Spirits will have been high at the club this week following last week's victory over Hearts. We weren't terrific, particularly in the first half, but we got the job done and merited the win based on the second half. There seems to be a consensus among the fans that we have yet to hit top gear in any game so having nine points in those circumstances is pretty good going. Knowing our luck when we do finally get firing on all cylinders we'll probably be on the receiving end of a defeat!
Games between ourselves and Kilmarnock seemed to be pretty entertaining last season, probably because we have similar styles of play. Both teams try to get the ball down and produce attractive football, rather than hoofing it forward and seeing what happens. It doesn't always lead to the best of results but when the two sides meet it seems to produce goals and also played a huge part in us ending our long wait for a league win last season when we beat them just before the split. Unfortunately we no longer have Nigel Hasselbaink as he seemed to rather enjoy annoying the Ayrshire side's defence.
Thankfully Lewis Guy is proving to be a more than decent replacement. I must admit I wasn't particularly excited about him signing as his record in England wasn't great, but so far he is proving me wrong. His movement is good, he has a fair bit of pace and also seems to be a bit more aware of things than Hasselbaink - although his goal against Hearts was pretty much the only time all afternoon the officials didn't give him offside. I've a feeling that was more down to their reading of things than Guy being careless. His partnership with Steven Thompson really seems to be clicking and hopefully they can keep that up tomorrow.
Injuries permitting there probably won't be any changes to last week's side - everyone performed solidly enough and there's no outstanding candidates to be dropped. Paul Dummett was excellent on his debut and looks like an old fashioned leftback who will do his job at the back and leave the likes of Graham Carey to get forward, rather than charging up the park like Jure Travner and Jeroen Tesselaar used to do. Jim Goodwin had a decent shift in the second half after his fine opening goal and did well not to pick up a second booking after a ridiculous early caution. The next step will be to go through a whole game without getting a yellow card - will tomorrow be the day?
We can perhaps sympathise with Killie fans after what they suffered last month when they were knocked out of the League Cup by a lower league side - something we've been through more than enough times ourselves. However, considering they won the competition last season we probably shouldn't feel too sorry for them! The defeat to Stenhousemuir was a worrying moment for Kenny Shiels' side and their start hasn't been great, although they started slowly last season and still finished seventh. The loss of some key players - including the manager's son Dean - over the summer didn't help and there are also a few injury problems. However, there's a very good reason I don't feel particularly sorry for them at the moment.
Shiels has a habit of speaking his mind and thinking for himself rather than copying what everyone else is saying, which is not necessarily a bad thing. However, he really needs to get his facts right when whining about his side's budget in comparison to other clubs - in particular ourselves. Last season we apparently had a budget to get us into the top six - wrong. This season he spent the summer moaning about his side having no money to sign new players. That will be why you nicked Jeroen Tesselaar from us when he'd already verbally agreed to stay in Paisley. It was a decision almost entirely motivated by money - although Shiels did tell him he wouldn't have to defend too much, which may have swayed things. It's all moot as far as tomorrow is concerned as he's injured.
We seem to be getting Kilmarnock a bit too late to take advantage of their other injury problems. While goalie Cammy Bell is still missing they have managed to make up for the loss of striker Paul Heffernan by bringing in Cillian Sheridan. Without him they had no decent striking options but Sheridan was pretty good for St Johnstone last season and has now returned to Scotland permanently. A former Football Manager legend who has a questionable taste in Christmas jumpers, the ex Celtic youngster will be a tough proposition to face. Once he is fully fit and Heffernan returns Killie will have a pretty decent strikeforce that has a wide range of attributes. Fortunately for now we only have to worry about Sheridan.
At least for Killie's sake they have Manuel Pascali back. The Italian missed the League Cup success through injury following a leg break in March but is now fully fit again, his experience no doubt proving vital. Another experienced player is Gary Harkins, who impressed last season after being given his first shot at the SPL and has a chance to make a return from injury tomorrow. The midfielder has long been rated by fans of clubs in the first division and has shown he is more than capable of cutting it in the top flight. Danny Racchi and Liam Kelly are also handy midfielders, while Ryan O'Leary and Michael Nelson help make sure things are relatively tight at the back. James Fowler and Garry Hay also bring some experience to the defence although the latter - who is capable of putting some dangerous crosses into the box - is currently injured.
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