Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Killie gaffer to lure fans back
NEW Kilmarnock manager Steve Clarke hopes t o reconnect the Rugby Park outfit with the Ayrshire public and send attendances soaring.
While the town itself has suffered i n recent years after the closure of the Johnnie Walker whisky plant, so has its club where crowds have plummeted.
In 1999, Killie boasted an average attendance of more than 11,000.
But last season only their three visits from the Old Firm pushed their average gate above 5,000.
The decline can be blamed on a combination of the local economy’s decline and fan opposition t o former chairman Michael Johnston but now Clarke hopes to l ure stay-away supporters back.
Clarke said: “Kilmarnock, as far back as I can remember, was always a club for the community but maybe there has been a slight disconnect for various reasons.
“Now it’s up to us, with the help of the players, to put a smile back on everybody’s faces and try to get the fans back i n supporting this great club.
“Attendances have dropped i n a number of places over the years but Kilmarnock has been par ticularly badly hit economically.
“The only way you get people back through the doors of your football club is by getting an attractive, winning team on the pitch.
“Now that’s not going to happen this week or next, or maybe not even next year, but that’s what we want to achieve.”