Kris Boyd set to overtake John Robertson in goals list

The marksman currently sits in sixth place in the post-war list. Picture: SNS

Boyd’s typically predatory  finish in last Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Dundee United has taken the Kilmarnock forward to 191 top-flight goals from his  spells with the Ayrshire side  and Rangers.

That tally is just two short of Tynecastle legend John  Robertson, who notched 193, to the repeated joy of the Hearts faithful.

At the age of 32, it would appear Boyd has no chance of making it all the way to No 1 as Ally McCoist’s remarkable total of 260 looks unattainable.

Robertson has two more goals than Boyd at present. Picture: TSPL

However, it would not surprise Jim Jefferies, below, who managed both Boyd and Robertson, if the lethal marksman climbed as high as second, with Hearts hero Jimmy Wardhaugh (211), prolific Joe McBride (217) and Lisbon Lion Willie Wallace (224) standing in his way,

Jefferies, who was Robertson’s manager between 1995 and 1998 and managed Boyd from 2002 to 2006, said: “Boydie is obviously odds-on to get past Robbo as he needs only three goals to do this and it will be interesting to see how many he can get.

“They are very similar in the respect that they are both out and out goalscorers and very good at finding space in the box. It  never mattered how a ball would come to them, they were both very good at finishing chances.

“They just had that instinct to finish even when a difficult pass or cross came their way.

“A lot of people criticised Boydie in the early part of his career especially because he didn’t get out and become involved in the game more, although he has done that latterly.

“John was probably a better all-round player because he could hold the ball up as well and link the play. He had a good football brain.

“I looked at Kris’ goal at the weekend in the 1-1 draw with Dundee United and it was just a typical Boyd goal.

“There were three defenders around them but he had the knack to find space in between them to score the goal.”

Jefferies was too young to appreciate the ability of Wardhaugh, who terrorised defences beside  Willie Bauld and Alfie Conn as part of the Terrible Trio.

However, Wallace was a hero of his and he even played against him in his formative years as a Hearts defender.

He said: “When I used to go and watch Hearts as a youngster, Willie Wallace was the man. He was a great player for Hearts and he went on to be a great player for Celtic.

“Jimmy Wardhaugh had been the main man in the 1950s and Willie took that mantle

“I ended up playing against Willie when he was at Dumbarton at the tail-end of his career and I was just starting mine.

“He was another great finisher but he could play different positions as well – and Robbo was a bit like him.”

Jefferies believes Robertson was a better all-round player and adapted his style later in his career which undoubtedly  prolonged it.

However, Boyd’s tally is all the more impressive as he spent almost four of the last five  seasons outside of Scotland’s top flight with spells in England, Turkey, Vancouver and then a season in the Championship with Rangers.

Jefferies added: “Because of the experience he had and the knowledge he picked up, later on in his career John was able to play off the main striker.

“He was clever in that regard and that probably prolonged his career too. I bought other strikers like Jim Hamilton and Stephane Adam but Robbo deserved his place in the team. I remember once I left him out against Hibs and that was hard to do because of his record but he came on near the end and scored two goals.

“I put him the bench for the Scottish Cup Final in 1998 – and that was not out of sentiment because he deserved it.

“Kris, on the other hand, is all about instinct and that has served him so well.

“I remember one day at Livingston this ball came over the halfway line and it wasn’t an easy one to take because the ball bounced awkwardly and I thought ‘he’s not going to shoot from here’. And the next thing he smashed one into the top  corner from 35 yards.

“His record is phenomenal really and I knew when he went to Rangers in 2006 that he would score a bundle for them.

“He was going to a team that was making a lot of chances and he certainly did the business.

“It’s quite simple, really. If you create enough chances for Boydie, he will score regularly and John Robertson was the same.”