DEFINING MOMENT
Kilby will play cup final and two crucial league games in a week
Billy Stark insists East Kilbride face a defining period in their season after being told to play a cup final and two league games in the space of a week.
Kilby’s players will be working overtime with their Football Nation Qualifying Cup final followed by two crunch Lowland League clashes.
Stark’s men will take on Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale or Vale of Leithen – who play tonight – in the cup showpiece on Saturday, March 31 at New Murrayfield Park in Blackburn, West Lothian.
There will then be a quick turnaround with Kilby forced to travel to Ferguson Park in Rosewell,
Midlothian for a 6.15pm kick-off against Whitehill Welfare on Tuesday, April 3.
And to round off a tough week, East Kilbride then make the trip to Alloa’s Indodrill Stadium on Friday, April 6 to face title rivals BSC Glasgow.
Boss Stark admits Lowland League chiefs have a “difficult job” rearranging the fixture list but believes his side is receiving a raw deal.
“We have been handed a difficult situation,” said Stark, whose team are idle this weekend. “It’s going to be a defining week in our season.
“We are disappointed not to have a game this Saturday but will try and arrange a friendly. We won’t be able to train that week and for me it seems a wee bit unfair.
“The big issue for me is the 6.15pm kick-off at Whitehill because they don’t have floodlights.
“We will have to leave by 3.30pm at the latest so I expect to have issues with players being available and getting time off their work.
“We are making our feelings known but I don’t expect anything to come of it or the situation to change.
“I understand they have a difficult job to do fitting in all the fixtures after the postponements.
“But we have four games left and are
being asked to play three of them in the space of seven days which is tough.”
East Kilbride will now count down to the cup final. Stark admits the club have given everything in their pursuit of glory but faces a selection dilemma a week on Saturday.
He said: “The cup final will be a great occasion when it comes round.
“We have fielded full teams to get through cup ties but I now have to look at this game in the context of having two matches quickly following on from it.
“But like with all cup finals our intention will be to go there and produce a good performance and try and win the game.”
On the personnel front, experienced defender David Proctor remains sidelined with a calf injury but gaffer Stark says he is “improving”.
BJ Coll has returned to fitness while Fabio Capuano is back in training with Stark hopeful of getting him involved in the coming weeks.