SORRY Falkirk, there aren’t enough injury time minutes left this decade that will get you out of this one.
Ten times this season the Championship club have struck beyond the 90-minute mark. Four times in their last seven matches, no less. The latest example of their penchant for the dramatic occurred just three days prior to this Ladbrokes Premiership play-off second leg as Will Vaulks’ injury-time winner sent them to Rugby Park with a foot seemingly already in the top flight.
It was booted out within just three minutes yesterday. In an extraordinary and gripping game that could never ever be described as a contest, a Kilmarnock team that for much of the season looked as if they couldn’t beat an egg obliterated Falkirk’s resolve before pulverising them with all the ruthlessness of a Game of Thrones script writer who’d just found his wife in bed with his brother.
Ahead on the day and level on aggregate thanks to Greg Kiltie’s composed strike in the opening seconds, they were truly up and running on nine minutes when burly centre-half Miles Addison crashed home his team’s second.
In truth that probably would have been enough to deal with a Falkirk team that showed little of the creativity or nous that has earned them so much credit this season. Nevertheless, Lee Clark’s team continued their dominance and eventually got the two further goals to complete the rout, Kiltie grabbing a second on 62 minutes before Kris Boyd tapped home his seventh goal of the season.
Huge credit for this recovery has to go to Clark. The passionate 43-year-old was brought to the club in February to take over a team in the eyes of many destined for the fate that eventually befell them. Even going into yesterday’s second leg, the former Newcastle United player was unwavering in the belief that the group of players that shipped that late goal at the Falkirk Stadium could blow away their opponents here and maintain their top flight status. He was also brave enough to throw in young Greg Taylor at left-back in just second game, and reintroduce Northern Irishman Josh Magennis who wasn’t fit for Thursday’s first leg.
Perhaps even Clark could not have expected this. There are no superstars among his number, but to a man they were head and shoulders above those in dark blue opposite them here. Even the enigmatic Tope Obadeyi was a triumph in the Kilmarnock sunshine with two assists, despite still giving the 7000 or so home supporters the odd gasp of exacerbation as he bounded down the left flank.
To say it was a disappointing end to the season for Falkirk would be something of an understatement. They carried a narrow lead to Rugby Park that even Houston himself said they were fortunate to get, but the wastefulness of their passing and nervousness of their play on Thursday was not a patch on their performance here. Outfought and outplayed by Kilmarnock, they failed to settle quickly in a raucous atmosphere never recovered from the concession of the opener on three minutes.
Magennis burst to the byeline in a crowded box but was still able to draw the ball back to the unmarked Kiltie eight yards out, who took one touch before smashing the ball low underneath Danny Rogers.
Strike two was a great example of the same kind of inventiveness that Falkirk displayed on Thursday. Instead it was Kilmarnock’s turn as Magennis took a short throw in to fool the visiting defence. The ball was picked up by Lee Hodson who was allowed space to cross deep to the back post for Obadeyi to head back across with Addison rushing in to a ruck of players before eventually bundling it in on the line.
Despite a sclaffed Craig Sibbald short, Falkirk huffed and puffed during this game as they slowly started to creep back into the second half. However, any slim hope was wiped out just after the hour. A stray pass was picked up by Obadeyi, sending the Englishman on a lung-bursting run down the left. He beat full-back Aaron Muirhead with ease ahead of a cute cutback, allowing Kiltie to calmly drill the ball underneath Rogers just as he did on three minutes.
Three minutes later and the party could start. Magennis avaded a lunge from Lee Miller before rounding David McCracken before squaring to Boyd to tap in.
By the time the board went up for three minutes left to play, even the sight of Harry Houdini getting stripped in the Falkirk dug out would not have offered much hope to the 4,400 travelling fans who came to Ayrshire. They turned up, questions will be asked if those in their team did likewise.
KILMARNOCK: MacDonald, Hodson, Addison, Aschroft, Taylor; Magennis (O’Hara 75), Slater, Kiltie (McKenzie 90)2, Dicker, Obadeyie; Boyd
UNUSED SUBS: Brenna, Findlay, Higginbotham, Whittaker, Frizzell
SCORERS: Kiltie 3, 62, Addison 9, Boyd 65
BOOKINGS: Boyd
FALKIRK: Rogers, Muirhead, Watson, McCracken, Leahy; Taiwo (Alston 53), Kerr, Vaulks, Sibbald (Hippolyte 64); McHugh, Baird (Miller 58)
UNUSED SUBS: Mehmet, Shepherd, O’Hara, Gallacher
SCORERS:
BOOKINGS: McCracken, Kerr
REFEREE: Willie Collum
ATTENDANCE: 11013
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