Hippo Current

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KILLIE HIPPO AN UNOFFICIAL KILLIE FANZINE ISSUE NO.119 LET THE PARTY BEGIN CUP FINAL REFLECTIONS OUR DAY IN THE SUN A HUGE HIPPO ANNOUNCEMENT £1.50

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Killie Hippo

Transcript of Hippo Current

Page 1: Hippo Current

KILLIE HIPPO AN UNOFFICIAL KILLIE FANZINE

ISSUE NO.119

LET THE PARTY BEGIN

• CUP FINAL REFLECTIONS

• OUR DAY IN THE SUN

• A HUGE HIPPO ANNOUNCEMENT £1.50

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THE KILLIE HIPPO

IS ON SALE AT HOWARD ARMS, GLENCAIRN SQUARE, KILMARNOCK FOG’S SNACK BAR, KILMARNOCK RUGBY CLUB CAR PARK KILLIE TRUST DESK (PARK HOTEL FOR HOME GAMES) MATCH DAYS AT RP + AT ALL AWAY GAMES

HUGE THANKS TO ALL ADVERTISERS, SUBSCRIBERS,

DISTRIBUTORS AND KILLIE FANS FOR THEIR

SUPPORT.

All views expressed are those of the contributors.

E-MAIL : [email protected]

WRITE : 20 WITCHKNOWE COURT,

KILMARNOCK KA1 4LF

NO ARTICLES TO BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT PERMISSION

BACK ISSUES 2–118 INCLUSIVE AVAILABLE GET IN TOUCH FOR DETAILS

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SHOOTING FROM THE HIPPO I’m not one to repeat stuff in every issue (aye right) but here are the final words in the editorial in issue 118……” The players and management have a chance to be raised to legendary status if we can win the major trophy that has thus far eluded us get yourself along to Hampden and play your part in Killie creating a wee bit of history……MON THE KILLIE!” You may think that enough time has elapsed to return to normal but I simply can’t wipe the big daft grin off my big daft coupon. I honestly never thought a League Cup win would ever compare to 1997 but this really was every bit as good. I think the fact we were massive underdogs meant nobody was expecting anything so when big Dieter propelled himself to legendary status the huge outburst of celebrations was totally understandable. Our season effectively ended at that point given our mid-table safety although I’m sure KS won’t see it that way. I’d just like to give a massive thanks to every single player and every member of the management team who have created history and completed Killie’s major honours treble. Many great players and teams from the past have tried their utmost to win this trophy but it’s the current crop of players and management who will go down as legends in the history books. The post split fixtures have just started and the best we can hope for is to finish top of the bottom six. There is still pride and some cash to play for as every league position is worth circa £90k and every penny is a prisoner at Killie these days. We have a run of three home games in a week and it would have been nice to see the club come up with a promotion to try and get more fans through the gates but I’m not aware of anything at the time of writing. That’s us completed another season of dodgy fanzines and I never fail to be impressed by the quality of articles submitted by Killie fans from all over the town/county/globe. You will see the article in this issue explaining about the improvements we are making to the Hippo for next year. The KFCSA has made giant strides over the last couple of years and rather than doing their own magazine it was decided they could help with the Hippo. The upshot will be a regular income for the KFCSA which will mean a benefit to the members as there will be more funds to help clubs, run competitions, hold events etc. Please keep sending your articles as it really does make a difference. There have been a few rumours about pre season friendlies in July. I believe we ae trying to secure games with Wrexham and Oldham however we have failed to agree a suitable date with Tranmere. I’m sure details will be known shortly and I’ll publicise anything I hear on ther websites as sson as I know anything. Hope you all have a great summer and keep sending your thoughts on anything that’s Killie related. Sandy

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KILLIE’S HAT-TRICK HEROES –

part three Writes Mark McNaught

Hat-tricks have been a bit of a rarity in "the modern era", which began on 1

January 1970 for the purposes of this article. Killie had of course scored 30

hat-tricks (or better) in the 1960s – the club’s most illustrious era – and this

figure has yet to be matched in the years that have passed since then. There

have been 27 hat-tricks in the last 41 years, but – on the “up” side – every

one has seen the team win!

In many ways the figures for multiple-goal exploits mirror Killie’s fortunes

over all. There were nine in the 1970s as the club suffered relegation from

the “old” First Division just eight years after being crowned champions of

Scotland, went part-time and became a “yo-yo” team in the restructured

league, bouncing between the new 10-team Premier Division and the “new”

First.

Eddie Morrison hit Killie’s last-ever hat-trick in the pre-restructuring top

division in a 1970 4-2 home win against Partick Thistle. He got another two

for a Killie career total of three, the last one coming in the “old” Division

Two as Eddie grabbed 25 for Killie in the 1973/74 promotion season, but he

was outgunned by Ian Fleming, who notched 33, including two hat-tricks, as

Killie hit a record 96 goals in the league. Fleming added another in the

following season’s League Cup for a Killie career total of three hat-tricks,

making him and Morrison the third and second-last players to record a hat-

trick of hat-tricks for the club.

