Kilmarnock 2-0 Livingston: Kyle Vassell & Danny Armstrong boost hosts' survival hopes
- Published
Kyle Vassell's first league goal of the season eased nerves at Rugby Park
Kilmarnock boosted their Scottish Premiership survival hopes with a "much-needed" victory against Livingston as their inspired home form continued.
Kyle Vassell fired Derek McInnes' side in front three minutes after the break, before Danny Armstrong's penalty assured them a crucial win at Rugby Park.
With three games left Kilmarnock are up to 10th place, outside the relegation play-off, one point clear of Ross County and three in front of bottom side Dundee United.
County have to visit Ayrshire before the end of the season, setting up a thrilling finale to the Premiership campaign.
Livingston stay eighth and have very little to play for, but a seventh away defeat in a row without scoring equals a miserable record set by United 23 years ago.
"In the context of the season, three points was much-needed," McInnes told BBC Scotland.
"We spoke confidently during the week about the importance of our home form and we saw that today, particularly second half.
"First half we were a bit nervy, agitated and understandably a bit anxious. The composure came once we got in front and it's important we show both sides to our game in the remaining games."
Pre-match McInnes urged his team to take advantage of their excellent record at Rugby Park, where only Celtic, Rangers, and Livingston had won in the league this season.
But a nervy and untidy first half suggested his team were struggling to cope with the pressure, and Vassell passed up the best chance when clean through after Christian Doidge's excellent flick.
However, persistence paid off soon after the restart as another Doidge flick put Vassell in behind and this time his low shot found the far corner, albeit with the help of some weak goalkeeping from Shamal George.
From there, Kilmarnock found the confidence they needed to kick on. And after a series of shots were blocked, Doidge's effort struck Jason Holt's outstretched arm.
Referee David Munro initially awarded a corner, but after video assistant referee Willie Collum sent him to the monitor to have another look, Munro pointed to the spot.
Armstrong, Kilmarnock's talisman all season, stepped up and calmly tucked the ball away from the despairing George to bolster their lead and ultimately wrap up a critical three points.
Livingston stuck at it, but lacked quality in the final third and looked every inch a team who have very little to play for after missing out on the top six.
Player of the match - Kyle Vassell
Vassell finally got his first league goal for Kilmarnock and was a handful at Rugby Park
Fortress Rugby Park bolsters survival bid - analysis
This was quite simply a huge three points for Kilmarnock. If they do stay up, it will be almost entirely down to their superb home form.
They've now taken 85% of their points at Rugby Park, and have home games against relegation rivals County and St Johnstone to come, which could make all the difference.
The front two Vassell and Doidge have been criticised a lot this season for a lack of goals, but they were outstanding in this match.
Doidge won 11 duels, six of them in the air as he provided the perfect foil for the returning Vassell, and the pair combined beautifully for the crucial opener.
Both of them, plus Armstrong and young David Watson will all play a crucial role in keeping them in the division.
Livingston's form has deserted them since the turn of the year. It's now just two wins in 11 league games. At one point they were in the race for Europe, but have the worst defensive record in the league in 2023.
That means they're relying on quality up the other end, but apart from flashes from Joel Nouble and the odd set piece, they did not offer much yet again.
David Martindale's side could yet break that unwanted away record with one away trip to come before the end of the campaign. That would have been unthinkable at the turn of the year.
What they said
Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes: "We needed to play down the sides of them more and take care of the pass forward. We spoke about that at half-time and the goal was an example of that.
"We're against teams where there's not a lot between us. It's going to be fine lines and it's important we're as good as we can be."
Livingston manager David Martindale: "The goals we're giving away just now, especially away from home, are terrible. Collectively, we've got to do better.
"It's another penalty with a player going into the box and lifting his hands. I don't know how many times we've spoken about it as a group. You don't get away with that with VAR."
What's next?
Kilmarnock have another home game to look forward to as St Johnstone visit next Saturday (15:00 BST), while Livingston host Dundee United at the same time.