KILMARNOCK are struggling to motivate themselves for the rest of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League season after finishing in the bottom six, and slipped to second bottom of the table with a 1-1 draw at home to already-relegated Gretna.
Captain Ga
rry Hay, making his 260th appearance for his hometown side, blamed the club's dreadful run of injuries for such a poor season. But he admitted: "It's definitely harder to get yourself up for games in the bottom half.
"We were determined to do well after our performance at Inverness (a 3-0 defeat] last week. We showed plenty of effort and determination against Gretna but we had problems finishing."
Killie's injury woes were further compounded on Saturday with defender Tim Clancy suffering a suspected broken leg.
"It has been a horrendous season for injuries," Hay continued. "This setback to Tim is very unfortunate considering he's just recently managed to get a run in the first team. We hope that when we get everyone fit for the start of next season, we'll be in a position to push for a top-six finish."
Craig Barr was the only Scot in Gretna's starting line-up at Rugby Park and it was he who grabbed his side's equalising goal. The defender popped up in the Killie box to rifle the ball home after his first effort came back off the crossbar.
The 21-year-old, who was one of his side's star men, is hoping he can impress enough in the remaining three fixtures to get picked up by another club.
"The manager (Mick Wadsworth] is giving all the lads a chance in the first team in a bid to help find them another club," he said. "All the squad members will get an opportunity to show what they can do."
Barr insisted that despite the club's precarious financial position, the players were continuing to give their all.
"We showed good spirit against Kilmarnock like we have done over the past few weeks," he said. "We're now unbeaten in three games. We are all playing for our futures."
The full article contains 366 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