But things were about to get a lot leaner for the Rugby Park team. They

finished 12th in the last-ever Division One, missing “the cut” for the new 10-

team Premier Division, but finished second in the new First Division the

following season to rejoin the top flight. There wasn’t a hat-trick in either

season.

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The 1976/77 season was a bit of a disaster. Killie won just four matches and

accumulated only 17 points, finishing bottom, but at least Ian Fallis got a

hat-trick in a 6-1 home win against Ayr United, the last Killie player to get

one in a derby. Iain “Cowboy” McCulloch scored his only Killie hat-trick as

Killie failed to bounce back in 1977/78, and John Bourke did the same the

following season, although this time another second-place finish saw Killie

return to the top league.

There would be only four hat-tricks in the 1980s – Killie’s most inglorious

decade, both for hat-tricks and in general, although Bobby Street got the

decade off to a good start with all the goals in a 3-1 home win against Hibs

on 5 January 1980 as part-time Killie “survived” in the top league.

The next Killie hat-trick was scored by Brian Gallacher as the Scottish

League experimented with the League Cup format, with four four-team

sections deciding the semi-finalists. It wasn’t popular, with just 1,046 at

Rugby Park to see Gallacher’s hat-trick against Airdrieonians, and the

competition has been settled by knock-out ties ever since.

Killie stumbled on in the First Division for another five seasons without a

hat-trick until the very last match, when of course Willie Watters scored five

against Queen of the South at Palmerston as a 97th-minute penalty kept

Clyde in the league and sent Killie down.

Willie got another two in the Second Division, the last Killie hat-trick of the

1980s and the first of the 1990s, making him the most recent Killie player to

notch a hat-trick of hat-tricks. John Sludden then got one in the Challenge

Cup and Bobby Williamson became the last Killie player to score two

trebles, getting one in the First Division and another in the Scottish Cup.

The 10 Killie hat-tricks since the club returned to the top league have all

been “singles” for the scorers. John Henry got one against Morton as Killie

won the Scottish Cup in 1997, Ally McCoist did the same against Hearts in

1998 – Killie’s first top-league hat-trick since Bobby Street in 1980 – and

Paul Wright’s only senior hat-trick came at a fog-bound Love Street in a 3-1

Boxing Day win in 2000.

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Gary McSwegan then got four against Hibs in 2003, but Kris Boyd went one

better the following year with five against Dundee United. Colin Nish got a

hat-trick against Livingston in 2005, and three of the last four Kilmarnock

hat-tricks have come in the League Cup thanks to Steven Naismith and most

recently the two Dubliners, Connor Sammon a year ago and Paul Heffernan

in this season’s glorious competition, with Kevin Kyle getting Killie’s last

league hat-trick to date in April 2009. Heffernan’s hat-trick was the 164th in

Killie’s history.

Details below. Home matches in BOLD CAPITALS, away matches in caps

lower case, with the one "neutral venue" hat-trick indicated under

"Competition".

"Div. One" and "Div. Two" refer to the two Scottish divisions prior to

reconstruction for the 1975/76 season, "SLC" = Scottish League Cup, "SPL"

refers to the post-reconstruction top league in its many guises.

Date Scorer Goals Opposition Score Competition

13

8

25 February 1970 Morrison 3 PARTICK

THISTLE

4-2 Div. One

13

9

26 August 1972 Morrison 3 STENHOUSE

MUIR

3-1 SLC

14

0

16 March 1974 Morrison 3 STRANRAER 4-1 Div. Two

14

1

23 March 1974 Fleming 3 Forfar Athletic 5-3 Div. Two

14

2

16 April 1974 Fleming 3 QUEEN’S

PARK

5-0 Div. Two

14

3

14 August 1974 Fleming 3 Stranraer 5-0 SLC

14

4

30 October 1976 Fallis 3 AYR UNITED 6-1 SPL

14

5

15 March 1978 McCulloch 3 MONTROSE 5-1 1st Div.

14

6

23 January 1979 Bourke 3 HAMILTON 4-0 1st Div.

14

7

5 January 1980 Street 3 HIBERNIAN 3-1 SPL

14

8

7 September 1983 Gallacher 3 AIRDRIEONI

ANS

3-0 SLC

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14

9

13 May 1989 Watters 5 Queen of the

South

6-0 1st Div.

15

0

23 December 1989 Watters 3 ARBROATH 3-0 2nd

Div.

15

1

24 February 1990 Watters 3 Berwick Rangers 4-1 2nd

Div.

