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Mark Connolly wants to stop Kilmarnock fans being starved
of success.
But the Rugby Park defender is just thankful he can put food on his own table at the moment given the money troubles his pals at old club Bolton are experiencing.
Connolly was able to put a fresh perspective on Killie’s present position as he looked down to England.
The 23-year-old former Bolton player had the harsh reality of fickle football finances driven home to him again with news that some of his mates in Lancashire have not been paid for last month’s work and might not get any money for Christmas.
Connolly also ended up on the scrapheap when Crawley Town ran out of cash and he knows all too well how quickly things can sour at a club.
The Killie skipper wants his team to be higher up the Premiership table but, in a tough economic climate, he is happy to look at the bigger picture.
And Connolly is grateful to the likes of Billy Bowie for the investment in the club which has ensured Killie won’t fall into the same depths of debt and despair as Bolton.
He said: “I know a few of the Bolton boys and what’s happening is not nice. Another of my pals at Northampton didn’t get paid recently either.
“It’s not nice in any job if that happens because people might not have any savings put aside.
“Some boys might have a lot of outgoings. If you have a family to look after it’s difficult and I do feel for them with Christmas coming up.
“We have to be thankful for those who have come into Kilmarnock. Billy Bowie and others have put money in and wiped out the debt. That’s massive and it gives you a sense of security.
“In any job, if you know you are not going to be paid and you have two or three kids at home who need fed, it’s very hard.
“People think these lads are on big money, but no one actually knows what they have. I haven’t spoken to anyone at Bolton since it happened.
“If it happened to me, the last thing I would want is other boys texting and ringing me about it.
“They have more important things such as family to worry about. It’s a shame as Bolton is such a big club.
“Like Kilmarnock, everyone knows everyone. It’s a tight-knit community. They are trying to get a new owner in and I hope that happens because I have good memories at Bolton.
“I went from Wolves’ youth team to sitting beside Gary Cahill and Kevin Davies as a first-team player there.
“It was a sign of growing up and it took me until the last few months of my contract there to realise what I needed to do.
“Sometimes you think you’ve made it when you actually haven’t and it’s trying to adjust.
“I was then happy to get the chance at Crawley but again it was finances there. Approaching the last months of my contract, they told 18 of us our wages were to be halved as they couldn’t keep paying. Taking a pay cut like that while your mortgage is still sky high is tough to deal with.
“It helped me grow up and to realise that you need to work hard every day and now I’m 23 and the captain of Kilmarnock.”
Of course, Connolly knows the best way to repay the likes of Bowie and the fans who plough in their own hard-earned cash is to get results.
And the captain has revealed a clear-the-air meeting within the camp following last weekend’s miserable 5-2 loss to Partick Thistle has changed the mood ahead of Saturday’s game against Dundee United.
Speaking at the launch of the Kilmarnock Burns Supper, Connolly said: “There has been a reaction, which we needed. We had a meeting on Monday and spoke again on Tuesday. People talked about what they thought wasn’t right.
“Sometimes you only get one or two speaking but this was everyone. It wasn’t heated because people put their hands up to their mistakes.
“You can’t start blaming others. If you did well, that’s fine. But I don’t think there are many who could put their hands up and say that, including myself.
“We were not good but I hope we will be against Dundee United. We need to beat the teams around us. If we beat United, that’s an 11-point gap and that is our aim now.”
Source
But the Rugby Park defender is just thankful he can put food on his own table at the moment given the money troubles his pals at old club Bolton are experiencing.
Connolly was able to put a fresh perspective on Killie’s present position as he looked down to England.
The 23-year-old former Bolton player had the harsh reality of fickle football finances driven home to him again with news that some of his mates in Lancashire have not been paid for last month’s work and might not get any money for Christmas.
Connolly also ended up on the scrapheap when Crawley Town ran out of cash and he knows all too well how quickly things can sour at a club.
The Killie skipper wants his team to be higher up the Premiership table but, in a tough economic climate, he is happy to look at the bigger picture.
And Connolly is grateful to the likes of Billy Bowie for the investment in the club which has ensured Killie won’t fall into the same depths of debt and despair as Bolton.
He said: “I know a few of the Bolton boys and what’s happening is not nice. Another of my pals at Northampton didn’t get paid recently either.
“It’s not nice in any job if that happens because people might not have any savings put aside.
“Some boys might have a lot of outgoings. If you have a family to look after it’s difficult and I do feel for them with Christmas coming up.
“We have to be thankful for those who have come into Kilmarnock. Billy Bowie and others have put money in and wiped out the debt. That’s massive and it gives you a sense of security.
“In any job, if you know you are not going to be paid and you have two or three kids at home who need fed, it’s very hard.
“People think these lads are on big money, but no one actually knows what they have. I haven’t spoken to anyone at Bolton since it happened.
“If it happened to me, the last thing I would want is other boys texting and ringing me about it.
“They have more important things such as family to worry about. It’s a shame as Bolton is such a big club.
“Like Kilmarnock, everyone knows everyone. It’s a tight-knit community. They are trying to get a new owner in and I hope that happens because I have good memories at Bolton.
“I went from Wolves’ youth team to sitting beside Gary Cahill and Kevin Davies as a first-team player there.
“It was a sign of growing up and it took me until the last few months of my contract there to realise what I needed to do.
“Sometimes you think you’ve made it when you actually haven’t and it’s trying to adjust.
“I was then happy to get the chance at Crawley but again it was finances there. Approaching the last months of my contract, they told 18 of us our wages were to be halved as they couldn’t keep paying. Taking a pay cut like that while your mortgage is still sky high is tough to deal with.
“It helped me grow up and to realise that you need to work hard every day and now I’m 23 and the captain of Kilmarnock.”
Of course, Connolly knows the best way to repay the likes of Bowie and the fans who plough in their own hard-earned cash is to get results.
And the captain has revealed a clear-the-air meeting within the camp following last weekend’s miserable 5-2 loss to Partick Thistle has changed the mood ahead of Saturday’s game against Dundee United.
Speaking at the launch of the Kilmarnock Burns Supper, Connolly said: “There has been a reaction, which we needed. We had a meeting on Monday and spoke again on Tuesday. People talked about what they thought wasn’t right.
“Sometimes you only get one or two speaking but this was everyone. It wasn’t heated because people put their hands up to their mistakes.
“You can’t start blaming others. If you did well, that’s fine. But I don’t think there are many who could put their hands up and say that, including myself.
“We were not good but I hope we will be against Dundee United. We need to beat the teams around us. If we beat United, that’s an 11-point gap and that is our aim now.”
Source
