Lafferty double puts Killie firmly in the driving seat
McInnes hails striker’s impact as his Rugby Park side open up gap at top of Championship table
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EREK McINNES hailed the impact of Kyle Lafferty as his Kilmarnock side took a significant step towards the Championship title with a hard-fought win in Ayshire.
A brace from Lafferty was enough to seal the victory for the league leaders despite a 85th-minute goal from Partick Thistle winger Connor Murray and, coupled with Arbroath’s draw at home to Raith Rovers, opened up a four-point gap at the table’s summit with Dick Campbell’s high-flying parttimers.
“You always remember how a game ends and we are disappointed we allowed Thistle an opportunity to put a ball in the box and disappointed not to have cleared the corner kick,” McInnes said.
“I didn’t think there was a lot in the game. We spoke about what we had to do and there was a lot of intent in the second half. There was a good passage of play, a lovely pass from [Rory] McKenzie, and Laff’s touch and lift over the keeper was outstanding.
“When you’ve got that at the top end of the pitch – in recent weeks Oli Shaw has been chipping in, Laff is back on the scoresheet today – when you have that with an honesty and a work ethic behind it, you’ve got a chance. I’m just disappointed we didn’t get the clean sheet because clean sheets win titles.”
Kilmarnock were the prematch favourites to collect the three points but they were a little sluggish out of the traps as the Jags exerted some early pressure. Juan Alegria showed some impressive physicality with barely a minute played as he won the ball in the centre circle, shrugging off defenders as he barrelled towards goal. He had a go from the edge of the area, only for the ball to trundle wide of the far post.
The visitors kept up the early momentum with a series of dangerous-looking crosses but Kilmarnock keeper Zach Hemming was equal to each and every one of them. Scott Tiffoney, out on the left wing, was causing a few headaches for the home players.
There was a sharp intake of breath from the Rugby Park faithful when Lafferty went down clutching his leg. Any fears that he wouldn’t quite be at his best for the rest of the game, though, were assuaged within minutes.
Thistle defender Tunji Akinola hauled Lafferty down on the edge of the box as the striker tried to run in behind, and referee Willie Collum promptly punished the centre-half with a booking. Up stepped Lafferty, who curled in a beauty of a freekick into the top corner from 20 yards that Jamie Sneddon had no chance of stopping.
The breakthrough lifted the mood of the Kilmarnock players as they shifted the ball about with an extra degree of confidence. Lafferty could have had a second on 25 minutes after a slack touch from Thistle captain Ross Docherty allowed Blair Alston to thread a ball through for Lafferty, but the striker dragged his effort wide of the far post.
The away side finished the first half strongly but Thistle couldn’t find that all-important equaliser. A dangerous-looking cross from Tiffoney was begging to be turned in by Kyle Turner but the latter couldn’t quite reach it, while an Alegria
header from a Turner corner minutes before half-time was mere inches away.
Thistle had shown they were still very much in the contest but that all changed within a minute of the restart. Rory McKenzie advanced down the right wing, curling a magnificent delivery that Akinola couldn’t reach. Lafferty took a touch to control and needed no second invitation to slam the ball home for 2-0.
Killie were flying now as the Jags faced a barrage on their goal. Lafferty spurned a chance to seal his hat-trick by volleying over from 12 yards after the ball dropped invitingly to him in the visitors’ box, while only a splendid stop from Sneddon denied Kilmarnock a third when Ash Taylor aimed a looping header at goal.
Thistle improved as the half wore on but, in truth, the damage was done. Murray looked to have got the final touch on a late Docherty effort that reduced the arrears but it wasn’t enough as the Jags slipped to a fourth straight loss.
“I thought we were very unlucky to be 1-0 down at halftime, albeit to a great freekick from Kyle,” said Thistle manager Ian McCall. “If we’d just have got the goal five or 10 minutes earlier that would have made it interesting.”