15

2

2 October 1990 Sludden 3 STIRLING

ALBION

4-1 Challenge

Cup

15

3

2 February 1991 Williamson 3 CLYDEBANK 3-0 1st Div.

15

4

9 January 1993 Williamson 3 RAITH

ROVERS

5-0 Scottish Cup

15

5

8 March 1997 Henry 3 Greenock

Morton

5-2 Scottish Cup

15

6

30 August 1998 McCoist 3 HEART OF

MIDLOTHIAN

3-0 SPL

15

7

26 December 2000 Wright 3 St Mirren 3-1 SPL

15

8

5 April 2003 McSwegan 4 HIBERNIAN 6-2 SPL

15

9

25 September 2004 Boyd 5 DUNDEE

UNITED

5-2 SPL

16

0

27 August 2005 Nish 3 LIVINGSTON 3-0 SPL

16

1

30 January 2007 Naismith 3 Falkirk 3-0* SLC

(Neutral

venue)

16

2

11 April 2009 Kyle 3 FALKIRK 3-0 SPL

16

3

25 August 2010 Sammon 3 AIRDRIE

UNITED

6-2 SLC

16

4

20 September 2011 Heffernan 3 QUEEN OF

THE SOUTH

5-0 SLC

Killie’s all-time hat-trick heroes (I list only those who got three or more – a

hat-trick of hat-tricks, so to speak).

Culley 10

Kerr 8

Maxwell 8

Campbell 7

Cunningham 6

McIlroy 6

Collins 4

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Robertson 4

Fleming 3

Maitland 3

McInally 3

McLaren 3

Morrison 3

Watters 3

Weir 3

As for the opposition, Killie’s biggest “victims” have been Queens Park and

Airdrieonians, who have both conceded eight hat-tricks, with Airdrie United

also conceding one.

As for this season’s SPL, Dundee United have conceded seven (curiously,

there has only been one Killie hat-trick against Dundee), while Hibernian

and St Johnstone have both conceded six. There has never been a Killie hat-

trick against either Celtic or Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

8 Airdrieonians (also one against Airdrie united)

8 Queens Park

7 Dundee United, Falkirk

6 Hibernian, St Johnstone, Morton, Hamilton, Clyde, Partick Thistle,

Raith Rovers

5 Ayr United (also one against Ayr), Dumbarton

4 Hearts, Motherwell

3 Dunfermline

2 Rangers, Aberdeen, St Mirren

There’s more on this (and Killie, Scotland and football in general) on my

blog, thefuturesbrightitsblueandwhite.blogspot.com, and an article will also

appear on Wikipedia.

Hippo says – Huge thanks to Mark for all the hard work he has put into the

“hat trick” articles over the last three issues.

A couple of the hat tricks mentioned stick in my mind for different reasons.

Lord Watters goals at Palmerston were fantastic but of course the game will

always be remembered for our relegation.

A great and more recent memory was Naismith’s tremendous trio in the semi

final against Falkirk………I prefer to think about the semi final rather than

the final!!!

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Reflections from

Dunblane Hi Sandy

I know that you will receive lots of stuff on this, so here is a very brief

summary:

"My daughter Caroline & I started off with breakfast in Dunblane and a lift

from my wife (thanks Maureen) who dropped us outside Clockwork just

before 12.00.

Several drinks and a light lunch later, we meandered up to Hampden in the

company of a great guy (Dan) who happens to be a Celtic supporter.

The game takes care of itself; suffice to say that it almost felt surreal as we

are not expected to beat Celtic in Glasgow!

Possibly the best bit was later at night. We arrived for a few refreshments at

the Tappit Hen pub in Dunblane, where we are well-known Killie fans.

There was a bit of karaoke going on. Neither of us can figure out how it

came to pass that the whole pub ended up singing Paper Roses, but it was

f***ing brilliant!"

Best wishes

Dave Howie

Hippo says – Superb mate and I never thought I’d say a Lague Cup win

would be better than a Scottish Cup win……but this was every bit as good if

not better.Perhaps the after match celebrations in the town were better back

in 1997 however the game itself was far more enjoyable. We were probably

more relaxed as we were underdogs….. I was as relaxed as a newt come

midnight!!

