Kilmarnock 1-1 Falkirk: Drop battle hangs in balance

Published on Saturday 9 May 2009 20:02

Kilmarnock 1 Kyle 67 Falkirk 1 Barr 55

THE last time these two sides met Kevin Kyle scored a hat-trick and gave Kilmarnock the advantage over Falkirk in the battle to avoid relegation. A month on and the giant striker was again on target but this time he couldn't do enough to ensure a victory. His intervention merely denied the visitors the opportunity to leave with all three points and close the gap on the Rugby Park side.

Falkirk had taken the lead with a 55th minute goal but it would have been harsh had it proved the decider. Kilmarnock had been the better team and looked far more likely to score given their more adventurous play and mobility. Not to mention the constant threat posed by the sheer height of targetman Kyle and his team-mates' ability to consistently plonk the ball on top of him. The truth is that had he shown as much accuracy in his finishing as they had with their deliveries another treble could have been forthcoming.

By half-time reports of Falkirk's demise were being pieced together. Defeat in this one wouldn't have sealed their fate but it would have rendered it increasingly difficult to imagine their salvaging SPL survival from the three remaining fixtures. And on the evidence of the first half, it was only a matter of time before Kilmarnock turned the more attacking play and more cohesive possession into a triumph.

From the outset, they made it clear that they were going for the victory that would have taken them six points clear of Falkirk. With a 4-2-3-1 formation, Willie Gibson, Craig Bryson and Mehdi Taouil were the mobile support unit behind Kyle and they were a constant problem to the visitors in the opening stages, whether they chose to breenge forward from central positions or, more frequently, by supplying the width and balls in from the flanks. The bright start might have been rewarded with a penalty in just four minutes but when Garry Hay crashed to the ground referee Alan Muir was close at hand and emphatic in waving appeals aside.

Falkirk were struggling to find their momentum and when they did get out of their own half, the attacks were more clunking. It was poor quality fare from Falkirk and for all that their play has belied their status on other occasions this season, there was little on offer early in this game to suggest they should be anywhere other than propping up the league.

Their only half-chance in the first half came when Neil McCann crossed in and Michael Higdon rose to head but he was matched by David Lilley. But what they did have was character and fight.

They stood firm as Kyle squandered one decent chance after another and fought to distract if not quite shackle him when the ball was played into the area. When he did get the efforts on target, he was denied by goalkeeper Daniel Mallo. The first shot was weak and easy enough to deal with, the second, though, could quite easily have been the opener. Five minutes from the break, Tim Clancy was the provider with a long ball in from the right and this time Kyle was almost faultless, with only the trailing leg of the diving Mallo keeping the ball out the net.

Then came the second penalty claim. This time it was Bryson who tumbled to the turf, with Kilmarnock player Hay later describing it as a "stonewaller" , but again the referee signalled for the midfielder to get up.

As the second half started, Falkirk proved they were also capable of picking themselves up and dusting themselves down. Having lost Mark Stewart early in the game with an eye injury that required a trip to hospital, they also emerged from the break minus the experienced Jackie McNamara, who was suffering from a tightness in his groin. But they still managed to start more brightly and surprised everyone by breaking the deadlock. Another inch-perfect corner was delivered by McCann and this time Darren Barr rose above the Kilmarnock keeper and defence at the near post to head beyond Alan Combe.

They should have kept the pressure on but chose to camp out in their own half instead, much to the chagrin of their management team, and it proved costly. A long kick out from Combe in the 67th minute found Kyle 20 yards out but he took it on the half-volley and this time Mallo couldn't foil him.

"He has been fantastic against us in the two games he has played and he is a handful," said Falkirk assistant manager Brian Rice. "He's got a good touch and great headers. His vision is good too and he has played at a high level. He is a Scotland international and I think he could make it into the Brazil team if he was to keep playing against us every week! But it was a good point for us because Kilmarnock put us under a lot of pressure in the first half."

Anything more than a point and Kilmarnock would have been justifiably aggrieved. Anything less and Falkirk's SPL jacket could have been on an even shooglier peg.