After the 2-0 defeat by Celtic at Parkhead
two weeks ago, Freddie Dindeleux decided
instead to take the unusual step of arranging a formal meeting with
his manager in order to resign the club captaincy .........
"To be captain can take a lot out of you
and I just felt tired, so I went to the manager,
I just said to him that I didnae want to be the captain, and he
should give it to Steve Fulton or
somebody else. I just felt it was time to pass the baton on.
"At some points of the season when we
were struggling a little bit I felt that I was not managing to lift
the team, Normally I am happy to be captain,
but I was in and out of the team. I had a look at myself and went to
see the manager and said he should give it to somebody else.
'Being captain is not easy. I had been it for almost two years
and I know some managers say it isn't a bad idea to change the captain
every two years, especially for me because
although I have been here for a while, I am still a foreign player."
By
the time his current contract at the Rugby Park club expires in the
summer of 2004, Dindeleux will have stayed in Scotland for five years,
a term which would make him meet residency criteria.
On being available
to play for Scotland... "I
will check it out, but it is not something I
really think about too much. I will be 30 by then so I don't think I
would have a chance any more anyway."
Freddie on
Kilmarnock players have been overlooked for international honours.
(Top of his list, however, is not
Fulton, Canero or Greg Shields, but the quietly effective Alan Mahood.)......"I
have been in Scotland for a few years now and I think there are many
players here who are very underrated, I
think Alan Mahood is a very, very good player, and then there is also
Peter Canero and Steve Fulton. We are not fourth in the league for no
reason, so why shouldn't they get a chance, especially with Scotland
building a new
team. "
"I particularly don't see why Alan
Mahood couldn't fit in there, I know
that Scotland currently have Paul Lambert and Barry Ferguson in
central midfield but I think Alan could definitely play alongside
them."
"He is very consistent and
knows the game inside out. I have played with him for the last four
years and he is the best player I have played alongside over those
four years.'"
Freddie on European
Football...'It is great to play in Europe,
and I have already been lucky enough to do it twice already with
Killie, and it would be nice to do it one more
time but we have to finish third now,' he said. 'When it is something
like Rangers and Celtic in the final then of course it should go to
the fourth placed team in the league, but even with the beaten
finalists they have got to be good enough to get into the final. And
obviously Dundee may not be favourites to win it, but I think we have
got to decide these things at the start of the season and we can't
change them now. Anyway, it is not up to me to say it should be this
or it should be that. It has been like this for ages here."
On JJ's tactics ....'The
manager is keen to emphasise that whether it's a back three or four
how important it is to be strong at the back."
On re-signing with
Killie.....'If they come to me, then yes, I would be
happy to talk to them, but if they don't then I get on with it. I am a
man who lives day after day.'
