Kilmarnock go home with the jam

DOUGLAS CAMPBELL

20 Sep 1993

THE scenario, in football terms, is as old as time.

You know the one, fashionable team does the business against famous opposition in big competition, then just days later are brought back down to earth with a bump by a side from the sticks.

The plot may be familiar, but several eyebrows are still raised every time it is acted out.

Like in Edinburgh at the weekend, when Kilmarnock, newly promoted from the first division, rolled up to Tynecastle bent on causing a mischief to Hearts.

Of course, the lot from Ayrshire are no mugs, as Rangers will verify, but the Hearts following still had it fresh in their minds that the mighty Atletico Madrid had choked on the Jam Tarts in the opening leg of their UEFA Cup tie, so they were quite happy to fork over their cash to again witness Hearts' finest at work.

The problem was that their work was a litte sub-standard and was rewarded with a 1-0 defeat.

Now excuses, if they are required, can be paraded on demand, like: the players were mentally drained after they had seen off the Spaniards, or there was no real zip left in the limbs, too many injuries, etc., etc.

But manager Sandy Clark would have no truck with such idle chatter.

For him it was simply a lack of professionalism that was to blame.

"I was disappointed with the performance," said Clark.

"The experienced players let us down.

It was simply a bad day's work."

Clark stressed that his men were well versed as how best to deal with Kilmarnock from the off, but unfortunately that warning was dispensed with from the moment the ball was set in motion.

If Hearts' challenge for success on the domestic front is to be taken seriously, then the players must roll up their sleeves and concentrate fully on the task in hand.

However, if Clark was rightly a little cross with his employees, Tommy Burns, the manager of Kilmarnock, was slightly more upbeat about the performance of his fellows.

The gathering of another two points pleased Burns, but he was disappointed that, on the day, his players' passing game went out of the window.

But Burns was not really in the mood to scold his team, he was more interested in praising the effort and dedication to their work.

"We defended magnificently," said the manager, "and worked very, very hard."

The large and vocal Kilmarnock following were given something to yell about after just 32 minutes.

Young Mark Skilling, who seemed to be everywhere at the same time throughout the proceedings, strode upfield before throwing his right foot at the ball some 30 yards from the target, and to the audience's amazement -- and probably Skilling's as well -- the ball zoomed past Henry Smith.

There may be few stars in the Kilmarnock operation, but they do appear to have been well to the fore when team spirit was dispensed, and sides will underrate them at their peril.

Taken from the Herald