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Reflections from

Singapore

I bet you wish you were here now!", so read a dozen texts after the final whistle. Of course I did, the memories of the '97 cup win and the celebrations on John Finnie street were as clear as they had been for years, although that clarity was a minor miracle based on the amount of scotch I had consumed during the match! Of course I wanted to be amongst the delirious celebrations I was watching on the internet stream. Thank god for a proxy which allowed my to revel in the celebrations (and in the sad bbc commentators faces on the final whistle). The game kicked off here at 11pm local time. I had been back for the semi but with the cup final on a Sunday it was going to require me to take about 1 week off work and I just couldn't take the time. If I'm honest, I also didn't want a repeat of the least two league cup finals I had attended. I thought there was a wee chance we could sneak it but I just didn't have the faith as I should have. My day was a pretty standard Sunday and the game was preceded by a couple of other matches which I could never recall any details on now. I settled down to watch the bbc stream with a large glass of Talisker and the usual nervous optimism. In the back of my mind I was just thinking about the two games against Rangers that I had watched from the same seat, we could do this couldn't we? I had thought about inviting some friends round to watch the game but I'm no company for others at times like this. I wish I had though, we could have had a new branch of the supporters club by now! The first few minutes were not good and then it got worse with big Momo, as he hit that awful pass I thought that was it, then Cammy came to the rescue. Was it a sign, no it was too early in the match wasn't it? The rest of the game is a bit of a blur to be honest, the Talisker was rapidly consumed and as the game went on I become more confident. It was starting to feel that it just might be our day. Deano then had his chance. I leapt to my feet screaming as he fluffed his shot…NOOO! How could you miss that!! The game wore on. I started to think extra time and penalties. The boys had done good. At least we could be proud of their efforts no matter what the result. Then we broke. The ball went out to the left, Johnson took the pass, moved to the line and swung a cracking cross in.

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And, wait, there was a wall of yellow in the box, could it be, it could! Big DVT smacked the ball into the back of the net!! I reckon I woke my entire building up with my celebrations. That's a fair feat as we are 46 floors and I'm on the ground! The next minutes were the longest ever. Then the extra time, where did all that come from? And then their penalty shout. Reminded me a lot about a certain one they were given before, a dutch fellow that looked a bit like a horse. Karma? I'm not a big believer but as I'm in Asia maybe it's time to accept that perhaps this just does happen. It would be amiss to talk about my memories of the game without mentioning the sad loss of Jack Kelly. I noticed something not quite right about Kenny at the final whistle, I couldn't put my finger on it at the time but it really just appeared that there was something wrong. Now we know that, sadly, he had become aware of the tragic circumstances occurring at exactly the same time his team had given the whole town a joyous occasion. It has been said in many places that Jack was able to see his son reach such a highlight of his career, hopefully there is some comfort for the family in this fact. The text's came flooding in. Yes, I do wish I was there to celebrate but at the same time I was just so happy for the town and for all the fellow Killie fans who like me have waited so long. I started supporting the team the year we got relegated to the old 2nd division. Went to every game home and away until I left the country, witnessing our rise back to the top league. We, the fans, deserved this. Being over 10,000km away must have been really hard before technology. It's pretty easy now. Facebook, twitter, YouTube and others all make it feel as if your not far away. Yes I wish I was there but really, I did feel like I was. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

R.I.P. ARTHUR CAMPBELL

We mentioned in the last issue that great Killie fan Arthur was in poor

health, sadly Arthur passed away on April 17th at the ripe old age of 86. I

attended the funeral and was touched by the lovely words of son John during

the church service.

Arthur was a great family man and a massive Killie fan, something that was

mentioned at various points during the service. Arthur had been awarded the

KFCSA Fan of the Year award last year and it is very humbling to hear the

minister saying how much he loved the award.

Our sincere condolences and best wishes go to Arthur’s family and large

circle of friends at this very sad time.

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OUR DAY

IN THE SUN

Well well, where do I begin with our jaunt to Glasgow on Sunday

March 18th……..just a little day out in the sun I suppose. There is

so much to write about (or gloat about) so we’ll bring into

different sections, each one contributing in its own way to one of

the finest ever days in Killie’s fantastic history:

EARLY ROUNDS

Much like our opening game in the 1997 Scottish Cup (home to

East stirling) we started off with a comfortable win against lower

league opposition. Queen of the South brought a decent wee

crowd and I expected a hard game but in all honesty we gubbed

them. Just as we scored a hat trick in 1997 (John Henry at

Morton) we managed a trick here with the Heff doing the

damage.

Next up was East Fife who also brought a decent crowd and they

put up a decent display but we won 2 – 0 and were suddenly in the

semis……..I wonder what the draw would throw up?

CARLSBERG

Carlsberg don’t do semi finals but if they did!!! I can honestly say

that if I had the power to conjure up my ideal cup run it would

probably involve an extra time win over the scum in the semi and

defeating one of the bigots in the final. I hope every Killie fan

realizes what we achieved and the circumstances in which we

achieved it because I very much doubt that we will ever see the

likes again.

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2012 V 1997

Since we won the cup there has been a great deal of bar

discussion about how the whole thing compared to the Scottish

Cup win in 1997. I never ever thought I would say a League Cup

would be better than a Scottish Cup win but this was every bit as

good in my opinion, if not better. Let’s have a wee comparison of

the two:

1997 was better in a couple of aspects that I can think of. Firstly

we hadn’t won anything for long and weary so there were a couple

of generations of fans seeing silverware for the first time. The

build up to this game was tremendous and was indeed better that

2012. Every pub/shop/workplace in the town was gripped by cup

fever and the sea of blue and white around the town was

something I’ll never forget.

