Kilmarnock

Daldeep Kaur
BBC Sport Scotland

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Neil McCann has been speaking before Kilmarnock host Celtic in the Premiership on Sunday.

Here are the key lines:

• McCann says the players should be "feeling good about themselves" following the 4-3 win against St Mirren that moved Killie nine points clear of the bottom.

• He could see wins coming and feels "relief" and "elation" at securing back-to-back home victories.

• On the "massive challenge" of facing Celtic, McCann says: "I don't think they come any bigger. Celtic are in really good form, Martin [O'Neill] has shown again and again how good a manager he is. Whether they're playing sparkling football or not, they're finding a way of winning games."

• He adds: "They're in a title fight but we're in our own fight here and that's to get a third win in a row at Rugby Park."

• McCann wants Rugby Park to become a fortress again and insists Killie are playing with an "aggressive" style now, adding: "We've taken the lead off the boys and let them go, just to eliminate the fear as the big, bad run they were on can bring fear and nerves. Hopefully that is gone now."

• He's "delighted" with Tyreece John-Jules following his hat-trick against St Mirren and says it's "important" to have a target to play off.

• McCann is "really encouraging people to hit the box" and says Billy Dodds has been working hard on increasing Killie's threat from set-pieces.

• Playing Findlay Curtis at right-back in midweek was a "deliberate thing" and the on-loan Rangers winger "did really, really well considering it's an alien position".

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• Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scored the winner on his Celtic debut against Livingston last time out. The last player to score in both of his first two Scottish Premiership appearances for the Hoops was Moritz Jenz in August 2022, while the last British player to do so was Scott Sinclair in August 2016.

• This will be Martin O'Neill's 300th game in charge of Celtic in all competitions, the sixth manager to hit that milestone with the club. His 227 wins in 299 games to date is already the most within a manager's first 300 matches in charge (Jock Stein second with 224).

• After only winning two of their first 23 league games this season (D8 L13), Kilmarnock have since won two of their past three (L1). They have scored as many goals in these past three games (eight) as their previous 14 in the Premiership beforehand.

• Celtic have only lost one of their past 21 league matches against Kilmarnock (W18 D2), a 2-1 defeat in December 2023.

• Kilmarnock have lost their past six league meetings with Celtic, last losing more in a row in April 2015 (eight).

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Kilmarnock striker Tyreece John-Jules was emotional after netting his first career hat-trick.

The former Arsenal academy player proved the difference in Killie's 4-3 victory over St Mirren.

The 23-year-old former Crawley player, who arrived at Killie as a free agent in October, said: "I feel a bit emotional actually - first professional hat-trick.

"I have been waiting for a moment like this for a few years.

"I feel like I am getting back to my best. I have had a lot of injuries and I am starting to feel like myself again. I am enjoying my football, for sure."

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Former Kilmarnock striker Lee Miller expects Neil McCann to keep the Rugby Park club in the Premiership this season.

McCann's second-bottom side came from a goal down to beat St Mirren 4-3 at home on Wednesday night, moving nine points clear of Livingston and within three of St Mirren and Dundee.

After going 17 games without victory, Killie have won two of their past three - and back-to-back home leagues outings for the first time this season - as new boss McCann sparks an upturn in form.

"It's a huge win, a huge win for them," Miller told the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"I was watching the Motherwell-Rangers game last night and you just kept seeing the wee graphic popping up that there was another goal in the Kilmarnock game.

"It sounded like a really exciting game but Neil McCann and Billy Dodds have done great.

"I think they have inspired the players. They've got that buzz, that kind of winning feeling, and he is enthusiastic about his work.

"Having worked alongside McCann and done punditry gigs with Doddsy as well, I think Kilmarnock will be okay."

We asked for your views after a Tyreece John-Jules hat-trick inspired Kilmarnock to a 4-3 victory over St Mirren and moved them nine points clear of bottom spot.

