Killie new boy Lee ticks all the boxes for new gaffer
LEE McCULLOCH insists Kilmarnock have landed a massive coup by persuading Lee Erwin to hook up with his Rugby Park revolution.
The Killie boss McCulloch couldn’t hide his delight at persuading the Leeds striker to return north to the league in which he made his name as a prolific scorer with Motherwell.
And he could pitch the new boy straight into today’s Betfred Cup clash against Dumbarton if international clearance comes through on time.
McCulloch said: “We’re delighted to get it over the line. He’s somebody we’ve had in our minds since the end of last season but we didn’t know what his situation was going to be at Leeds.
“He did really well down there but got loaned out a couple of times. I know the reasons for that but I’m not going to go into it. It had to do with the manager and the chairman down there at the time.
“But it’s a massive coup for us to get him signed. He’s still young, Scottish and the fans will be able to relate to him.
“He had loads of interest in him but I’m just delighted he’s picked Kilmarnock. He had offers of more money elsewhere but knows he’ll get an opportunity here.
“I like the way he goes about his business. He can score goals, lead the line, he has great technique and is pretty quick so he ticks all the boxes for us.”
Another new signing, Kirk Broadfoot, can’t believe he’s facing a pivotal match three weeks before the end of the school holidays. Failure to beat Dumbarton at Rugby Park this afternoon will see Killie dumped out of the League Cup.
And Broadfoot said: “It’s one of the earliest make-or-break games I’ve played in but if we can beat Dumbarton then we’ll just be two games away from
EWING GRAHAME
Hampden. But with the luck of the draw we can have a cup run and who knows what can happen in one-off games?
“We could give the fans a day – or two – out at Hampden and that’s what we’re looking to do.
“We’re aiming to build momentum so we want the win against Dumbarton not just to get through to the knockout stages but also to take three wins in a row into the opening Premiership match against St Johnstone next weekend.”
By then Broadfoot should be much fitter than he is right now.
He added: “I’d only trained for two days with the lads before being chucked into my first competitive game. Starting this early is a bit different from down south but I’ve enjoyed it.
“I’ve got a bit to go yet in terms of fitness. I missed the whole of last season after having a back operation so I’m playing catch-up with the rest of our squad.
“It’ll probably take me until four or five games into the league season to get properly up to scratch.
“But I’m doing a lot of extra work on my own to try to help me keep up. I missed the hard part of pre-season training so I need to do that myself.”