MY KILLIE BATTLERS WILL DRIVE YOU GRAFT

Willing workers give Del so much satisfaction

KILMARNOCK manager Derek McInnes has hailed his players as the hardest working men in showbusiness ahead of their meeting with Dundee where a win for the Ayrshire side could effectively guarantee them a top-six finish.

He's signed players who are prepared to outrun and outfight as well as outplay their Premiership rivals and that attitude has them in contention for a European place.

Last season they avoided being sucked into the play-offs by a lastday win over Ross County but they're currently fourth and McInnes credits adding graft to craft for making them miles better.

"The stats are phenomenal - the boys are running between 11-12km in every game," he claimed.

"But it's not just the ground that's covered, it's about the sheer intensity of the work they put in - the number of high sprints that we do in and out of possession.

"We spoke at the start of this season about how we always wanted to be a tough opponent, week in and week out.