Here's what some of you had to say:

Gary: If the board had not buried their heads in the sand and changed managers sooner we would probably be top of the bottom six and maybe aiming for sixth place. At least now it looks like we have the right people in the dugout. There's still a long way to go but, like the players, the fans now have some confidence.

Frank: Looks like the management team have found the answer to our problems. Attacking football a joy to watch. Players are up for the challenges ahead I believe. Looking up the league not trying to manage the play-off spot. If you can score goals you can win games which has been the case in our last two home games.

Cameron: Brilliant performance, going forward we actually show that we have some substance under Neil McCann. Saying that, some poor goals to concede with Kelle Roos at fault for a couple. Need Max Stryjek back in the posts.

Scott: Wow! Could have been 8-6, great game, great goals, now that's entertainment. Killie need to keep the confidence and momentum building and we can look up the league instead of down.

Watch as the relegation battle takes another turn as Tyreece John-Jules' hat-trick helps Kilmarnock beat St Mirren at Rugby Park. Available to UK users only

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Kilmarnock manager Neil McCann: "There's so much to like about the performance. There was a lot of guts in there.

"We went 1-0 down, and then St Mirren scored early in the second half and you wonder if that's going to take the sting out of us a wee bit. But they didn't and they went again.

"It could have been a lot more, in my opinion. I know the 4-3 scoreline looks tight but we fully deserved the three points and probably should have won by a couple more goals.

"Tyreece John-Jules has just started to elevate his performances because he's had a good run in the team after not playing a lot of football.

"I'm so happy for him that he's got the match ball. Though I had a wee moment of worry after his third goal when he was doing back flips. I'm not going to have too much of that."

Kilmarnock came out on top in a seven-goal thriller at Rugby Park that boosted their chances of climbing out of the relegation play-off spot.

Read the full match report here.

Let us know your thoughts here.

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• Kilmarnock have lost just one of their past 13 Scottish Premiership games against St Mirren (W6 D6), a 5-1 defeat in March 2025.

• St Mirren remain winless in 13 top-flight visits to Kilmarnock (D4 L9) since a 3-1 victory in May 2013 under Danny Lennon.

• Although Kilmarnock have only won one of their past 18 league games (D4 L13), that was their last one played at home, beating Aberdeen 3-0 in January.

• Only Livingston (four) have fewer away points in the Premiership this season than St Mirren (six), who are winless in eight league matches on their travels (D2 L6) since beating Falkirk 2-1 in September.

• Only against Ross County (eight) and Dundee (seven) has Bruce Anderson scored more Premiership goals than he has versus St Mirren (six), netting three times in four games against the Buddies for Kilmarnock.

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Kilmarnock left-back Dom Thompson is suspended. Jamie Brandon and Max Stryjek are pushing for comebacks while Kyle Magennis (knee), Djenairo Daniels (knee) and Matty Kennedy (hip) remain out.

St Mirren forward Jake Young is suspended and also nursing an ankle knock while Malik Dijksteel drops out with a groin injury.

Mark O'Hara and Jonah Ayunga have returned to training but are unlikely to feature while Keanu Baccus is awaiting the green light to join them.

Daldeep Kaur
BBC Sport Scotland

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Neil McCann has been speaking to the media before Kilmarnock host St Mirren in the Premiership on Wednesday night.

Here are the key lines from his press conference:

• The 5-1 defeat to Rangers was a "sore one to take", but McCann says there was "loads of good stuff" to take from the performance and Killie "reacted well" to going down to 10 men.

• He has been "pretty consistent" with his demands of the players and what he expects from the squad.

• The absence of Dominic Thompson through suspension for the St Mirren game is a "blow" but McCann has "plenty of options to try and fill the gap".

• The Rugby Park boss says it's a "nice problem" to have so many players available for selection and it "seems a really happy club" as "everybody wants to get on to the training pitch and put themselves forward for the game".

