Kilmarnock 3-1 Montrose: Rugby Parks side set up St Mirren quarter-final
- Published
Highlights: Kilmarnock 3-1 Montrose
Kyle Lafferty continued his scoring streak as Kilmarnock set up a Scottish Cup quarter-final meeting with St Mirren by easing past Montrose.
The veteran striker volleyed in his seventh goal in five games in the opening minutes at Rugby Park.
Chris Burke and Greg Kiltie stretched the Premiership side's lead.
The League 1 side enjoyed a good second half and squandered chances before Cameron Ballantyne pulled one back on 82 minutes.
Kilmarnock, who last won the cup in 1997, are now unbeaten in four matches as they seek momentum in the battle against relegation from the top flight.
The breakthrough came early when Kiltie ran on to a Burke pass and skipped past sprawling goalkeeper Allan Fleming. He steadied himself on the bye-line before picking out Lafferty, who cracked his shot down into the artificial turf and in.
Fleming did well to push a ferocious shot from Burke high into the air and the visiting goalkeeper had to take care as he punched the dropping ball just over the crossbar from a prone position.
But he was soon picking the ball out of the net again as the corner was worked short to Burke and his curling shot found the target via the head of the stooping defender Andrew Steeves.
A fine stretching save from Fleming then prevented an own goal.
There were a few slack moments in the home defence but Montrose did not have their shooting boots on, with Harry Cochrane sweeping past the post and fellow on-loan teenager Chris Mochrie hitting one straight at Colin Doyle.
In between those efforts, Russell McLean stubbed wide from eight yards after an excellent Lewis Milne cutback.
Kilmarnock had further opportunities to extend their lead before the interval but Kiltie lashed an angled shot into side-netting and Mitch Pinnock did the same soon after.
The League 1 side should have pulled one back early in the second half when Zach Medley was caught dawdling on the ball and Milne was clean through, only to make a mess of his attempted dink over Doyle.
Mochrie then had his head in his hands as he failed to control a high ball right in front of goal.
A third goal came out of the blue for Kilmarnock as Lafferty charged down a clearing kick from Fleming and Kiltie accepted the gift, rolling home the loose ball.
Montrose, thrashed at Partick Thistle on Thursday evening, kept going and were rewarded when full-back Ballantyne slid in to score at the near post.
The visitors almost had a second but Doyle reacted well to stop an effort from Aidan Quinn on the goal-line.
Man of the match - Greg Kiltie
Kiltie was a lively presence for the home side, setting up the opening goal and tucking away the third
What did we learn?
Kilmarnock were bright in the final third, cutting through the part-time visitors time after time in the first 45 minutes and they now have 15 goals from their last five outings.
However, there were several shaky moments at the back that may well have been punished by superior opposition. The part-time visitors had more shots and more shots on target than Tommy Wright's men.
The third goal for Kilmarnock was a bit of a horror show, but Montrose can be proud of their display, coming a mere 40 hours after a bad result at Firhill.
What did they say?
Kilmarnock manager Tommy Wright: "We didn't play as well as I'd have liked but the main thing is we are through to the next round.
"Throughout the game we gave them wee opportunities when we turned over the ball far too cheaply. We got a little bit sloppy, particularly in the second half. Sometimes, when you are in control, concentration levels can go."
Montrose manager Stewart Petrie: "I'm really proud of the guys and the way they bounced back from losing bad goals. We got in some really good areas in the second half and had three or four really good chances.
"They could have felt a bit sorry for themselves after Thursday but the energy levels were outstanding."
What next?
It's back to league duty for Kilmarnock on Wednesday as they host Dundee United (19:45 BST), while Montrose won't have long to rest weary legs as they go again at home to Cove Rangers on Tuesday (19:45).