Boyd hits double century but Steelmen leave Killie stumped
KRIS BOYD notched his 200th top-flight goal, but his historic moment was tainted amid a dramatic finish to a Jules heist that saw Motherwell come from behind to steal the points.
Having shown all his old predatory instincts to open the scoring for Kilmarnock, Boyd was handed a stoppage-time chance to rescue a point from the penalty spot in the face of a Motherwell turnaround.
There were some extended protests against the award granted by referee Bobby Madden for substitute Elliott Frear’s clumsy challenge on Callum Roberts. There was also a spot of gamesmanship from Boyd’s close friend Craig Samson in the opposing goal.
Eventually, Boyd was permitted to take the kick, only to blast the ball off the post.
‘I don’t think I’ll realise what I’ve done until I’m finished playing,’ said Boyd, 33, on reaching his milestone. ‘I’m more raging that I’ve missed the penalty that would have taken me on to 201 league goals.
‘The delay didn’t affect me. I’ve hit the inside of the post and it’s come back out. There’s not much more you can do. I won’t shirk my responsibilities. I’ll go forward to hit the next one.’
For Motherwell, this was a significant result not only in the fight against relegation but for stand-in boss Steve Robinson, who was filling the job vacated by Mark McGhee last week.
Robinson remains noncommittal on whether he wants the role permanently but he will take encouragement from a performance that saw improved levels of concentration and determination from the Motherwell players.
Defender Zak Jules was at the heart of the calamitous 5-1 defeat that ultimately cost McGhee his job but, after putting through his own goal at Dundee, the on-loan Reading kid gained redemption with an unlikely winner.
A defensive injury crisis had not helped the cause at Dens, and the return of Richard Tait and Stevie Hammell accounted for two of the three changes made by Robinson, with the return of captain Keith Lasley in place of Craig Clay the other alteration.
Killie may also be mired in a state of some flux but, having secured an impressive 2-0 win at St Johnstone last weekend, Lee McCulloch went with exactly the same starting XI.
While Robinson deserves credit for rallying his team, it would be harsh if the result of this battle of
the caretaker bosses should harm McCulloch’s chances of succeeding Lee Clark on a long-term basis. Even before the late penalty, his team twice struck the woodwork and impressed for long spells.
Robinson had attempted to further plug Motherwell’s porous backline by dropping Carl McHugh in as a fifth defender, simultaneously making the team harder to break down and inviting the hosts on to the attack.
With Killie winning the territorial battle, Boyd sensed blood. One full-blooded hitch-kick came crashing back off the underside of the bar and then he ought to have done better than head full-back Greg Taylor’s cross wide.
The former Rangers man has never let missed chances bother him though, and when Gary Dicker arrowed a pass from deep into his orbit he came alive, controlling the ball on his thigh, holding off Ben Heneghan and then jabbing a finish beyond Samson and inside the far post.
With Louis Moult and Scott McDonald foraging up front, Motherwell carried their own intermittent threat, but Robinson’s half-time double substitution changed the prevailing direction of traffic.
Hammell and Lasley made way with the running power of Frear and Ryan Bowman helping to turn the tide.
The equaliser arrived in short order, McHugh ramming the ball over the line amid an almighty scramble that ensued when Woodman saved Moult’s header from a Frear corner.
With Frear operating as a wing-back, Bowman up top and McDonald lying deeper, the mix looked much better for the visitors, but Killie were not done.
Even after being pegged back they re-emerged as an attacking force and had their second-half moments, most notably when Dicker’s 25-yard screamer was tipped on to the bar by Samson, who also made a fine save from Kristoffer Ajer’s header.
It was Jules who had the ultimate say, his intervention coming at the end of another Frear delivery, the defender leaning in to head the ball over the line amid another six-yard box rumble.
McCulloch admitted the result left him feeling bereft.
‘It’s not just tough to take, it’s worse than that,’ he said. ‘I’ve not really got a word to describe the feeling, but it’s not nice. We need to kick on and take the positives, because there were loads.’