A review of Kilmarnock's season at the winter break

“You have got to take confidence from your form and take confidence from how you work Monday to Friday. I’m a big believer in that. Players can’t always play their way into the team through their training but they can play their way out of it and I do think training is really important. I think the players take confidence from each other rather than anything we are doing. They see we have a good team, and they should do.

“I want them to believe they are not in a relegation battle and I want them to believe they are fighting for top six. I don’t want us to wait until five, or 10 games to go and think ‘We could have made the top six’ I want them to act that way now. I’m working with fewer players this season, and the squad is tighter, but for me, it’s better, I have better options.”

The words of Killie’s manager Derek McInnes. The 52-year-old has trotted out the same line about wanting his playing to hang around the top six of the Premiership for as long as possible since pre-season. His words are certainly beginning to ring true as Scotland’s top flight takes a well-earned breather for the next three weeks.

Yes, alright, the fourth round of the Scottish Cup takes place two weeks on Saturday, so the break may not be quite as long as some realise, but after a demanding seven games in December and a further match on January 2, I think it’s undoubtedly arrived at a good time for the club. The Ayrshiremen proudly sit fourth in the standings after 22 games, a little over the halfway point in the campaign.

Of course, it could be argued either way that Killie could be better or worse off depending on the several variables that impact a match. The phantom goal against Ross County at home is one that still stings, as are the two last-minute equalisers scored by Dundee. On the other hand, David Watson scored in the dying moments recently in Aberdeen – a game in which we could’ve easily been down to 10 men after less than a minute.

Anyroad, it’s fantastic to see the team so high up the table at this juncture, especially compared to last season where it took until the final pre-split game to amass 31 points. Killie look good for at least a top-six finish as we look ahead to the second part of the season, then it’s a race to qualify for Europe, albeit, Dundee and Aberdeen have about 20 games in hand, so it’s hard to forecast exactly.

There’s been far more ups than downs to date. Both Celtic and Rangers have been toppled, as well as Aberdeen on two occasions. There is a genuine fear factor when teams come to Rugby Park and the away form has certainly improved from last term. Greater consistency can always be strived for and for balance, there have been games where the team’s performance has been dreadful.

READ MORE: Killie predictions for 2024 and a look ahead to the New Year

Overall though, I think we Killie fans can look forward to 2024 with plenty of excitement and big dreams. If the club can keep a hold of all the starting XI this January, and there are no major injuries, with Kyle Magennis returning to the fold too, then there’s no reason this squad can’t go on to achieve something special.

Here are the three main takeaways from the 2023/24 season so far.

Top marks

Beating the Old Firm. Celtic twice and Rangers once before Christmas. It was unthinkable given the feeling of trepidation following the Viaplay Cup group campaign in the summer. All three results will rightly rank among the club’s season highlights come May. However, the 2-1 victory over Celtic in early December does stand out as the pinnacle. As has been well-documented, it wasn’t a case of defending for 90 minutes, backs against the wall, and nicking a goal. No, it was the boys in blue and white who were the dominant side and peppered Joe Hart’s goal in that second half. Killie clearly rules Glasgow... at Rugby Park.

Area for improvement

Away form. Two wins at this stage is a significant improvement on last term, however, by McInnes’ own admission, last season shouldn’t be used as a benchmark as the team was mince for the most part. Wins at Aberdeen and St Mirren were very much welcomed last month. Coupled with draws at Hearts, Dundee, Ross County and Livingston, maintaining that sort of consistency on the road will see the club into the top six providing the home form remains strong.

Must do better

Losing late goals. It is difficult to be too critical after everything outlined above. If I were to pick one deficiency that has come back to bite the team on several occasions though, it would have to be the concession of late goals. Motherwell away, Dundee away and Dundee at home. Throw in the League Cup quarter-final loss against Hearts too. Hopefully, they’re able to cut that out in the months ahead.