Striker says Ross County need to find top gear to overcome Kilmarnock
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Northern Ireland international Billy Mckay believes Ross County will need to turn in one of the performances of their season to take three points away from Rugby Park tomorrow.
County travel to Kilmarnock in the first round of post-split matches with just one point, and one place, separating the two teams in the Premiership table.
Going in, the advantage will be with the Stagges, but Killie have scored four goals two games in a row – against Stenhousemuir in the Scottish Cup and Motherwell in the league.
Mckay in particular has good memories of the last meeting between the sides though, with County coming out on top 3–2 last month after a quickfire double at the start of the second half.
The 32-year-old scored twice that day to put some daylight between County and the relegation places.
So though he is always confident of scoring – and all the more so after five goals in his last six matches – he suspects he will draw an extra degree of attention from Killie’s defenders tomorrow.
“It was great to get a couple of goals and help the lads get the win, I think my form at the minute has given me a boost,” Mckay said.
“I believe I can score in every match.
“But obviously if I’m playing the defenders will probably be a bit more aware of me and try harder to stop me this time. It will be a good challenge, and hopefully it’s one I can rise to.
“It will be a tough game, obviously we’ve played against Tommy Wright teams a lot over the years, so we know how he sets up. His St Johnstone team were always tough to beat.
“I think Kilmarnock have turned a corner a little bit now, it took them a while to get the first win under him, but there’s every possibility they kick on.
“We will have to make sure we’re right at it, and we’ll probably need one of our best performances of the season if we want to get something out of the game.”
At the other end Mckay’s compatriot Kyle Lafferty will be the dangerman.
“The lads will be going into the game fully aware of what he can do, so we’ll make sure we’re at our best to keep him quiet,” Mckay added.
