
CARLSBERG
Carlsberg don’t do semi finals but if they did!!! I can honestly say
that if I had the power to conjure up my ideal cup run it would
probably involve an extra time win over the scum in the semi and
defeating one of the bigots in the final. I hope every Killie fan
realizes what we achieved and the circumstances in which we
achieved it because I very much doubt that we will ever see the
likes again.
2012 V 1997
Since we won the cup there has been a great deal of bar
discussion about how the whole thing compared to the Scottish
Cup win in 1997. I never ever thought I would say a League Cup
would be better than a Scottish Cup win but this was every bit as
good in my opinion, if not better. Let’s have a wee comparison of
the two:
1997 was better in a couple of aspects that I can think of. Firstly
we hadn’t won anything for long and weary so there were a couple
of generations of fans seeing silverware for the first time. The
build up to this game was tremendous and was indeed better that
2012. Every pub/shop/workplace in the town was gripped by cup
fever and the sea of blue and white around the town was
something I’ll never forget.
Subsequently we won the cup and the post match parade around
the town will probably never be bettered. The sight of
grannies/kids/dogs on their front doorsteps welcoming the fans
home was unforgettable and the crowds lining the street for the
open top bus parade brings a tear to the eye. It was good this
time around as well but not quite as memorable as 1997.
In all other aspects however I reckon 2012 takes the biscuit. The
semi final was great in 1997 but beating the scum at hampden in
front of 25000 with a dramatic late winner is a fairytale. An
important factor for the final was this was Hampden rather than
Ibrox and it is a bit more special winning at the national stadium
as it doesn’t happen too often. Indded I’ve written a letter to
Hampden requesting the West Stand be renamed the Dieter End
and that Lesser Hampden is renamed the Theatre of Mini Pies.
In terms of comparing the two finals on the pitch 2012 wins
hands down again. Against Falkirk we were nervous probably due
to the expectancy of us winning. This time we were underdogs and
there was no pressure, Momo was certainly chilled out as he
gifted a sitter to Hooper in the first few minutes. The game was
a decent one for the neutral and could have gone either way. To
score a late winner in front of the Killie fans simply made this a
very very special occasion and it may never be repeated.
I think if I was asked for my lasting memory of the League cup
win it would be the celebration for the goal. I’ve never seen a goal
bring such joy…well not since the semi final at least! There was
hardly a dry eye in the house and the noise for those final few
minutes was incredible.
I’d like to give a special mention to man of the match Cammy Bell
who was simply never going to concede on the day. Every single
player was magnificent but Cammy made several great saves,
many just at a time when you thought Celtic were getting up a
head of steam. I suppose the only down side is that it would have
been noticed by many of his suitors and we will do well to hol on
to him in the summer.
Football is a strange beast all the same and it can bring you back
to earth with a severe bump. The news regarding Liam Kelly’s dad
was tragic in the extreme and it’s impossible to imagine the
emotions that Liam and his family were enduring. One thing that
Liam can be sure of is that his dad passed away as proud as any
dad could be.
Overall it was a once in a lifetime experience and once again I’d
just like to thank every player, management member and most
important my fellow fans for proving once again….You’ll Never
take the Killie.
Reflections from
the Kadi
It was 9am on the Sunday morning and the sun was shining. After
being optimistic the whole week, I thought this was the final
sign!! I went to the Kadikoi for 11 and it was bouncing, could
hardly move for the fans all drinking beer and wine.
We travelled up in the bus and I was with the "young yins" so the
chants of "Hallo..Hallo" and "I'm Killie Till I Die" were in full
swing, the atmosphere was superb. We arrived in Glasgow and
headed straight to the Clockwork, Celtic fans were there but the
Killie boys were the ones making the noise.
As the hype started to increase, it was getting closer and closer
to kick off, it was almost game-time. I managed to get into my
seat at 2.30pm and was glad to see the sea of blue and white! The
teams came out and the amazing card display took place, my seat
was just behind the goals and was perfect for events that
happened later on. I looked around and could see Killie standing up
for themselves against the 39,000 Celtic fans that overpowered
us!! but did they silence us....of course not!!