Subsequently we won the cup and the post match parade around

the town will probably never be bettered. The sight of

grannies/kids/dogs on their front doorsteps welcoming the fans

home was unforgettable and the crowds lining the street for the

open top bus parade brings a tear to the eye. It was good this

time around as well but not quite as memorable as 1997.

In all other aspects however I reckon 2012 takes the biscuit. The

semi final was great in 1997 but beating the scum at hampden in

front of 25000 with a dramatic late winner is a fairytale. An

important factor for the final was this was Hampden rather than

Ibrox and it is a bit more special winning at the national stadium

as it doesn’t happen too often. Indded I’ve written a letter to

Hampden requesting the West Stand be renamed the Dieter End

and that Lesser Hampden is renamed the Theatre of Mini Pies.

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In terms of comparing the two finals on the pitch 2012 wins

hands down again. Against Falkirk we were nervous probably due

to the expectancy of us winning. This time we were underdogs and

there was no pressure, Momo was certainly chilled out as he

gifted a sitter to Hooper in the first few minutes. The game was

a decent one for the neutral and could have gone either way. To

score a late winner in front of the Killie fans simply made this a

very very special occasion and it may never be repeated.

I think if I was asked for my lasting memory of the League cup

win it would be the celebration for the goal. I’ve never seen a goal

bring such joy…well not since the semi final at least! There was

hardly a dry eye in the house and the noise for those final few

minutes was incredible.

I’d like to give a special mention to man of the match Cammy Bell

who was simply never going to concede on the day. Every single

player was magnificent but Cammy made several great saves,

many just at a time when you thought Celtic were getting up a

head of steam. I suppose the only down side is that it would have

been noticed by many of his suitors and we will do well to hol on

to him in the summer.

Football is a strange beast all the same and it can bring you back

to earth with a severe bump. The news regarding Liam Kelly’s dad

was tragic in the extreme and it’s impossible to imagine the

emotions that Liam and his family were enduring. One thing that

Liam can be sure of is that his dad passed away as proud as any

dad could be.

Overall it was a once in a lifetime experience and once again I’d

just like to thank every player, management member and most

important my fellow fans for proving once again….You’ll Never

take the Killie.

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Reflections from

the Kadi

It was 9am on the Sunday morning and the sun was shining. After

being optimistic the whole week, I thought this was the final

sign!! I went to the Kadikoi for 11 and it was bouncing, could

hardly move for the fans all drinking beer and wine.

We travelled up in the bus and I was with the "young yins" so the

chants of "Hallo..Hallo" and "I'm Killie Till I Die" were in full

swing, the atmosphere was superb. We arrived in Glasgow and

headed straight to the Clockwork, Celtic fans were there but the

Killie boys were the ones making the noise.

As the hype started to increase, it was getting closer and closer

to kick off, it was almost game-time. I managed to get into my

seat at 2.30pm and was glad to see the sea of blue and white! The

teams came out and the amazing card display took place, my seat

was just behind the goals and was perfect for events that

happened later on. I looked around and could see Killie standing up

for themselves against the 39,000 Celtic fans that overpowered

us!! but did they silence us....of course not!!

I sat on the edge of my seat the full first 45 minutes and after

the team surviving Sissoko's scare, I thought to myself "This cup

could be ours" My optimisim was taking over. As I started to bite

my nails, when Celtic lined up for a free-kick in 81 minute, I was

glad to see it blast into the wall and would not prepare myself for

the upcoming events.

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I got to my feet when Gordon played down to Johnson, began to

"skip" down a couple of steps as he crossed it and then....GOAL!!!

D.V.T, a memorable feeling as screamed and danced down the

stairs down to the front, I could not believe it!!

I looked around and saw everyone dancing and jumping for joy, it

was unreal!! I spent the next 11 mins on the steps of Hampden,

sitting and praying for Willie Collum's full time whistle. Full-Time

and the minority went into raptures and Celtic streamed for the

exits! The "small" club had won!! Amazing!

I watched Hooky, Pasca and Fow lift the cup through happy tears

as I sang my heart out to Paper Roses. The walk back to bus was

full of songs and chants of "Championees". The bus again was over

the moon and every person we passed got a bang in the

window..etc, even the sad Celtic fan who threw a police cone at

the window wasnt going to dampen our mood.

We arrived back in Killie and we all rushed down to John Finnie

Street for a fantastic street party. The cup was paraded and I

walked behind it with a big smile on my face, I still could not

believe it! All of the fans celebrated at Rugby Park and my

friends and I fired into the Park Hotel. The drinks were flowing

and after being close friends with Hooky, managed to catch a

glimpse of him holding the cup upstairs and got the picture I

dreamt of with him, me and the cup. After several drinks out in

the town, I returned home, loving my club, loving my club's

players and loving my club's fans!! I retired to bed with a Donner

Pizza and a fan of the "Champions".

What a fantastic day!!

