Who saw this coming when we had one point after six games and two points after seven? Who saw it coming after the shocking midweek defeat to St Johnstone in March? Who knew that would be our last defeat for a while, we'd take 11 points out of our next five games and not only secure our safety but get to within touching distance of seventh place? It is a remarkable change in fortunes and we're surely better pushing on and finishing on a high rather than putting the tools away. It's the same team that has started four of the five games and they'll probably start tomorrow as well.
For Killie this is must win, especially after they were gubbed by Hearts on Sunday. It was a shocking result and one that left some Killie fans calling for the head of manager Allan Johnston - even though there are only two games left! It's fair to say the decision to replace Kenny Shiels has backfired (perhaps food for thought for ourselves) and they really have to get a victory to ensure their destiny is in their own hands. They've lost their last five, which probably means they'll beat us.
Our last game against Killie went rather well as we took a deserved win, which owed a huge part to the late introduction of Gregg Wylde. That result ended our poor run of form and kept Lennon in a job. It was a run that had arguably started the previous time we'd played Kilmarnock and suffered a late defeat at Rugby Park in a match we could easily have won. Despite the rather differing make up of the squads the two sides have been fairly similar, so there shouldn't be much between them again. Often that means you're in for a good game but it wouldn't surprise me at all if this turned out to be a rather nervy, tense affair due to Killie's situation. It would be nice if we could take advantage of it.
Wylde was at it again on Saturday, coming off the bench to make a telling contribution with an absolute screamer against Ross County. Is it enough to get him a start? It's hard to say. Ordinarily I'd be in favour of putting him in the team, however we've started the same team for four of the last five games, winning the three at home and drawing the two away. It would probably make sense to stick with the same side, which probably won't go down too well with Wylde - although if the knock he picked up against County after his goal is serious then that should soften the blow. The fact we've now secured our safety may make the management a bit more open to changes and we might see some youngsters or even guys like Wylde and Gary Teale get starts.
Jim Goodwin was superb against the Staggies, despite the best attempts of the County players and management team to provoke him into some sort of reaction. He marshalled the midfield and made some crunching tackles, not bad for someone who hadn't trained all week. We need to see that side of him tomorrow. He's missed our last two games against Killie due to suspension, while in the first one he managed to get Kris Boyd sent off. A repeat of that would be welcome tomorrow, although preferably before he's scored this time!
When Killie were battling to beat the drop four years ago relegation would have been a disaster. While it would still be a huge blow, it won't have quite as catastrophic effect as it would have done as their debt has been pretty much wiped out thanks to some nifty deals pulled off by chairman Michael Johnstone. He looks to be on his way out, to the delight of the fans, but he also seems to have safeguarded the club's future off the park. Now it's up to manager Allan Johnston and his players to do likewise on it. If he can somehow keep them up and survive the off season he'll surely be able to build on the experience and make them a better side next term.
Craig Samson will always be a Saints legend for his part in last season's League Cup success, making some key saves in pretty much every game. It would be nice for him to have a shocker tomorrow but he seems to have been fairly consistent for much of the season and has edged out Tonio Reguereo to be first choice keeper. Jereon Tesselaar was decent during his year with us but wasn't quite as loved as Sammy and Killie fans don't seem to be particularly enamoured with him either. He wears a face mask these days and is often used in the middle of the defence rather than at leftback. That's partly because Darren Barr is injured - not good news for us - so usually Lee Ashcroft plays in the middle, with fellow kids Mark O'Hara and Ross Barbour, as well as midfielder Manuel Pascali, the other options. They also have a leftback in the shape of Vitalijs Maksimenko that has come to the fore lately - just as rightback Sean Clohessy has been binned.
You don't need to be a genius to work out where Killie's main goal threat will come from tomorrow. Kris Boyd seems to like scoring against us, although in fairness he's enjoyed scoring against everyone since he returned to Rugby Park last year. If it wasn't for him they'd probably have been relegated long ago - although you could say that about ourselves and Steven Thompson. He's on 20 for the season, two of which came against us, and must fancy his chances of adding to that tally tomorrow. Rory McKenzie has impressed at times along with Chris Johnston, who is more of a winger but looks to be an exciting prospect for the future. The same goes for Robbie Muirhead and Greig Kiltie but William Gross is still kicking about the club and has barely played in the last few years - although I seem to remember him scoring against us once! Boyd is often asked to lead the line with the likes of Johnston and on-loan Dundee United man Michael Gardyne offering a bit of support.
Another of our former players will no doubt be desperate to prove a point tomorrow. Craig Slater hasn't hidden the fact he was delighted to leave us when a youngster, taking just about every opportunity to boast about it since he forced his way into the team. He looks to be a decent player - although we aren't exactly short of talented young midfielders - and he would love to get one over us tomorrow. He's probably been doing a better job than Alexei Eremenko, who has failed to impress since he returned to the club in January as he was woefully short of match fitness. Barry Nicholson's creaking legs are still capable of goals, while Sammy Clinging has been handy when he's fit. Loan winger David Moberg Karlsson hasn't featured much but Jackson Irvine has been pretty much ever present in midfield or at the back since arriving from Celtic, much to the chagrin of some Killie fans.
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