Kilmarnock 1 Ayr United 0: A special night for Rory McKenzie's testimonial
After 14 years of service (and counting), the 31-year-old was finally rewarded for his loyalty with a match dedicated to him.
Tonight was about one man and one man only.
Kilmarnock celebrated one of their own with Rory McKenzie’s long-awaited testimonial.
The 5,000-strong crowd rose to applaud the modern-day Killie legend as he deservedly took centre stage, as much as he probably didn’t want to. It was a good turnout for a man who was previously worried that nobody would bother to attend!
The game ended 1-0 to Killie, as Greg Kiltie’s long-range lob over David Mitchell from 40 yards settled the pre-season derby. The keeper was way off his line after making a mistake, kicking the ball straight to the attacking midfielder.
Here is our reaction to Rory’s special night…
(Credit: Jeff Holmes)
RM7
(Credit: Jeff Holmes)
What more can we say about the great man that hasn’t already?
Simply put, Rory McKenzie is a living club legend.
It’s taken him a while to etch himself into that sort of territory. He’s always been regarded as a local hero by the fans, especially when it became clear around six years ago that he probably wouldn’t ever leave.
With over 420 appearances to his name (and counting), two goals against Ayr, one Championship win, two European journeys and everything else in between, McKenzie has given his all for his boyhood club.
It’s not even all about that. His work rate, his desire to do his best every time he pulls on the stripes and the class he carries himself with is something money can’t buy for a team at this level.
Rory is the kind of player clubs like Killie need to produce. Other clubs of a similar stature, and even clubs at a higher level, would love a player with his commitment.
It’s all very well selling academy players for big sums of money – and rest assured, had the opportunity to sell Rory arose during his younger days in the first team, then the club would’ve taken it.
But to have a reliable, hard-working and skilled player, who is barely ever injured, in the ranks is worth its weight in gold, and this is why McKenzie more than deserves recognition with the testimonial.
Nothing typified Rory more than when he burst past one of his midfield counterparts, before hitting the deck, only to improvise with a neat overhead kick flick, as his backside remained planted on the sodden astro.
He’s a family man. A private guy. He doesn’t love speaking to the media. However, as he’s always done, he does his talking on the park.
All of it, everything mentioned, it’s what makes him Rory. And we wouldn’t have him any other way.
Rory McKenzie, legend.
Miss from the spot
McKenzie missing a penalty during his own testimonial is probably one of the most typical things to have occurred during his 14 years at Rugby Park.
The captain, 31, had the chance to step up from 12 yards after David Dickson awarded the hosts a penalty on 43 minutes for a foul on Brad Lyons.
The Northern Irishman latched onto a loose ball, getting in behind Ayr’s defence, only to be pushed in the back by Shaun Want. Rightly, he fell to the ground and a spot kick was awarded.
Perfect. It wasn’t even the kind of token penalty you see awarded in most types of testimonial or legends games. It was a definite pen.
Unfortunately for Rory, Ayr’s David Mitchell guessed the right way, denying McKenzie a goal on his testimonial.
Rory joked post-match: "I had plenty of nice messages, so I'm more than willing to receive the messages I'll get after missing that penalty!
"I'm extremely proud of my time here. It's been a whirlwind but it's a brilliant club and I can't thank people enough.
"I couldn't envisage this many people coming, so I'm very grateful.
"There's a real feel-good factor around the club and I think it's going to be an exciting year."
Read more:
A 'Killie man' - Rory McKenzie special ahead of testimonial vs Ayr
This week in Killie history: Charlie McArthur's exit & the other young stars who left so soon
I met Stuart Kettlewell for the first time - here's the impression I got from new Killie boss
Stryjek starts
(Credit: Jeff Holmes)
Signed a matter of seven hours before kick-off, Max Stryjek was straight in for his first Killie start in the derby.
The former Livingston and Wycombe goalkeeper has joined on a one-year contract.
He produced a decent stop from a Jamie Murphy shot, before coming straight through anyone who stood in his way to claim a resultant cross.
Where does this leave Robby McCrorie? We’re going to make it our task to find out at the next opportunity to speak to the manager.
Given a fee was forked out on him just 12 months ago, it’s hard to imagine the club has given up hope on the Scotland back-up.
He may still be recovering from injury, but it appears that Stryjek has been signed to be first choice.
McCrorie surely still deserves the chance to be the Poles’ understudy, and allow him to fight tooth and nail to become No.1.
Although, with Eddie Beach playing the second half of tonight as a trialist, unless he’s still recovering from injury, the future seems unclear for McCrorie at Killie.
The defected defender
George Stanger started at the heart of Killie’s defence as Stuart Kettlewell lined up in a 3-4-2-1 formation. He had Lewis Mayo to his right, and Robbie Deas on his left.
Having only just left Killie’s county cousins to join Ayrshire’s Premier side, his inclusion in the starting XI added an extra layer of intrigue to an already interesting pre-season affair.
Stanger – son of former Scotland rugby international, Tony - displayed some loose touches during the early part of the game. Whether it was nerves, or the conditions, given the circumstances and the fact it’s pre-season, it was somewhat understandable.
Onto the more impressive aspects of his performance, the boy has pace. No Ayr player was able to get away from him on the occasions they looked to counter. So, this will be crucial in filling the void left by Stuart Findlay.
His composure to bring the ball down and stay calm under pressure from the striker, in this case Curtis Main, was also evident. Stanger is certainly well-equipped to deal with a physical battle with his broad frame.
He used the ball simply, usually on making short 10-20 yard passes to either of his other defenders. His passing ability isn’t something to judge him on as a powerful centre-half, mind you.
Honourable mentions
(Credit: Jeff Holmes)
Kyle Magennis looked decent despite playing out of position at left-wing-back. Perhaps this is where we can expect to see him moving forward, as opposed to midfield. It definitely added a more attacking dynamic down the left as he linked up with Scott Tiffoney. Was fantastic to see him fit and firing.
Tiff will do. Of course, it’s very early days and it’s incredibly tough to be judging much if anything at all. But we can only go with what we see, and the former Dundee man looks nippy and relatively tidy on the ball. Was a little bit greedy in the final third, but some of those shots from range will pay off.
It’s great to see Kiltie back. Yes, he scored the winner, so deserves acclaim for that, but that aside, he looked comfortable in possession, his movement was there and he was always looking to make something happen. He also already looks to have formed a decent relationship with Jamie Brandon, in an attacking sense anyway.
Big Marcus Dackers appears awkward. It’s understandable with his height. To his credit, he showed some nice touches. Was a nuisance for Ayr’s defenders to deal with. Should’ve scored from seven yards out after 20 minutes. Raw, but could prove to be useful.
It would be lovely to see Ben Brannan play at right-wing-back as opposed to the left. He’s got something.