• McCann says the "level of quality has gone up" since he arrived at Rugby Park with Billy Dodds last month, adding: "I'm not going to say about what's happened before. That would be hugely disrespectful. I'm talking about since we've come in the building. Their level has increased since we've been in the first week even and what we're doing with them has actually improved. And that is what you're looking for, competition during the week, which keeps us sharp going into the matches."

• He stressed the importance of securing back-to-back home wins.

• The new signings have "settled well in the dressing room" but still need to "adjust".

• McCann praised Stephen Robinson for having a "really well-coached" St Mirren team and adds: "We know what we're going up against. It'll be an interesting technical area. I've had my exchanges with Stevie in the past and they've always been really enjoyable. We're similar characters, but I think what will be on view is two teams who have a certain way of playing. There will be no quarter given."

Sandy Armour
Fan writer

The Aberdeen victory was a massive shot in the arm for Killie fans and players alike. Defeat at Rangers could have been very different had we kept 11 players on the park.

There is still a general feeling of positivity that hasn't been around for a while - however the St Mirren game on Wednesday is absolutely huge.

Victory would put us just three points behind the Buddies and a few teams in mid-table would start to get very nervous.

Defeat would leave us isolated along with Livingston, but we'll try not to think like that for now.

The early signs are the new guys could make a significant difference, with Findlay Curtis and Joe Hugill likely to be regular starters for us in forward positions.

A win on Wednesday would give us an extra boost for the weekend when Celtic come calling.

I fancy we'll give them a game, plus we are due some favourable VAR decisions against the bigger teams.

Sandy Armour is editor of The Killie Hippo fanzine

Sportscene pundit Scott Allan outlines why there was "lots to like" about Kilmarnock's performance against Rangers despite the 10-man visitors losing 5-1.

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Kilmarnock manager Neil McCann says new signing Joe Hugill "proved he's going to be a threat" despite the heavy defeat at Ibrox.

Killie lost 5-1 but had to play with 10 men for all but the first three minutes after Dom Thompson was sent off, and Rangers scored twice in the closing stages to add some sheen to the scoreline.

Forward Hugill, 22, came off the bench for a second Killie appearance along with Aaron Tshibola, who made a debut in his fourth spell.

"Aaron's going to benefit from that because he looks a wee bit short [of fitness], to be honest," said McCann.

"But that's normal, because he's not been playing at the level we've been operating at in terms of training even, let alone games.

"Joe coming on looked sharp. He had a great chance where he runs down the side. He has shown everybody that he's going to be a threat for us, turning defences down the side.

"He didn't catch his shot right but I'm okay with that. I know that's a sore one and it might sound stupid but I think my boys did the club proud."

We asked for your thoughts after 10-man Kilmarnock were beaten 5-1 by Rangers in the Scottish Premiership.

Here are some of your comments:

Brian: Neil McCann summed it up perfectly. Some injustices but we still played very well and we were unlucky not to have a better scoreline. Things looking much better with him and Billy Dodds in charge. We will be fine.

Wolfgang: Bit of an unfortunate red card which seemed more of a mix-up than anything. Other than that we held up pretty well despite being down a man for 90-plus minutes. Give these lads a break over the weekend and I think we'll give St Mirren a good game as long as we don't have another red card.

Craig: Thought in the first half we played very well after Dominic Thompson cost us big time. We kept a strong defence and attack and put plenty of pressure on Rangers. By 60 minutes the effect of being a man down hit the team and we were punished. Fair play to the players, encouraged by what I saw early on and hopefully big result next Wednesday.

William: That we continue to score goals in any of our future games is imperative - if only to demonstrate that some in the team are capable of winning.

Alan: Welcome to reality Neil, beating a poor Aberdeen team is not enough to convince us you are our saviour.

Kenny: Incredibly harsh to send Thompson off in addition to the penalty. Anyway, we have bigger fish to fry and it starts next Wednesday night. As a point of note, Rangers had one Scottish player on the park out of the 16 who played, why would any young Scottish player want to go there?

