Raith Rovers’ Championship winless run extended to nine games on Saturday as Kilmarnock romped to a 3-0 victory.
A Kyle Lafferty brace and Stephen McGinn’s close-range opener secured the triumph, with Rovers’ boss John McGlynn describing the first-half showing from his side as one of the worst he could recall.
The Kirkcaldy club have picked up five points from a possible 27 this quarter and, with title aspirations surely now fanciful, face a battle to simply secure a playoff place.
Courier Sport was at Rugby Park to weigh up the big talking points.
A five-year low
Earlier this season, Raith Rovers racked up their longest unbeaten run in 29 years.
Their remarkable 15-match sequence was the club’s best since 1992/93, when Jimmy Nicholl’s swash-buckling Fifers embarked on a staggering 17-game unbeaten run.
But Rovers are now experiencing the flip-side of that.
Raith’s nine-match winless run in the Championship is their worst spell of form since 2016/17, when a combination of Gary Locke and John Hughes oversaw 15 league matches without victory between November and February.
Two-horse race?
The one saving grace for Rovers is that, despite their last victory in the league coming on December 11, they remain in the final promotion place.
That can largely be attributed to the fact Partick Thistle — just one point behind Raith — have seen fixtures drop like flies and now possess four games in hand.
It would be a major surprise if Thistle do not pick up enough points from those outings to cement their place in the top four.
A more likely rival for the Stark’s Park outfit looks to be Inverness.
The Caley Jags are enduring an identical malaise — also nine games without a league win — and are just one point above Rovers after the same amount of matches.
⤵️ From Zach to Front
Another goal for Kyle in front of the Moffat Stand pic.twitter.com/b3vlz880zD
— Kilmarnock FC (@KilmarnockFC) February 20, 2022
If, as one might reasonably expect, Arbroath, Kilmarnock and Partick Thistle pull away, it will swiftly become a straight shoot-out for fourth between the stumbling rivals.
A sharp contrast
It is impossible not to draw jarring parallels between Rovers’ last two visits to Kilmarnock.
On October 2, Raith registered a sensational 3-1 triumph and turned in a performance of organisation, character and clinical quality on the break.
It was played in front of a raucous away following, who were basking in a burgeoning title charge. The togetherness between supporters, coaching staff and players was palpable. Something special was building.
LAST TIME AT KILLIE 2/2 | With the home team pushing for a late equaliser @regs_tumilty got on the ball down the right flank, and sprinted the length of the pitch to square the ball for Matej Poplatnik to seal an epic victory…
Commentary by @RaithTV #yourrovers pic.twitter.com/ZqueVnSWS9
— RRFC Official (@RaithRovers) February 18, 2022
On Saturday, John McGlynn described his side’s performance in the first half as ‘easy to play against’ and ‘not my team’.
It was a damning indictment from a coach whose post-match thoughts tend towards the analytical rather than the angry.
The away section was also far more sparsely populated. The poor form; the David Goodwillie debacle; the aftermath of Storm Eunice — whatever the cause, it was night-and-day compared to the triumph earlier this season.
Following a tumultuous and chastening period off the pitch, and a miserable spell on it, Rovers are a club desperately in need of a lift.
Partick Thistle next Saturday are up next.
Christophe Berra silver lining
Christophe Berra will have more effective days at the office.
The former Hearts hero, who had two just days of training under his belt prior to lining up against Killie, struggled to contain the irrepressible Lafferty.
Lafferty won the aerial battles, brought others into the game and scored a double; five goals in six games for the ex-Rangers forward.
However, that does not lessen the importance of Berra’s return.
After enduring a gruelling 90 minutes, he showed no ill-effects from the calf strain which left him sidelined for a month. With another week of training, he will be fitter and sharper.
Rovers are measurably a far better team with Berra in the heart of its defence and, allied with the need for strong characters and big personalities in the current circumstances, he will be pivotal.
