Top six should be the aim for Kilmarnock – so says Liam Donnelly.
The Northern Irish midfielder reckons that if last season’s Premiership is anything to go by, a top-half finish is up for grabs to anyone.
Motherwell and Ross County both secured top-six finishes despite having ropey runs throughout the season so Donnelly feels that a bit of consistency would put Killie into contention – although he’s taking nothing for granted in a tough, competitive league.
Donnelly joined from Motherwell and he’s glad to have joined a club like Killie.
He told the Kilmarnock Standard: “It was good to get everything sorted after having a bit of time off.
“I had the chance to look at my options, I had different teams that wanted me, but I had to make sure it was right for me and my family. I knew of the interest from Killie, and I spoke to the manager [Derek McInnes] and it was then an easy decision.
“The initial draw of working with the manager was there, I know his pedigree from working in Scotland, he has done well at Aberdeen for a number of years and then came here and won the league, so he was a big factor in me joining.
“I know the size of the club too, it’s a big attraction.”
Donnelly, 26, continued: “He’s not going to settle for any position, he wants us to push on and finish as high as we can.
“I want to try and push in to the top six, and when you look at last season there’s no reason why we can’t achieve that.
“I was with the Motherwell team who did it last year, we didn’t really have a great run since Christmas and still managed to finish fifth.
“Dundee United did well in terms of position too, and Ross County got top six after the start they had.
“It’s not anything we can’t achieve, it just shows the potential is there if we string the right results together.
“Most teams can beat each other on their day, it’s just about picking up results and being consistent.”
Donnelly admits mates Kyle Lafferty and Liam Polworth were also big factors in getting him to join up at Rugby Park.
“We were away in the summer and big Kyle was pestering me the full time," Donnelly explained, "I know him well.
“I also spoke to Liam who I am friendly with after my time at Motherwell, so I had good insight from a few of the lads.
“It made it a no brainer, it was only positive things they had to say, so that made the choice easy.
“I know the size of this club, there has been special days and nights at Rugby Park, you can see the potential this club has.
“It’s now about us trying to put decent performances on and aim to get points on the board. If we do that then hopefully it starts filling the place up.”
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