DAN OF THE MOMENT
Nothing sub standard about winger as he shows why Killie want him to stay in late cameo
DANNY ARMSTRONG insists he’s loving life at Kilmarnock too much to give a moment’s thought to moving on.
Rugby Park boss Derek McInnes revealed the club would try its hardest to hang on to the winger, whose deal is up at the end of next season.
Armstrong has been heavily linked to Hearts among others, but he’s been Killie’s most dynamic performer in recent seasons and although he didn’t feature until the 78th minute against Cove, his impact was sensational.
Armstrong rifled home the crucial second goal and created a glut of chances for colleagues as Killie wore down Paul Hartley’s men.
With a quarter-final against Aberdeen to look forward to, the 26-yearold’s sights are set on the Cup Final and a top-six spot.
Armstrong said: “If people want to talk about me and other clubs they can do that, but it’s not coming from me.
“The manager and I don’t really speak about this but I hope the gaffer is enjoying having me here as much as I love being here.
“I’m fully focused on Kilmarnock and I’m happy. Being at Killie has been my favourite part of my career.
“This has been a different kind of season because we’re fighting at the top of the table, rather than down at the bottom, and it’s a much better feeling.
“I want to push this club as far up the table as possible and go as far as we can in the Scottish Cup.
“This is a fantastic club to be at, full of good people and a brilliant squad.
“If we can all give our all, we’ll make everyone happy. It’s a good run that we’re on but we need to keep it going.”
McInnes sprung a surprise by leaving Armstrong and captain Kyle Vassell on the bench as he handed Kevin van Veen a first start.
But Armstrong was happy to get a breather as he revealed: “The manager told me a few days beforehand that he was going to pull me out and I can’t complain because I’ve played a lot of football.
“Sometimes it’s good to be taken out for a bit and then come back in fresher.
“We were bringing in quality players in any case, so it’s not as though it was a big difference.
“It’s always nice for us wide players when you see quality like big Kevin being brought into the building.
“We know what Kev can do and we’re looking forward to seeing him hit the back of the net.
“The more gamechangers the better and the competition among the frontmen means that they are all going to need to be firing on all cylinders.
“But that’s the same for the guys in the wide areas, the midfielders and the defence – and that’s all great for Kilmarnock.”
Van Veen shaved the bar with a header before Marley Watkins prodded home Corrie Ndaba’s knockdown right on the break.
They had to wait until the 81st minute before the game was put to bed by Armstrong, who is confident Killie are on course for Hampden.
He said: “Last season we were also 90 minutes away from Hampden in this competition and it was a sore one when we were put out up at Inverness.
“But we’ll go into this quarter-final with more confidence than last year because we’re a better side – and a better squad.
“If we can get back to Hampden, we’ll back ourselves to go all the way. We’re sitting fourth in the league and want to stay there.”