Grant Moore

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CHAMPIONEES

L/CUP FINAL 18/3/12

KILLIE 1 V 0 CELTIC

KILLIE – BELL, FOWLER, GORDON, NELSON, SISSOKO (KROCA 86), HAY, HARKINS

(VAN TORNHOUT 73), SHIELS, BUIJS (JOHNSON 70), KELLY, HEFFERNAN

SUBS NOT USED – LETHEREN + DAYTON

BOOKED – KELLY + JOHNSON

GOALS – VAN TORNHOUT 84

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

CELTIC – FORSTER, WILSON, MULGREW, ROGNE (KI 56), MATTHEWS, BROWN,

LEDLEY (COMMONS 86), WANYAMA, STOKES, FORREST, HOOPER (SAMARAS 80)

SUBS NOT USED – ZALUSKA + CHA DU-RI

BOOKED – STOKES

GOALS – NO WAY PAST CAMMY

REF – W. COLLUM CROWD - 49572

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

DICK OF THE DAY – BITTER

LENNON

When I left Hampden I honestly didn’t believe there was anything on God’s earth that could make me any happier……then I saw Lennon’s post match interview. The wee twat really can’t help himself and my grin got even bigger the more that he

whined. He lacks class, talks crap and generally has a rant to cover his own shortcomings…….a Scottish version of Neil Warnock if you like. His captain Tatty heid Broon is cut from the same cloth and to hear and see their bitterness made the victory even sweeter….GETITRIGHTUPYE >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

A fantastic and well played to my many Celtic chums who said we totally deserved it. KS had the tactics spot on and his brave substitution of Dieter for Harkins ultimately won us the game. Come on MJ get the DVD sorted out so I can get another guid greet at a Killie cup win.

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SOME HOT HIPPO

NEWS

Ok folks, the old fanzine has been running for over 11 years now

and I’ve had to do a lot of soul searching recently. Believe it or

not there is a lot of hard work goes into putting this together and

I have had to make a hard decision that will come as a huge

disappointment to many of you……..no I’m not chucking it, instead

we are going to make the Hippo bigger and better.

I’ve held some discussions with my buddies on the KFCSA who had

been thinking about doing their own magazine but it’s far easier

for them to get on board with the Hippo. Basically what this

means is the KFCSA will have some input into the Hippo and will

help with advertising, marketing and distribution.

Nothing will change in terms of content, it’s all about you guys

sending in your thoughts on all things Killie. Perhaps the biggest

change is that we are jumping into the 21st century and you will

now be able to subscribe for an online version. This is ideal for all

you fans who live far away from the Theatre of Pies and who only

occasionally mange a trip to the games.

We will also be looking to do an interview in every issue as these

tend to be very popular. We will look at doing competitions that

will appeal to you all and all this will help raise funds for both

Hippo Towers and for the KFCSA who are going from strength to

strength. Thanks for your continued support and I can promise

the Hippo is about to get a while lot better……oh and the price

will still be the same.

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Reflections from

Killie Couldn't sleep on the Saturday night so was up till silly o'clock. Went to bed around 2 and woke up at 6:30 to the sound of my daughter being sick. Got that sorted and went back to bed only to get woken up again around 8:30 with her vimiting again ..... that put the haw maws on her first ever football game Ran a couple of errands and headed to the Weston with junior in tow all decked out in blue and white. After a pint and a couple of rolls it was onto the bus and off to the game. Got to the turnstile and was asked by a woman if I had a spare ticket as she and her son (around 6yo) were in different stands. Did a swap with my daughters ticket and after another seat swap inside the ground the mother and son ended up sitting together next to us.... even after a steward tried to get involved and feck everything up!!! -- god I hope he was a Celtic fan!!) When the final whistle went I was up on my seat for the duration of the celebrations and unfortunately I could see the events elsewhere taking place and I still feel a bit guilty that I was so happy while it was going on. Back to the bus and got dropped off at Blacks Bar, into the Wellington for a quick beer then onto John Finnie St for the party. Was up the road at 9:30 absolutely buzzing and doing the rounds of various forums. Quote of the day: "My body should be ashamed of itself" -- My 7yo daughter while watching the Killie fans celebrating without her. Chubbs

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Page 24: Hippo Current

HIPPO’S 2011/2012

REVIEW

Once again we have arrived at the end of another long hard season and the

final issue of the Hippo for a few months. It appears more and more

nowadays that the football headlines are all about referee performances,

financial collapse and phsychotic ginger managers however we will try and

include some on-field issues as well!!

If you rewind to last summer you may remember a bit of uncertainty around

the place. We had lost our three most influential players in Eremenko,

Sammon and Bryson so when Kenny Shiels was given the manager’s job on

a rolling contract he had a bit of wheeling and dealing to do to try and

emulate our excellent fifth place finish.

On the squad front KS was saying he wanted to bring in fresh young players

who he could develop into valuable assets for the club. Obviously this had to

be balanced by bringing in some experienced guys and given his budget

restrictions I think he did well. Bringing in son Dean on loan from Doncaster

was probably the key signing for KS although it did mean he had to fork out

extra pocket money for his son.