I sat on the edge of my seat the full first 45 minutes and after
the team surviving Sissoko's scare, I thought to myself "This cup
could be ours" My optimisim was taking over. As I started to bite
my nails, when Celtic lined up for a free-kick in 81 minute, I was
glad to see it blast into the wall and would not prepare myself for
the upcoming events.
I got to my feet when Gordon played down to Johnson, began to
"skip" down a couple of steps as he crossed it and then....GOAL!!!
D.V.T, a memorable feeling as screamed and danced down the
stairs down to the front, I could not believe it!!
I looked around and saw everyone dancing and jumping for joy, it
was unreal!! I spent the next 11 mins on the steps of Hampden,
sitting and praying for Willie Collum's full time whistle. Full-Time
and the minority went into raptures and Celtic streamed for the
exits! The "small" club had won!! Amazing!
I watched Hooky, Pasca and Fow lift the cup through happy tears
as I sang my heart out to Paper Roses. The walk back to bus was
full of songs and chants of "Championees". The bus again was over
the moon and every person we passed got a bang in the
window..etc, even the sad Celtic fan who threw a police cone at
the window wasnt going to dampen our mood.
We arrived back in Killie and we all rushed down to John Finnie
Street for a fantastic street party. The cup was paraded and I
walked behind it with a big smile on my face, I still could not
believe it! All of the fans celebrated at Rugby Park and my
friends and I fired into the Park Hotel. The drinks were flowing
and after being close friends with Hooky, managed to catch a
glimpse of him holding the cup upstairs and got the picture I
dreamt of with him, me and the cup. After several drinks out in
the town, I returned home, loving my club, loving my club's
players and loving my club's fans!! I retired to bed with a Donner
Pizza and a fan of the "Champions".
What a fantastic day!!
Grant Moore
CHAMPIONEES
L/CUP FINAL 18/3/12
KILLIE 1 V 0 CELTIC
KILLIE – BELL, FOWLER, GORDON, NELSON, SISSOKO (KROCA 86), HAY, HARKINS
(VAN TORNHOUT 73), SHIELS, BUIJS (JOHNSON 70), KELLY, HEFFERNAN
SUBS NOT USED – LETHEREN + DAYTON
BOOKED – KELLY + JOHNSON
GOALS – VAN TORNHOUT 84
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
CELTIC – FORSTER, WILSON, MULGREW, ROGNE (KI 56), MATTHEWS, BROWN,
LEDLEY (COMMONS 86), WANYAMA, STOKES, FORREST, HOOPER (SAMARAS 80)
SUBS NOT USED – ZALUSKA + CHA DU-RI
BOOKED – STOKES
GOALS – NO WAY PAST CAMMY
REF – W. COLLUM CROWD - 49572
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
DICK OF THE DAY – BITTER
LENNON
When I left Hampden I honestly didn’t believe there was anything on God’s earth that could make me any happier……then I saw Lennon’s post match interview. The wee twat really can’t help himself and my grin got even bigger the more that he
whined. He lacks class, talks crap and generally has a rant to cover his own shortcomings…….a Scottish version of Neil Warnock if you like. His captain Tatty heid Broon is cut from the same cloth and to hear and see their bitterness made the victory even sweeter….GETITRIGHTUPYE >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
A fantastic and well played to my many Celtic chums who said we totally deserved it. KS had the tactics spot on and his brave substitution of Dieter for Harkins ultimately won us the game. Come on MJ get the DVD sorted out so I can get another guid greet at a Killie cup win.
SOME HOT HIPPO
NEWS
Ok folks, the old fanzine has been running for over 11 years now
and I’ve had to do a lot of soul searching recently. Believe it or
not there is a lot of hard work goes into putting this together and
I have had to make a hard decision that will come as a huge
disappointment to many of you……..no I’m not chucking it, instead
we are going to make the Hippo bigger and better.
I’ve held some discussions with my buddies on the KFCSA who had
been thinking about doing their own magazine but it’s far easier
for them to get on board with the Hippo. Basically what this
means is the KFCSA will have some input into the Hippo and will
help with advertising, marketing and distribution.
