CLARKE: I DON’T LOOK FORWARD TO THE NEXT WIN, I FEAR THE NEXT DEFEAT
SAYS STEVE CLARKE
OVER the past 48 hours, the name of Kilmarnock Football Club has been put up in lights across the land. It has shone out from newspaper back pages and been lauded on television bulletins. Across social media, comparisons with Leicester City’s 2016 title miracle have abounded. Gary Lineker vowed to present
Match of the Day wearing Killie socks if they maintained first place in the Premiership. Even Marie Osmond, of Paper Roses fame, has reaffirmed her love for all things Rugby Park.
Everyone seems to have something positive to say about Scotland’s oldest professional club as they approach their 150th birthday. Not least Kilmarnock supporters, who have worn perma-grins since Wednesday night’s win over Livingston leapfrogged their team above both Celtic and Rangers.
All in all, a fresh sense of pride has been stirred within a town that has endured its fair share of blows over the past decade. And that matters to the man who made it possible.
Steve Clarke admits that putting a smile back on the faces of those who care about an Ayrshire institution is more rewarding than any credit for topping the league.
But here’s the thing. He can’t enjoy it. Not really. Utterly dedicated to maintaining standards, the Kilmarnock manager insists he spends most of his time worrying about what might be around the corner.
Injury issues abound ahead of today’s trip to face champions Celtic. And Clarke’s mind is filled with warnings about how quickly form can fade — even after the extraordinary consistency achieved during 2018.
Asked if he imagined being top in December, Clarke said: ‘Probably not. Realistically, you expect the usual suspects to be up there but it seems to have been a more competitive league this season.
‘There have been four different clubs at the top of the table so far but there are always reminders. Look at Hearts. There was a period where they couldn’t lose a game and now they can’t win one.
‘Hibs started the season bright and fresh but Neil Lennon’s team have now gone seven games without winning.
‘As a manager, you tend to concentrate more on the negatives than the positives. I sit here and I don’t look forward to the next win — I fear the next defeat. That’s just the mentality we have.
‘Have I been able to enjoy it since Wednesday night? No, immediately after the game, you probably don’t believe me but I was disappointed with the second half.
‘I don’t think we passed the ball well enough. I think we lost our shape. I think we lost control of the game when Kirk Broadfoot went off, which we should be able to counteract quite quickly.
‘Then you wake up on Thursday morning. You’re thinking about getting a team together and checking your injuries — that depressed me even more.
‘Then you are looking at a gameplan to try to go to Celtic and get another positive result. There is no time to reflect on the high.’
Clarke’s single-mindedness is one reason why he has been so successful. He often deploys a dry wit but there will be no bold statements about delivering a first title to Rugby Park since 1965. The dreaming is left to others.
‘The most important thing for Kilmarnock as a football club, and probably as a town as well, is we have given a little bit of pride back to the area,’ said the Saltcoats-born 55-year-old.
‘The club is in a better place than it was 14 months ago. The rest of the chat about top of the league, great runs and great calendar years, is really irrelevant. It’s the fact that supporters look forward to coming and watching the team.
‘Obviously, I know a lot of people in the area who are happy just now. There are many Kilmarnock fans who are, not living the dream, but dreaming about the possibility that we can do great things. They’re allowed to do that, they are supporters.
‘We have to allow them to dream, we have to allow them to think about crazy things.
‘We have to keep our feet on the ground. We have a difficult game and all I look for is that we meet our own high standards — and if we do that, you never know.
‘My wife is from Kilmarnock. Her mum, brother and sister still live in the town. We know it’s been a difficult time. When the football club was struggling, it wasn’t a nice place. It was quite negative.
‘The last few months have been nice. It just feels a bit better around the place. People have something positive to talk about.’
Wary of giving away too much, Clarke declined to detail who or how many of his players — beyond Broadfoot — were struggling to be fit for Parkhead.
Defeat would see Celtic assume top spot, yet that is something Brendan Rodgers’ side have not managed to inflict in four attempts. The most recent contest saw Kilmarnock record a 2-1 win at Rugby Park in September.
‘Celtic keep winning all those silver things, don’t they?’ countered Clarke, pointing to Rodgers’ record of seven straight trophies. ‘So they have got something right.
‘Our consistency is there. Even I can’t talk that down. What I can do is remind everybody we are a club which is capable of going on a poorer run. It can happen.
‘It’s not something we are afraid of. We work as hard as we can to keep this good run going and if we can do that we should have a half-decent season.’