Our pre season fixtures included a jolly jaunt to Northern Ireland and a

couple of defeats from Premiership sides Blackburn and Sunderland but

performances were decent at times. One obvious aspect to our play was that

KS was going to continue the passing game mentality. As stated before it is

the right way to play the game but it will cause several heart stopping

moments for the East + West stand punters.

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August was a decent month for us in general as we went unbeaten in our

opening four games. Our first goal of the season, Rory McKeown at

Tannadice, ended up winning the KFCSA goal of the season. We opened

with three draws plus a convincing win over Hibs however we suffered our

first defeat at the end of the month with a 2 – 1 loss at Inverness.

September started well with a home win against the Pars and a draw at

Aberdeen followed by a Heff hat trick as we battered Queen of the South in

the League Cup. I wonder if any one of the 3091 fans in attendance sensed

this was the beginning of something really special?? We ended the month

with two losses against St Mirren and the tax dodgers.

October saw us lose to St Johnstone before a memorable 3 – 3 draw at home

to Celtic. My only regret here is that we had a mad 10 minutes or else we

may have got rid of the poisoned dwarf who is a constant stain on the

Scottish game……many Celtic fans are beginning to realise what a dick he

really is. We also managed a home win over East Fife in the cup, did anyone

in the 4029 crowd start to dream as that was us in the semis all of a sudden?

The draw saw Killie drawn to play the scum at Hampden, history in the

making as it was the first ever Ayrshire derby played out side the county

borders.

November only saw us play three games but in a way they probably summed

up our whole campaign. We started by losing 6 – 3 at home to Inverness, our

worst performance for many a long day. Our next home game saw us beat

the tax dodgers for the first time in the new Rugby Park. Pasca’s nonchalant

head flick will be remembered for a long time as will is comments about

doing it for a laugh as he thought he was offside. In between times we

managed a draw at Easter Road but the trend seem to be that we raised our

game against the top six and flopped against the bottom six.

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December was a bit of a mixed bag with a win at home to the sheep, a draw

away at the arabs then ending the year on a low note with defeats against

Celtic and St Johnstone. The year had ended disappointingly but in all

honesty the talk among the fans was one thing and one thing only….we must

beat the scum in the semi. Anything other than a win didn’t bear thinking

about and as the big day got closer the nerves became more frayed.

2012 started well with a win over St Mirren then we knocked Dundee out

the Scottish Cup and managed a draw at Aberdeen. That left only one “prep”

match before the semi and it couldn’t have gone much worse. We got

gubbed 3 – 0 at home by the seemingly doomed Pars and the only excuse

available could be that the players minds ere elsewhere…..just like every

single Killie fan.

January 28th arrived with Kilie fans travelling from all over the globe to head

up the M77 to witness a bit of Killieshire history. We all know how the

game went with the filth trying to destroy the whole occasion. Thankfully

justice was done and a fine day was had once the tension had lifted. We had

another League Cup final to look forward to and in all fairness it couldn’t

get any better than then semi…..or could it?

We seemed to suffer a bit of reaction to the League Cup exploits by getting

knocked out the Scottish at Easter Road and losing league games to Dundee

Utd and Hibs. Our only win of the month was another memorable OF

victory as we beat the tax dodgers at Ibrox. We also managed a couple of

draws but it seemed we were saving our best performances for the top two.

We entered cup final month looking to get a few results to get us in the right

frame of mind. We started by drawing at home to St Johnstone then

travelled north to Inverness where we got a 1 – 1 draw although KS had put

out a slightly weakened team.

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Sunday March 18th

and our day in the sun had arrived. You will see the

“Day in the Sun” article in this issue so we won’t go into great detail but it

was a day never to be forgotten. Given our league position this was pretty

much the climax to our season as we had very little to play for. We were

obviously still on a high as we faced high flying Motherwell the following

week and had a comfortable 2 – 0 win. We then ended the month with a 4 -2

defeat at Paisley, a result that flattered the hosts.

Our final pre-split game was when Celtic came to town needing only a draw

to win the title. We got gubbed 6 – 0 with a performance much the same as

Rangers at the end of last season. I should have been raging but in all

honesty I’ve still got the cup final grin on my face.

That all left us in seventh place with nothing at stake for the rest of the

season other than the opportunity to blood some youngsters maybe. Overall

the season will be remembered for our historic League cup win and rightly

so. The manager has done more than enough to earn an extended contract

and I’m sure he will face another fight in the summer to hold on to some of

our players. His son will be the focus of other club sbut he has stated

publicly that he is enjoying his time at Killie so I’m quietly confident he

might stay. Both Bell and Kelly have rightfully earned plaudits with some

excellent performances and both will attract attention in the summer. We

will sell I’m afraid and some inside info indicates that Cammy may have a

£350k get out clause……..I hope that proves to be a vicious rumour.