Nothing will change in terms of content, it’s all about you guys
sending in your thoughts on all things Killie. Perhaps the biggest
change is that we are jumping into the 21st century and you will
now be able to subscribe for an online version. This is ideal for all
you fans who live far away from the Theatre of Pies and who only
occasionally mange a trip to the games.
We will also be looking to do an interview in every issue as these
tend to be very popular. We will look at doing competitions that
will appeal to you all and all this will help raise funds for both
Hippo Towers and for the KFCSA who are going from strength to
strength. Thanks for your continued support and I can promise
the Hippo is about to get a while lot better……oh and the price
will still be the same.
Reflections from
Killie Couldn't sleep on the Saturday night so was up till silly o'clock. Went to bed around 2 and woke up at 6:30 to the sound of my daughter being sick. Got that sorted and went back to bed only to get woken up again around 8:30 with her vimiting again ..... that put the haw maws on her first ever football game Ran a couple of errands and headed to the Weston with junior in tow all decked out in blue and white. After a pint and a couple of rolls it was onto the bus and off to the game. Got to the turnstile and was asked by a woman if I had a spare ticket as she and her son (around 6yo) were in different stands. Did a swap with my daughters ticket and after another seat swap inside the ground the mother and son ended up sitting together next to us.... even after a steward tried to get involved and feck everything up!!! -- god I hope he was a Celtic fan!!) When the final whistle went I was up on my seat for the duration of the celebrations and unfortunately I could see the events elsewhere taking place and I still feel a bit guilty that I was so happy while it was going on. Back to the bus and got dropped off at Blacks Bar, into the Wellington for a quick beer then onto John Finnie St for the party. Was up the road at 9:30 absolutely buzzing and doing the rounds of various forums. Quote of the day: "My body should be ashamed of itself" -- My 7yo daughter while watching the Killie fans celebrating without her. Chubbs
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HIPPO’S 2011/2012
REVIEW
Once again we have arrived at the end of another long hard season and the
final issue of the Hippo for a few months. It appears more and more
nowadays that the football headlines are all about referee performances,
financial collapse and phsychotic ginger managers however we will try and
include some on-field issues as well!!
If you rewind to last summer you may remember a bit of uncertainty around
the place. We had lost our three most influential players in Eremenko,
Sammon and Bryson so when Kenny Shiels was given the manager’s job on
a rolling contract he had a bit of wheeling and dealing to do to try and
emulate our excellent fifth place finish.
On the squad front KS was saying he wanted to bring in fresh young players
who he could develop into valuable assets for the club. Obviously this had to
be balanced by bringing in some experienced guys and given his budget
restrictions I think he did well. Bringing in son Dean on loan from Doncaster
was probably the key signing for KS although it did mean he had to fork out
extra pocket money for his son.
Our pre season fixtures included a jolly jaunt to Northern Ireland and a
couple of defeats from Premiership sides Blackburn and Sunderland but
performances were decent at times. One obvious aspect to our play was that
KS was going to continue the passing game mentality. As stated before it is
the right way to play the game but it will cause several heart stopping
moments for the East + West stand punters.
August was a decent month for us in general as we went unbeaten in our
opening four games. Our first goal of the season, Rory McKeown at
Tannadice, ended up winning the KFCSA goal of the season. We opened
with three draws plus a convincing win over Hibs however we suffered our
first defeat at the end of the month with a 2 – 1 loss at Inverness.
September started well with a home win against the Pars and a draw at
Aberdeen followed by a Heff hat trick as we battered Queen of the South in
the League Cup. I wonder if any one of the 3091 fans in attendance sensed
this was the beginning of something really special?? We ended the month
with two losses against St Mirren and the tax dodgers.
October saw us lose to St Johnstone before a memorable 3 – 3 draw at home
to Celtic. My only regret here is that we had a mad 10 minutes or else we
may have got rid of the poisoned dwarf who is a constant stain on the
Scottish game……many Celtic fans are beginning to realise what a dick he
really is. We also managed a home win over East Fife in the cup, did anyone
in the 4029 crowd start to dream as that was us in the semis all of a sudden?
