Livingston vs Kilmarnock. Scottish Premiership.
Tony Macaroni ArenaAttendance1,923.
Match report as Joel Nouble, Bruce Anderson and Stephen Kelly all get on the scoresheet in convincing win for Livingston against Kilmarnock
Saturday 4 February 2023 19:16, UK
Livingston climbed to fourth in the cinch Premiership as they continued their impressive form with an imposing 3-1 win over Kilmarnock.
Joel Nouble scored on his first start since November in the ninth minute before Bruce Anderson doubled the home side's advantage in the 11th minute with an intelligent shot across goal. In the 28th minute, Stephen Kelly made it 3-0 with a sweetly-struck volley inside the box.
Kilmarnock had failed to win away from home in the league coming into this one and were consigned to this run continuing before the first half had ended.
An early second-half goal in the 46th minute from Christian Doidge was their only consolation as they were unable to record back-to-back Scottish Premiership wins.
David Martindale's side started on the front foot with Cristian Montano and Nouble forcing Sam Walker into early saves.
The home side continued to surge forward and were soon rewarded as Nouble instinctively nodded home from close range after reacting first to a deflected cross.
Less than two minutes after their opener Anderson doubled Livingston's lead as his exquisite finish sent the ball beyond Walker.
With just under half an hour on the clock, Martindale's side were 3-0 up and out of sight thanks to the afternoon's pick of the strikes.
At the heart of the goal was Nouble, who drove to the byline and saw his ball deflected into the path of Stephen Kelly who side-footed his shot off the underside of the bar and in with venom.
Kilmarnock showed some glimpses of life as the first half wound down with Kyle Vassell's shot rippling the outside of the net, but Derek McInnes' side failed to find a route back into the game before the half-time whistle.
The home side's 3-0 lead at the interval capped off a remarkable 45 minutes of attacking football with their three-goal-margin flattering Kilmarnock.
After recording their first win in five league games midweek against Dundee United, Kilmarnock struggled to show a similar level of fight - or attacking prowess - in the opening 45 minutes.
A goalmouth scramble led to Doidge poking the ball over the line for Derek McInnes' side just minutes after the restart with the second half failing to match the first's entertainment value despite the smart start from the visitors.
Walker was called into action making a smart double save to deny powerful strikes from Jack Fitzwater and Nouble as the home side saw out the game in a professional manner, avoiding any late scares.
David Martindale was delighted with his squad depth after victory over Kilmarnock:
"For a 20-minute spell, we scored three goals and I thought the boys before that were fantastic, I think the first goal was 10 minutes and the third goal was 29 minutes - something along those lines. I thought the quality of the finishes and how we progressed the ball into the final third and what we did, the execution in the final third, was fantastic.
"It's wee patterns of play we work on, get the ball on the box and wee Brucey [Anderson] is getting on the end of it, my No.8 is then in the correct area for the third goal, so I'm really, really pleased with the goals we scored in the first half.
"As I said, and I'm not making excuses, I think I had the luxury but it's a squad that we built and I've been on record saying that I think I've got two starting XIs, no matter who I play; I could drop most players on the team and replace them with a like-for-like player."
Derek McInnes was livid with his Kilmarnock side after their 3-1 loss at Livingston:
"They come at you, they ask the question, and their front three all enjoyed the game too much in the first period and Christ, we gave them a helping hand to get their goals there's no two ways about it.
"I think they've put the ball in the box twice from two crosses and they're 2-0 up and then we bring more pressure ourselves by making a wrong decision for the third goal and all of a sudden, it's a mountain to climb.
"We were far too passive, far too naive, and also lacking in real intelligence in how to play this time of game. We continually tried to play through them when we needed to go beyond them, we needed to bypass the press."
The attention turns to the fifth round of the Scottish Cup with Livingston at home to Championship side Queens Park and Kilmarnock away to Dundee United.
Both matches are on Saturday 11 February, kick-off 3pm.
