Kilmarnock striker Mark Burchill is optimistic that Killie, having retained the bulk of their squad, are in a good position to challenge for a top six place. "Kilmarnock are about the only SPL team that haven't really lost any key first-team players over the summer, while a lot of other teams are getting weaker in terms of the players they've lost," he said.

"You could even say we're stronger than last season because the manager has been able to add to his squad with the likes of myself and Steven Old.

"If we can get a bit of consistency I don't see why we can't challenge for the top six.

"You look at the strikers here and there's big Kevin Kyle, Allan Russell, David Fernandez, young Conor Sammon and now myself so we shouldn't be short of goals.

"That's an important thing for any club because I'm sure even Kilmarnock will admit they struggled because they didn't score enough in the first half of last season.

"Now that the deal has finalised I'm just desperate for the season to start."