As far as budgets are concerned I’m hoping that the pathetic threats from the

chairman were just that and KS should be given the same budget. It goes

without saying that all clubs are suffering financially one way or another and

players are going to have to be realistic when it comes to negotiating new

contracts…..roll on the summer sales!!

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REVIEW OF THE REST

At my age the capability of the brain is severely restricted and when it

comes to football my brain only has time for Killie. As far as our SPL rivals

are concerned I only have snapshots of their season so please don’t chin me

if some of this is wholly inaccurate…….any way here are my thoughts on

the other 11 wallopers:

ABERDEEN – From a distance it seems the fans are unhappy with the

manager, unhappy with the chairman and the team on the park is pretty

sh*t…..happy days. They have just lost the Scottish Cup semi final to Hibs

and they have finished in the bottom six, I wonder if wee Craig will still be

there in the summer or if he will jump on a one way saga bus to a Largs

retirement home?

CELTIC – I’d like to thank Neil Lennon for his infamous “treble” interview

where he intimated that it was a formality. It was a huge inspiration to both

Killie and Hearts in gubbing them in both cups. The truth of the matter is

that Killie won an unblemished cup, Hearts/Hibs will win an unblemished

cup and the bigots won a tainted title……the sooner we see the back of

Lennon the better for Scottish football as a whole.

DUNDEE UTD – Peter Houston has done a good job with the arabs in my

humble opinion. Much like Killie they lost a whack of their best players but

Houston has been very shrewd with his replacements. Any manager that can

get Jon Daly as a nominee for POTY must be doing something right!!

Regardless of how the league table ends up I’d say that Utd are definitely the

third best team on their day and they will also have to fight off clubs chasing

their young talent in the summer.

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DUNFERMLINE – I was pleased to see the Pars come up last year but hey

have been a huge disappointment both on and off the park. It should be

pointed out that like us they have a ridiculous amount of debt and there was

no money for Jimmy Mac to try and help them survive in the SPL. The

timing of his sacking was a bit strange and JJ would need a miracle to keep

them up. Assuming they go down it will be interesting to see how they

readjust financially to life in League One, badly I suspect. It will also be

interesting to see if JJ is up for the fight to get them straight back up, again I

have my doubts.

HEARTS – I can’t help but smile when I think about this lot although I do

feel sorry for the crap their fans have to put up with from their owner.

Incredibly some of them still support Mad Vlad so perhaps his madness is

spreading. My thoughts for this season are all directed towards the Killie

players who headed there. They all may have got a wage rise (when they are

paid) however all have gone backwards in my book. Kyle has packed them

in and is reportedly going to be a Financial advisor. From what I can see he

must have been financially advising Rangers for the last twenty years or so!!

Mehdi has been a bit player whilst Hamill has done ok but is getting some

dogs abuse from the Jambos on their website……..my thoughts at the time

were he;d be better staying at Killie and I stick by that.

HIBS – A strange lot because all I can think of is Pizza + chips at their pie

huts but that’s just my belly ruling my head. On the field they have been

pretty poor although being a lowly team they will also get plenty of points

from Killie. At the time of writing they are sitting second bottom but it

would take a miracle for the Pars to catch them. Much like Killie they may

well have a season that will be remembered for a cup win although I fancy

Hearts to beat them. They simply don’t seem to have recovered from the loss

of Colin Nish!!!

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INVERNESS – It’s going to be good next year for the Howard boozehounds

with jaunts both here and Dingwall. Butcher does a decent job up there but

they have been disappointing to me this year. They were always hard to beat

at home however, with the exception of Killie games, they have lost a lot.

I’ll use this opportunity to ask the SPL not to schedule us to go there in

December again!!

MOTHERWELL – Arguably team of the year as they have showed a

consistency rarely seen by the provincial teams, although it should be

pointed out they haven’t beaten us all season. McCall has done well and the

fact they were pushing for second place for a while has to be commended.

He probably won’t have much in the way of funds come the summer but

they always look like a top six side to me these days.

RANGERS – A classic case of a club run by egotistical individuals with no

regard for fans. Who knows how it will all end up but the SPL better not

bend all the rules to suit this corrupt lot…….you do the crime you do the

time as they say. This season can be summed up in one word – cheerio.

ST MIRREN – Danny Lennon has improved them this year but ultimately

their end position will be much the same although relegation was never an

issue really. They try and get the ball down and play on the deck and can

look decent on their day. Thomson has been a decent signing and will get his

fair share of goals. Killie always take a good crowd up there and it’s a

decent boozehound day out.

ST JOHNSTONE – A good season considering every home game has a

“closed door” atmosphere. I reckon their front two have been the main

reason for their top six finish and they will struggle to keep Sandaza and

Sheridan for next year.

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KILLIE TRUST

5-A-SIDES