Chris Strain: Last News

Kilwinning Rangers face a huge relegation showdown at home to Arthurlie tonight.

Beith boss Chris Strain admitted his second-half dismissal took some of the shine off a triumphant return to Buffs Park.

Shotts boss John McKeown was pleased to see his side dig deep to beat Rutherglen Glencairn 2-1 in the West of Scotland League First Division, despite being down to 10 men for 70 minutes.

Kilwinning Rangers 4 Bonnyton Thistle 0

Former Kilmarnock manager and SFA chief Jim Fleeting has agreed to take on a coaching role at Ayrshire non-league outfit Kilwinning Rangers.

Kilwinning Rangers boss Chris Strain heaped praise on teenage goalkeeper Ewan Henderson after an impressive debut in Saturday’s 4-1 win against Rossvale.

Chris Strain admitted he was congratulating Irvine Meadow “through gritted teeth” after Kilwinning Rangers were sent tumbling out of the South Challenge Cup.

3-1 victory over Irvine Meadow ended a run of five winless weekends.Gavin Millar's first half double had the Buffs in control at half-time in Saturday's West of Scotland Premier Division encouter at Meadow Park.But Kilwinning had to withstand a spell of second half pressure after Jamie Martin’s 47th minute wonder goal cut the visitors’ lead to 2-1.It took a controversial David Syme penalty to restore Buffs' two goal cushion but Strain insisted his side were worthy winners.He said: “There’s a bit of trepidation because we’ve lost a couple of leads this season but I thought in terms of bottle, organisation and carrying out the game plan we did fine.“I thought we completely dominated the first half.“Second half you expect Meadow to come back

Kilwinning Rangers boss Chris Strain hailed his Covid-hit squad after they overcame derby rivals Irvine Meadow to win the inaugural Eglinton Cup yesterday.Gavin Millar's late strike sealed a 4-2 victory for the Buffs at Meadow Park after a frantic, see-sawing first half produced five goals and no end of drama.Kilwinning led 2-0 and 3-1 in the opening 45 minutes thanks to goals from Thomas Collins, Ally McColm and David Syme.But Meadow stayed on their coat tails thanks to strikes from Dylan Pooler and Mick Wardrope before Millar put the match beyond their reach in the 87th minute.Strain insisted his side were worthy winners as he revealed how Covid cases and players self-isolating had 'ravaged' his preparations for the showpiece pre-season

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Strain says he's already started planning for next season.And while he's confident of keeping most of his squad together, Strain reckons persauding a couple of his more experienced players to stick around could potentially prove tricky.Goalkeeper Adam Strain, 41, and midfielder Liam McGuiness, 36, are the oldest members of the Buffs squad and Strain is bracing himself for some bad news.The Ayrshire Live app is available to download now.Get all the local news in your area – plus features, football news and the latest on the coronavirus crisis – at your fingertips 24/7.The free download features the latest breaking news and exclusive stories while you can customise your page with the sections that matter to you.The Ayrshire Live app is

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterKilwinning Rangers boss Chris Strain admits he has big decisions to make ahead of tomorrow's crunch league clash against WoSFL Premiership leaders Clydebank.An easing injury list means Strain will welcome key players back into the fold for the Holm Park meeting where victory will see Buffs move to within a point of top spot.Forward Luke Murphy – who was part of Buffs’ pre-season squad – will also come into contention after completing a prolonged transfer.Strain insists it’s a welcome dilemma as his side look to extend their winning run to four games.And he believes the availability of fresh faces can help mitigate back-to-back weekend

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterChris Strain says Kilwinning Rangers cannot let nerves get the better of them when they host in-form Hurlford on Saturday.The Buffs are already playing catch up in the WoSFL Premier League after two defeats in their opening five games.They needed two late goals to see off ten-man Cumbernauld United on Saturday in a far from convincing performance.Boss Strain reckons a ropey start to the campaign is playing on minds and hampering the search for consistency.“There’s an anxiousness about us just now because we’ve dropped a couple of points early doors,” he said.“The balance and the fluency in our play isn’t quite there at this moment in time.“One

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterChris Strain has warned his Kilwinning Rangers players to expect another physical test against Drumchapel United tonight.The Buffs boss watched a battling Port Glasgow outfit end his side's unbeaten pre-season record on Saturday.Jordan Stuart gave Kilwinning an early lead at Buffs Park but Port roared back with three goals while the hosts could only muster a converted Ricky Hanvey penalty.Strain reckons his side never quite got to grips with Conference outfit Port’s style of play.But he's hoping his players will have learned plenty of lessons ahead of tonight's closed door friendly against WoSFL conference side Drum.He said: “Our mentality

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterKilwinning Rangers boss Chris Strain is ready to build his team around David Syme after the former Kilmarnock defender committed his long-term future to the club.Strain fought off competition from League Two sides to convince the 23-year-old to sign a new three-year deal last week.He sees Syme as future captain material and the first piece of the jigsaw in building something special at Buffs Park.And he believes he is capable of following in the footsteps of former Buffs striker Ross Stewart - now an established star at Ross County - and playing at a higher level.“We’re delighted David sees his future here,” said Strain.“He is a very talented

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterKilwinning Rangers boss Chris Strain is hoping his very own science Buff can give his side the edge this season.The club this week appointed their first ever sports scientist to work directly with Strain and his players.Ryan Hughes will oversee areas including strength and conditioning, fitness, nutrition, data performance analysis and preparation and rehabilitation duties.And Strain reckons the university graduate can play a key role as the Buffs look to make a big impression in the new West of Scotland League.He said: “I know a lot of people are cynical when it comes to sports science and certainly there are not many teams at our level who

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterDean Agnew's second spell at Kilwinning Rangers is over after the wide-man turned down the offer of a new deal.Boss Chris Strain this week confirmed the 26-year-old's departure, citing long travelling distances to and from the player's home in Stranraer as the overriding factor in his decision to move on."Dean's been a good servant for the club, said Strain."He scored a number of goals for us last season, particularly in the first half, before his form took a wee winter dip."Travelling has been tough for him though so he's decided to move on."The good thing is we have plenty of cover in that area of the park."Agnew first joined the club in

Get the stories that interest you straight to your inbox every day with our personalised newsletterIan Cashmore admits he finds it almost impossible to say no when his beloved Kilwinning Rangers come calling.So when Buffs boss Chris Strain asked if he'd be up for a fourth spell at his hometown club, it was almost a rhetorical question.This time round will undoubtedly be different for all concerned as the veteran striker finds his feet in a new coaching role - with appearances on the pitch likely to be limited to the occasional cameo role.It's a step the 37-year-old concedes he never really considered up until a few weeks ago.But he reckons he's landed on his feet as he prepares to move into the next chapter of his career.And he firmly

Kilwinning Rangers boss Chris Strain saw the funny side after a rival manager set his league title disappointment to music.

Kilwinning Rangers have kicked-off a summer recruitment drive with a double swoop.