The draw saw Killie drawn to play the scum at Hampden, history in the
making as it was the first ever Ayrshire derby played out side the county
borders.
November only saw us play three games but in a way they probably summed
up our whole campaign. We started by losing 6 – 3 at home to Inverness, our
worst performance for many a long day. Our next home game saw us beat
the tax dodgers for the first time in the new Rugby Park. Pasca’s nonchalant
head flick will be remembered for a long time as will is comments about
doing it for a laugh as he thought he was offside. In between times we
managed a draw at Easter Road but the trend seem to be that we raised our
game against the top six and flopped against the bottom six.
December was a bit of a mixed bag with a win at home to the sheep, a draw
away at the arabs then ending the year on a low note with defeats against
Celtic and St Johnstone. The year had ended disappointingly but in all
honesty the talk among the fans was one thing and one thing only….we must
beat the scum in the semi. Anything other than a win didn’t bear thinking
about and as the big day got closer the nerves became more frayed.
2012 started well with a win over St Mirren then we knocked Dundee out
the Scottish Cup and managed a draw at Aberdeen. That left only one “prep”
match before the semi and it couldn’t have gone much worse. We got
gubbed 3 – 0 at home by the seemingly doomed Pars and the only excuse
available could be that the players minds ere elsewhere…..just like every
single Killie fan.
January 28th arrived with Kilie fans travelling from all over the globe to head
up the M77 to witness a bit of Killieshire history. We all know how the
game went with the filth trying to destroy the whole occasion. Thankfully
justice was done and a fine day was had once the tension had lifted. We had
another League Cup final to look forward to and in all fairness it couldn’t
get any better than then semi…..or could it?
We seemed to suffer a bit of reaction to the League Cup exploits by getting
knocked out the Scottish at Easter Road and losing league games to Dundee
Utd and Hibs. Our only win of the month was another memorable OF
victory as we beat the tax dodgers at Ibrox. We also managed a couple of
draws but it seemed we were saving our best performances for the top two.
We entered cup final month looking to get a few results to get us in the right
frame of mind. We started by drawing at home to St Johnstone then
travelled north to Inverness where we got a 1 – 1 draw although KS had put
out a slightly weakened team.
Sunday March 18th
and our day in the sun had arrived. You will see the
“Day in the Sun” article in this issue so we won’t go into great detail but it
was a day never to be forgotten. Given our league position this was pretty
much the climax to our season as we had very little to play for. We were
obviously still on a high as we faced high flying Motherwell the following
week and had a comfortable 2 – 0 win. We then ended the month with a 4 -2
defeat at Paisley, a result that flattered the hosts.
Our final pre-split game was when Celtic came to town needing only a draw
to win the title. We got gubbed 6 – 0 with a performance much the same as
Rangers at the end of last season. I should have been raging but in all
honesty I’ve still got the cup final grin on my face.
That all left us in seventh place with nothing at stake for the rest of the
season other than the opportunity to blood some youngsters maybe. Overall
the season will be remembered for our historic League cup win and rightly
so. The manager has done more than enough to earn an extended contract
and I’m sure he will face another fight in the summer to hold on to some of
our players. His son will be the focus of other club sbut he has stated
publicly that he is enjoying his time at Killie so I’m quietly confident he
might stay. Both Bell and Kelly have rightfully earned plaudits with some
excellent performances and both will attract attention in the summer. We
will sell I’m afraid and some inside info indicates that Cammy may have a
£350k get out clause……..I hope that proves to be a vicious rumour.
As far as budgets are concerned I’m hoping that the pathetic threats from the
chairman were just that and KS should be given the same budget. It goes
without saying that all clubs are suffering financially one way or another and
players are going to have to be realistic when it comes to negotiating new
contracts…..roll on the summer sales!!
REVIEW OF THE REST
At my age the capability of the brain is severely restricted and when it
comes to football my brain only has time for Killie. As far as our SPL rivals
are concerned I only have snapshots of their season so please don’t chin me
if some of this is wholly inaccurate…….any way here are my thoughts on
the other 11 wallopers:
ABERDEEN – From a distance it seems the fans are unhappy with the
manager, unhappy with the chairman and the team on the park is pretty
sh*t…..happy days. They have just lost the Scottish Cup semi final to Hibs
and they have finished in the bottom six, I wonder if wee Craig will still be
there in the summer or if he will jump on a one way saga bus to a Largs
retirement home?
