Tuesday 21 February 2017

Be The Boss - Ewan Paton



This week's Boss is Ewan Paton (@naearmbands1) who is a multimedia journalism student at Glasgow Caledonian University. You can follow his blog HERE for a series of updates from the sporting world. The job at Rugby Park is still up for grabs...here is Ewan's team selection for St Johnstone away...


Formation 4-4-2

I've gone for hard working and determined players this weekend as we travel to one of the trickiest away grounds in the league. After the drama of last week with Lee Clark leaving and then collapsing to defeat against Aberdeen, this game matters that wee bit more and Lee McCulloch must get a performance out of the boys so that we don't come away empty handed.

GOALKEEPER
Freddie Woodman - I'm as big a Jamie MacDonald fan as the next Killie fan. However, having spoken to Lee Clark in person a few months back, I certainly trusted his judgement and I think it's clear to see that McCulloch feels the same way after starting him in his first game as caretaker manager. I feel that Woodman is quicker and has better distribution than MacDonald, as well as being a good shot stopper too so that's why he gets the nod from me.

RIGHT BACK
Luke Hendrie - This is an easy choice for me. Luke has been a consistent performer all season and I'm sure I'm not the only Killie fan who was happy to see him extend his loan until the end of the season.

CENTRE BACK
Gary Dicker- He should never have been moved back into Midfield going into the last 10 minutes against Aberdeen- it completely upset the rhythm of the team when Addison came on to allow him to go into the middle. He has the composure and positional awareness to be a top centre half for us for the remainder of the season.

CENTRE BACK
Kristoffer Ajer- Dicker and Ajer seemed to have formed a decent partnership at the back and as well as both being strong enough to physically compete with the opponents strikers, they are both comfortable with the ball at their feet. The 18 year old's mazy runs have also impressed me.

LEFT BACK
Greg Taylor - Another academy product who has become a first team regular. Greg has really sealed the left back position and although he's really going to have his work cut out against a good St Johnstone attack, he can still get forward to help on the counter attacks.

CENTRAL MIDFIELD
Steven Smith - A player who frustrates the life out of me but really has to be in the side. On his day he can be a real asset with his quick closing down and harassing style of play. Will need him to battle against a hardy St Johnstone midfield on Saturday.

CENTRAL MIDFIELD
Sean Longstaff - Of the trio we signed on loan from Newcastle, Longstaff has impressed me the most. He looks like a determined runner and has a bit of a creative spark. While we're still desperately missing Kiltie in this role, I think Sean can fulfil the void until he returns. He also has an eye for goal and his two so far should give him confidence to add a few more to his tally.

RIGHT WING
Rory McKenzie - Personally, I'm a big fan of McKenzie and I think a lot of his hard work goes unnoticed. He's always the first to get slated when the team are struggling because maybe he doesn't quite have the creativity going forward as say Kiltie does, but his running, tackling and all round determination means he will be doing his best to press high and track back all afternoon on Saturday. Rory also took his goal well against Aberdeen and caused them problems for most of the game.

LEFT WING
Nathan Tyson - I feel sorry for the veteran striker. When Boydie was out injured a couple of months ago, Nathan led the line well and his hard work, in particular against Inverness at Rugby Park, merited a goal. I think his physical presence, agility and good work ethic will suit the team in an away game where we won't have as much of the ball.

STRIKER
Conor Sammon - I was delighted to see The Fish return to the club in January on loan until the end of the season. He hasn't exactly set the place alight since returning in the 3 games he's featured in, but after watching him track back on the left wing for the majority of the first half on Sunday, my idea is that we start him up top but when tracking back if he needs to go with the full back, then Tyson can swap with him up front, so it's a fairly versatile option.

STRIKER
Kris Boyd - It's a no-brainer for me. He's in decent form at the moment and is still the best finisher in the team despite being in the twilight years of his playing career. If we get any chances inside the box, there's only one man I want to get them and that's Boomer.

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