Killie FC: Who will stay on at Rugby Park?

May 29 2009 by Clair Fullarton, Kilmarnock Standard

KILLIE FC’S roller coaster season came to an end at Fir Park last week with Mehdi Taouil’s stunning goal giving the side a winning end to the SPL campaign.

It was a season that started well with ten points from a possible 12, and it didn’t end too badly either, with three successive wins.

The 2008-09 campaign may just have ended, but for manager Jim Jefferies and assistant Billy Brown the preparations have already begun for next season.

On Monday the Kilmarnock gaffer had a meeting with chairman Michael Johnston to set out the budgets for the next campaign, and you can bet your bottom dollar that Jefferies won’t have loads of money available to spend to strengthen his squad.

Once again his expertise in wheeling and dealing in the transfer market will be heavily relied on.

He’ll meet several players over the next few days who are out of contract to discuss their futures. These include Damien Rascle, Cameron Bell, Grant Murray, David Lilley and Allan Johnston.

Jefferies said: “It’s that time of the year when you have to hold these talks with players who are at the end of their contracts.

“We’ll have a frank exchange of views and it might be that some of them will want to move on.

“I know where I stand budget-wise, so we’ll have a discussion and see what comes out at the end.”

One item high on the manager’s priority list is extending the contract of Kevin Kyle who is currently signed up until the end of next season.

Jefferies continued: “Obviously I’m keen to extend Kevin’s stay, and that’s one thing that’s definitely on the agenda.”

Jefferies also has a couple of potential signings on his radar, and although he wouldn’t be drawn into naming names, one of them is thought to be ex-St Johnstone striker Keigan Parker who is currently with Huddersfield Town.

But next season he’ll be relying heavily on his current crop of players and hoping for emerging talents such as Iain Flannigan to make the breakthrough.

The manager is also hoping that crocked striker Allan Russell will be fit for the start of the new season.

Jefferies said: “Allan should be there or thereabouts. He started well for us when he joined from Airdrie and got a few goals, and he was then unlucky to pick up a bad injury.”

Looking back over the season, the manager said that it was one of the tightest leagues in recent years.

He explained: “We got off to a great start and had a great record against some of the teams who finished above us. We took seven out of nine points from Dundee United and Hibs, both of whom finished in the top six.

“But we didn’t always do as well as we should have done against teams in the bottom half, and that was much the same pattern as the season before.

“In saying that however, I felt that we didn’t always get our fair share of the breaks along the way.

“But at the end of the day we improved on our placing on the previous season, ending eighth as against 11th, and we finished with four more points.

“I was delighted with the way we finished the season and we showed plenty of bottle, determination and spirit to get through it.

“We have a much stronger squad than we’ve had for sometime and with Kevin having a full pre-season of training under his belt and Allan coming back we should have more of a threat up front.

“I think there’s no doubt that had we had Kevin earlier we would have finished in the top six.”

Part of Monday’s discussion between the manager and the chairman centred on the Ayrshire club's preparations for the next campaign, and there’s a strong possibility that they will again prepare for the new season at the Italian training camp at Il Ciccio.

Plans are also in hand for at least three pre-season friendlies at Rugby Park early in August.

Steve Bruce’s Premiership Wigan side is pencilled in for August 5, and attempts are also being made to bring Championship sides Newcastle United and Middlesbrough to Ayrshire.

Defender David Lilley had an operation on Monday following a bad wrist break against Motherwell last Saturday.