THE WILL TO WIN
A test of desire at Stark’s Park in 1993 brought out the battling best – and fiery worst – in two big names of Kilmarnock’s newly promoted Premier Division side.
If the image of a red-faced Bobby Williamson, grappling to pull off his boots in a fit of fury, having just been told he is hopeless, doesn’t make you smile then this might not be the story for you.
After spending a fruitless first 45 minutes toiling up front on his own against the Raith Rovers defence, Bobby, along with his Kilmarnock teammates, trudged into the dressing room, seeking solace from their talismanic leader, Tommy Burns. Two goals down and outplayed; galvanising was required.
“They played with a sweeper. It was very difficult for a lone striker to find space in those situations because if I went long, the sweeper was there and if I went short, the centre-half was there.”
And you can bet that Bobby would have taken a bit of ‘old-fashioned marking’ for his trouble, relishing the physical contest as he did.
But the manager’s response was far from the metaphoric arm around the shoulder and soothing words that might have been hoped for as respite during a tough shift.
“Tommy came in and he blew a gasket. It was the old foam at the side of the mouth. He was shouting at all of the players.”
The equally irascible Bobby vividly recalls the gaffer’s to-the-point analysis of his value to the team: “He said, ‘Look, if he comes short, DO NOT give him the ball,’ pointing to me. ‘He can’t play.’ I thought, ‘I can’t play? Ok.’ So I took my boots off and I threw them down. ‘If I can’t play, put someone on who CAN play.’ I went to the shower room, and I was taking my stuff off.”
Time to send in the peacemaker, assistant manager, Billy Stark.
“Starky came in and said, ‘Come on, he never meant it that way. Just go out there and play. Show him what you can do.’ Starky was always the good cop. He convinced me to get my gear back on.”
Burns’ slight on the infamously bristly number 9 produced exactly the response you might think it would. The two-goal lead – an Ally Graham glance and Jason Dair rasper – was cancelled out by second-half Williamson and Mitchell headers.
Even if the manager’s words didn’t have an instant impact – the comeback didn’t truly start until the 72nd minute – Burns kept faith and Bobby stayed on the park long enough to prove his point. So, for all the half-time posturing, it is easy to imagine the master motivator on the touchline, eyes narrowed, willing him on under his breath.
Bobby demonstrated the predatory, positional nous of a striker with north of 150 goals to his name. The devastating left foot of Tom Black lanced a cross into the six-yard box and, with minimal movement, the ball was flicked past Scott Thomson. The only high-definition element of the grainy VHS-to-YouTube highlights is the fume radiating from the goalscoring hero. Right place, right time. Comeback on, completed by Ally Mitchell a few minutes later. Final score: 2-2.
So, was it a masterstroke of managerial manoeuvring or just a flare up that went too far? An unfortunate bystander gives the definitive eyewitness account. Mark Reilly played over 300 times for the club and included both protagonists in his Killie Histories all-time Killie eleven. Who better than ‘Mavis’ to make the call?
“The dressing room was tiny. I was sitting between George McCluskey and Bobby. George, right away, said, ‘Here’s Lecter coming…’ Tam was furious. He went off on a rant shouting, ‘Williamson, you’re hopeless. You canny play.’ Bobby had a really strong personality as a player, and he wasn’t taking it. He’s answering back. This went on for about five minutes and, by this point, Tam is trying to get to Bobby and Bobby’s trying to get to Tam; Billy Stark’s holding Tam back.
“By this point, it’s freezing cold and Andy Millen’s taking hypothermia because he had about two percent body fat. The dressing room was mayhem. Eventually it calms down and Tam has a go at the rest of us. ‘Play it into the corners; that’s his strength’. So it’s kicked off again. Bobby’s shouting, ‘I CAN play.’
“Tam knew what buttons to press. His team talk after the game was about how good a footballer Bobby Williamson was. He started by saying, ‘I apologise to you. I was wrong.’ He then went on for ten minutes about Bobby’s qualities and how good he was.
“I was one of the last to go into the shower. The dressing room was quiet, and Tam turns to me and says, ‘Hey, wee man, what about that for man management!’ He had a big smile on his face, and he just walked out the dressing room.”
Tommy, you rascal.
Bobby’s ire, though, was genuine: “At the time, I was angry. I was absolutely fuming. He was angry as well. I thought, ‘I’m not going to confront him. I can’t do that. Not in the dressing room in front of all the players.’ It was embarrassing for me, the way he described it. I took the hump and threw the toys out the pram.”
Yet the respect was there, even in the midst of a falling out.
“He was great to work for. You’d give everything; you’d put your heart on your sleeve because that’s what he did. And you worked as hard as you could for him, and every player was the same. We had so much respect for the guy, and he’s still missed.”
Bobby Wiliamson finished as Kilmarnock’s top scorer on their top-flight return and the man who steered and kept them there certainly knew his value.
But, despite that, the expected knock on the gaffer’s door on the Monday morning was to come…
Words by Gordon Gillen
This article first appeared in Issue 5 of the Kilmarnock Football Club official magazine of December 2021.