Kilmarnock 5-2 St Mirren: Killie romp to victory after trailing St Mirren
- Published
Five-star Kilmarnock in comeback win over St Mirren
Derek McInnes needed to "wake up" some Kilmarnock players at half-time before his side scored five in an incredible comeback victory over Scottish Premiership top-six rivals St Mirren.
Set-piece goals from Charles Dunne and Mikael Mandron had given the visitors a seemingly comfortable cushion, before McInnes' tactical tweak - changing from three to four at the back - helped turn the game on its head.
Kyle Vassell began the fightback on the hour and the hosts were soon in front thanks to a Danny Armstrong penalty and Marley Watkins header.
A brilliant individual goal from David Watson and Vassell's second sealed the stunning revival as Kilmarnock leapfrogged the visitors into fourth place.
"Any time you lose two poor goals from set-plays, it can knock the stuffing out of you, and it affected us first half," manager McInnes told BBC Scotland.
"We spoke at half-time about what we expected of ourselves, and to a man everyone was outstanding.
"It was a top performance from a group of lads who don't know they're beat. We are so motivated to do well and that was a huge step towards the top six.
"Sometimes you need half-time to give them a gentle reminder of what's required. Some players needed woken up, reminded why they were in the team, reminded of their responsibilities."
The first half was about as bad as McInnes could have hoped for - the new shape didn't work, his side could not get the ball to creator-in-chief Armstrong, and they conceded two unbelievably soft goals, both from corners.
Not that Stephen Robinson would say that. Those goals would be well-worked set-pieces in his eyes.
The first might have been a penalty anyway, had Dunne not booted the leather off the ball as he hammered in from close range for his first goal since 2017. Conor McMenamin, who laid the ball off to Dunne, had been dragged to the floor in the process.
The second was a nice, and legal, bit of blocking that allowed Mandron to peel off Joe Wright and volley home.
One change to the shape was all it took for Kilmarnock to spark the fightback. Watson moved from midfield to right-back, and suddenly it clicked.
Kilmarnock's first goal came from a simple long ball. Initially cleared, Liam Donnelly headed it back into a dangerous area and Vassell prodded past goalkeeper Zach Hemming at the second time of asking.
The mood noticeably shifted and the hosts took full advantage. Watkins beat Ryan Flynn to a ball in behind and referee Ross Hardie pointed to the spot. Armstrong's precise penalty nestled into the corner and the score was level only three minutes after Kilmarnock's first.
Three minutes later, they led. Armstrong clipped in a soft corner and Watkins muscled his header into the top corner from the penalty spot.
The comeback sparked delirium in the stands but Kilmarnock were not done. Watkins' long ball over the top found Vassell and he took a touch before rifling into the bottom corner.
Watson fancied a bit of the action, too. Picking up the ball 30 yards from goal, he skipped by three St Mirren defenders before tickling the ball past the stranded Hemming to wrap up the scoring.
Player of the match - Marley Watkins (Kilmarnock)
Unfair to pick one of Watkins, Vassell and Armstrong, but I'll go for the Welshman purely for his header
Killie crack conundrum to scythe St Mirren apart - analysis
To call this a game of two halves doesn't do it justice.
Even the most optimistic Kilmarnock fan might have only hoped for a draw when they were two goals down thanks to uncharacteristically soft first-half defending.
However, the good feeling that McInnes has built up meant just one goal put the wind fully back in the Kilmarnock sails and as soon as they had made that breakthrough, they were irresistibly unstoppable.
The frustration might be - why did McInnes feel the need to change the tactics before kick-off and move to three at the back, in an attempt to match St Mirren up?
As for the visitors, the unstoppable Killie wave led to a collapse rarely seen by Stephen Robinson's team. They did brilliantly to get two ahead without playing all that well, but lacked leadership to stop the rot when it started to creep in.
What they said
Kilmarnock manager Derek McInnes: "When the questions were getting asked of my players today, they met that responsibility brilliantly. It was a proper grown-up performance."
St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson: "Hard to explain. We had a perfect first half and everything good we did first half, we didn't do in the second.
"We didn't deal with it in any shape or form. We showed a lot of inexperience. A lot went against us, we have to hold our hands up and say we got bullied. We might have been lucky to get out with five."
What's next?
Kilmarnock travel to the capital after the international break to face Hearts on Saturday, 30 March, while St Mirren visit Motherwell on the same day (both 15:00 GMT).