Watch all the highlights from a 5-1 win for Rangers at Ibrox after Kilmarnock were reduced to 10 men in the opening minutes. (Available to UK users only)

Rangers narrowed Hearts' lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership to three points as they eventually dismantled 10-man Kilmarnock at Ibrox.

Read the full match report here.

Let us know your thoughts here.

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Kilmarnock manager Neil McCann: "I feel a wee bit of an injustice when you look at the scoreline, I think it flatters Rangers.

"Towards the end, you could see they're good players and we're out on our feet because we've tried to get something from the game.

"I'm so disappointed, we lost a man so early in the match. I've got my thoughts on that. But you have to suck it up and continue to trust the players and the game plan - although it goes up in smoke a wee bit.

"The instructions didn't differ. We still wanted them to be brave, to get into the game, pass. I felt we were the better side in the first half and it's natural we gassed in the second half.

"I would argue that [Thompson] doesn't see [Gassama] coming and Gassama slows up to initiate the contact. That aside, that should be evened up in the second period.

"There is clear contact on our striker, [Tyreece] John-Jules. James Tavernier is caught on the opposite side. There's no reason for him to go down. I'm told it's not enough contact. I can't understand it. It's not a good enough explanation.

"We carved out some really good chances, had some brilliant play with 10 men and that's the positive we'll take from it. I've got zero criticism of my boys tonight. I thought they were brilliant.

"I could have shut up shop tonight and seen out a 1-0 or 2-0 but that's not who I want us to be. I want us to be aggressive and brave. Yes we conceded five but the boys are gone in terms of their energy reserves."

We asked for your thoughts on Kilmarnock's business in the January transfer window.

Here's what some of you said:

Brett: Having had such a leaky defence this season I'm disappointed that we didn't bring in more reinforcements for this area of the field, but good to see some attacking players join the squad.

Drew: Time will tell, all credit to the club for trying to get out of this mess. It's up to the players now to earn their contracts.

James: On the whole a very good window for Killie which addressed some of the problem areas. I would have liked an additional centre-back. Definitely grounds for optimism especially with some injured players returning. Maybe some will go out on loan to Championship teams.

Frank: An excellent transfer window. Lots of potential goals to be scored looking at the type of players brought in. They're there to win games and hopefully play attractive attacking football.

Robert: I think the board have shocked us all by backing the manager with new players, something most thought would be impossible without a major clear out. It has created a whole new positive atmosphere within the club.

Anna: I feel there are areas we could have improved but given the funds we have, I think we have done very well with the signings made by Neil McCann and co. It's still going to be a hard slog for the rest of the season but with the investment in the squad by the board I think we'll be okay. Hopefully the new signings create some healthy competition within the squad. I'm hopeful.

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• Rangers have won each of their last nine home league meetings with Kilmarnock by an aggregate score of 25-4; it's their longest ongoing home league winning streak versus any current Scottish Premiership opponent.

• Kilmarnock have lost 13 of their last 15 league matches against Rangers (W2), including their last four in a row all while conceding 3+ goals since a 1-0 victory in October 2024.

• Rangers have won each of their last five home league games, after having only won four of their previous 13 beforehand (D5 L4).

• Kilmarnock are winless in their last nine away games in the Scottish Premiership (D3 L6) since a 2-0 win at Dundee United in September.

• Kilmarnock boss Neil McCann has managed three away league games against Rangers in his career and lost them all by an aggregate score of 12-1, each coming with Dundee from September 2017 to September 2018.

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Deadline-day signing Ryan Naderi will go into the Rangers squad, paperwork permitting. Connor Barron (knee) and Derek Cornelius (muscle) are still out.

Aaron Tshibola could feature after rejoining Kilmarnock. Jamie Brandon and Max Stryjek are working their way back to fitness after lay-offs while Kyle Magennis (knee), Djenairo Daniels (knee) and Matty Kennedy (hip) remain out.