After midweek fog, target is clear now for Kilmarnock as Tenerife comes into view . . .

KILMARNOCK’S players could be forgiven for spending more time watching the weather channel than Sky Sports News this week. Manager Steve Clarke had arranged for them to leave for a training camp in Tenerife this morning in the aftermath of their Scottish Cup defeat by Rangers. Unfortunately, that plan was scuppered by the dense fog which enveloped Ayrshire on Wednesday evening, forcing referee John Beaton to abandon their home game against Motherwell. The game was goalless at the time but fourth-place Killie had shown few signs of looking like ending a winless sequence which stretches back to January 23 and veteran striker Kris Boyd believes that victory is vital in their rescheduled match against the Steelmen today. “Our priority is getting the win which will take us one point behind Aberdeen and five clear of Hearts,” he said. “They both have cup ties so they’ll have a game in hand but you’d always rather have the points in the bag. It was disappointing that we couldn’t go out as originally planned, but you can’t control the elements.” Killie were one of the few clubs not to venture abroad during January’s winter break but will now head to the Canary Islands tomorrow morning, with Boyd stressing that their five-day break isn’t a vacation. “When you look at it, we’ve gone seven games without a win and that hasn’t happened to us since the gaffer took over last season,” he said. “Sometimes, when results haven’t been great, it’s good to get away and change things. We’ll be training on grass instead of the plastic pitch at our ground and that should help the lads with niggly injuries. “Some teams jump on a plane just for the sake of it but we’ve been playing Saturday-Wednesday practically every week since the gaffer took over and I believe that our performances and results mean we’ve earned this trip. “But right now we’re all focused on getting the win which will pull us away from the teams below us.”