...AND HE’S ADAMANT CLARKE SHOULD WIN MANAGER OF THE YEAR
LEE McCULLOCH has tipped his Kilmarnock replacement Steve Clarke to be named Scotland’s Manager of the Year. Rangers legend McCulloch left Rugby Park by mutual consent in October with Killie rock bottom of the Premiership. Insisting he bears his old club no ill will, however, he has taken satisfaction from seeing players he signed prove their quality. Killie have surged to fifth in the league after losing just one of their last 19 games under Clarke’s guidance over 90 minutes. Paying tribute to his successor, McCulloch said: ‘To cement the top six, having possibly underachieved in the last eight years, is great. ‘Steve is a fantastic manager and for me, he is Manager of the Year... so far. ‘The only thing that will prevent him from getting that title is if Celtic win a Treble. ‘That would be back-toback Trebles for Brendan Rodgers and he is a very good manager. ‘Steve has done a terrific job and it’s great to see some of the players being on form.’ One such player has been McCulloch’s former Ibrox team-mate Kris Boyd, who tops the Premiership goal charts. And McCulloch believes the veteran striker should also be in the running for Player of the Year plaudits. ‘I once said that Boydy was worth his weight in gold, so that’s a lot of money...’ he joked. ‘No disrespect, but if you are a striker at Rangers and Celtic, you have to be top of the charts every season. ‘That’s what Boydy was doing at Rangers in his first spell. To have 20 goals before the split at Kilmarnock is phenomenal. ‘He can’t be far away from the all-time top scorer. ‘But he’s dependent on his team-mates. If you create, he’ll score or at least hit the target. ‘It’s all about the players round about him. (Eamonn) Brophy has been a great foil, Jordan Jones has used his pace on the wings and Stephen O’Donnell has been up and down putting in great crosses. ‘That was part of the recruitment process I went through to build the team around Boydy in a way.’