CELTIC – I’d like to thank Neil Lennon for his infamous “treble” interview
where he intimated that it was a formality. It was a huge inspiration to both
Killie and Hearts in gubbing them in both cups. The truth of the matter is
that Killie won an unblemished cup, Hearts/Hibs will win an unblemished
cup and the bigots won a tainted title……the sooner we see the back of
Lennon the better for Scottish football as a whole.
DUNDEE UTD – Peter Houston has done a good job with the arabs in my
humble opinion. Much like Killie they lost a whack of their best players but
Houston has been very shrewd with his replacements. Any manager that can
get Jon Daly as a nominee for POTY must be doing something right!!
Regardless of how the league table ends up I’d say that Utd are definitely the
third best team on their day and they will also have to fight off clubs chasing
their young talent in the summer.
DUNFERMLINE – I was pleased to see the Pars come up last year but hey
have been a huge disappointment both on and off the park. It should be
pointed out that like us they have a ridiculous amount of debt and there was
no money for Jimmy Mac to try and help them survive in the SPL. The
timing of his sacking was a bit strange and JJ would need a miracle to keep
them up. Assuming they go down it will be interesting to see how they
readjust financially to life in League One, badly I suspect. It will also be
interesting to see if JJ is up for the fight to get them straight back up, again I
have my doubts.
HEARTS – I can’t help but smile when I think about this lot although I do
feel sorry for the crap their fans have to put up with from their owner.
Incredibly some of them still support Mad Vlad so perhaps his madness is
spreading. My thoughts for this season are all directed towards the Killie
players who headed there. They all may have got a wage rise (when they are
paid) however all have gone backwards in my book. Kyle has packed them
in and is reportedly going to be a Financial advisor. From what I can see he
must have been financially advising Rangers for the last twenty years or so!!
Mehdi has been a bit player whilst Hamill has done ok but is getting some
dogs abuse from the Jambos on their website……..my thoughts at the time
were he;d be better staying at Killie and I stick by that.
HIBS – A strange lot because all I can think of is Pizza + chips at their pie
huts but that’s just my belly ruling my head. On the field they have been
pretty poor although being a lowly team they will also get plenty of points
from Killie. At the time of writing they are sitting second bottom but it
would take a miracle for the Pars to catch them. Much like Killie they may
well have a season that will be remembered for a cup win although I fancy
Hearts to beat them. They simply don’t seem to have recovered from the loss
of Colin Nish!!!
INVERNESS – It’s going to be good next year for the Howard boozehounds
with jaunts both here and Dingwall. Butcher does a decent job up there but
they have been disappointing to me this year. They were always hard to beat
at home however, with the exception of Killie games, they have lost a lot.
I’ll use this opportunity to ask the SPL not to schedule us to go there in
December again!!
MOTHERWELL – Arguably team of the year as they have showed a
consistency rarely seen by the provincial teams, although it should be
pointed out they haven’t beaten us all season. McCall has done well and the
fact they were pushing for second place for a while has to be commended.
He probably won’t have much in the way of funds come the summer but
they always look like a top six side to me these days.
RANGERS – A classic case of a club run by egotistical individuals with no
regard for fans. Who knows how it will all end up but the SPL better not
bend all the rules to suit this corrupt lot…….you do the crime you do the
time as they say. This season can be summed up in one word – cheerio.
ST MIRREN – Danny Lennon has improved them this year but ultimately
their end position will be much the same although relegation was never an
issue really. They try and get the ball down and play on the deck and can
look decent on their day. Thomson has been a decent signing and will get his
fair share of goals. Killie always take a good crowd up there and it’s a
decent boozehound day out.
ST JOHNSTONE – A good season considering every home game has a
“closed door” atmosphere. I reckon their front two have been the main
reason for their top six finish and they will struggle to keep Sandaza and
Sheridan for next year.
KILLIE TRUST
5-A-SIDES
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