Jim Jeffries can see his side winning tonight as they welcome Celtic to Rugby Park.

Kilmarnock manager Jim Jefferies is looking to avoid a result similar to last season's Scottish Cup meeting with Celtic by beating them tonight and sending them out the CIS Cup. Killie were hammered 5-1 in front of their own stunned fans back in February as Celtic ran riot at Rugby Park during what was a particularly difficult period for the Ayrshire club. Star striker Colin Nish had been sold to Hibs just two days before and a crippling injury list on top of the loss of key players eventually saw Killie end a disappointing season second-bottom of the SPL. More than eight months on, the two sides meet again in cup competition at the same venue. This time, it is a different competition and, as far as Jefferies is concerned, a very different Kilmarnock team.

He said: "The Scottish Cup was at a bad time for us. We lost Nish on transfer deadline day and didn't have an opportunity to bring anybody in. We were a bit flat and Celtic came out of the traps and really won the game in the opening spell. It's difficult when they are on form because they have better players than anyone else apart from Rangers, where there is very little between the teams. It doesn't always guarantee victory so you just have to hope that your players are playing at the top of their form and Celtic aren't and you have a chance. We have run them close a few times at Rugby Park over the last few years and hopefully we can do that again."

Celtic picked up maximum points from their trips to Rugby Park in the SPL earlier this season but Jefferies insists cup competition is a completely different proposition and there have been a few shock results so far. He said: "It will be a difficult game, they had a really good performance on Saturday. But we are at home so maybe we will have more of a chance. We have nothing to lose. We just have to make it as difficult as possible for them and hopefully it goes our way. Shocks can happen and that's what we have to try to do - cause a shock."

Jefferies sees no reason why his players' morale should be affected by Saturday's home defeat to Falkirk. He said: "It was a difficult afternoon all around the country on Saturday but I thought we served up a decent match. Falkirk played really well for the first half an hour and passed the ball well without really causing us too many problems. We started the second half well and we could have gone on to win it but the second goal came against the run of play and the video shows it wasn't a penalty. That gave them something to hang onto and they defended well but it was a game we could easily have won on another day."

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