JIMMY Calderwood has previous
for changing games with
substitutions.
Rescuing
situations apparently beyond
repair with a tactical tweak are
his speciality, a legacy of
years spent in Holland and
exhibited with Dunfermline and
Aberdeen. Yet, even for him,
this was impressive.
Before
this, Kilmarnock had scored only
once in six matches and not at
all in their last five league
games. At 3-1 down against a
team on a run of five wins in
six, any hope of recovery
appeared forlorn.
Yet the
Rugby Park
players were roused
sufficiently to not only restore
parity, but to establish an
advantage in this tumultuous
tie. That they were disappointed
that they later let go of that
lead is indicative of their
remarkable resurgence.
To
claim that one personnel change
was the reason would be
excessive, but the introduction
of Conor Sammon was certainly
the catalyst. “I’ve been doing
that for 10 years,” deadpanned
Calderwood of a switch which
spooked a United defence riven
with susceptibility. “We went to
4-4-2 to get some pace and power
up there and it freed wee
[Craig] Bryson too. We had to go
for it and I think it changed
the game.”
In the first half alone,
there were five goals, including Kilmarnock's first
in 552 minutes of league football. Had it not been
for the goalkeepers, the total could have been more
than eight.
The home side, 3-1 down after 33 minutes, were 4-3
up after 65, and settled in the end for a draw that
probably suited both teams. When the managers, Jimmy
Calderwood and Peter Houston, shook hands at
full-time, they could barely contain their laughter.
The feast was partly down to conditions that made
for an error-strewn affair – step forward, Simon
Ford – and partly down to United, who don't seem to
play by the SPL rules. In their last three games,
they have shared 19 goals with their opponents. They
are regarded as the top flight's dead-ball experts,
but three of the goals they lost here were from
corner kicks. "If I had any hair to lose, I would
have lost it," said Houston.
The Rugby Park pitch, half of which had a crusty
surface, did not lend itself to sure footing, but it
hardly excused the litany of mistakes committed by
both teams, especially at the back. Kilmarnock, in
particular, seemed intent on a kind of hari-kari,
conceding three in the first half, two of them
clearly in the 'gift' category.
First there was Ford, dithering on the edge of his
own penalty area, which allowed Prince Buaben to
charge forward and curl a right-foot shot into the
far corner. At least Kilmarnock's erratic defender
had the good grace to make up for his hesitation,
rising just four minutes later to send Craig
Bryson's corner soaring into the net.
Then there was the failure to pick up Craig Conway,
ghosting in at the back post as David Goodwillie
drifted down the right. The cross was perfect, as
was the finish, which had to be administered on the
run. The winger's left-foot volley was much too
early and firm for the goalkeeper, Cameron Bell, who
was wrong-footed by the execution.
Six minutes later, Conway had another, this time
after a mistake by Gavin Skelton. On almost exactly
the same square of turf that Ford had
surrendered possession
earlier, the Kilmarnock midfielder inexplicably gave
it away to Conway. The United winger quickly
accepted the invitation to dance into the penalty
box, where he flicked a delicate chip over the
goalkeeper.
In time-honoured fashion, Calderwood flung on Conor
Sammon for Skelton, and swapped his 4-5-1 system for
a 4-4-2. He was rewarded within four minutes, as
Garry Hay's corner picked out Kevin Kyle, and the
big striker's firm header found the net.
Without
that goal to give them heart, Kilmarnock might not
have been capable of the gutsy response that
produced an equaliser early in the second half.
Manuel Pascali, playing at centre-half, had already
scooped a glorious chance over the bar when another
came his way just a few minutes later. This time, he
met Bryson's corner with a perfect header that
glanced in off the underside of the crossbar.
By now, Kilmarnock were on fire, a bit like the
volley that Bryson struck to make it 4-3. The ball
dropped in front of him just outside the corner of
the penalty area, and with the unlikeliest of
first-time strikes, he picked out the top left-hand
corner.
Even then, the madness was not over. Kilmarnock
looked more than capable of making it five, but when
Ford rashly challenged Conway just inside his own
penalty box, Dougie McDonald pointed to the spot.
Jon Daly claimed his fifth goal in three matches
with a crisp strike
Sandy's Match Pic's are HERE
20
mins
