Lewis Smith hopes he can be a thorn in Kilmarnock’s side again on Saturday and spark some life into Hamilton’s survival bid.
Accies go into the clash after a stunning win over Rangers at Ibrox on Wednesday night, but it will be all for nothing if the Lanarkshire side can't back it up against Killie.
Lifelong Accies fan Smith had a day to remember the last time the sides clashed at New Douglas Park, scoring the opener and setting up George Oakley for the clincher in a 2-0 win.
That was right back at the start of the season in August, and since then Accies have found themselves embroiled in a relegation scrap for much of the campaign.
So Smith would love nothing more than to down Killie again.
Accies are unbeaten in their league meetings with the Ayrshire men this season and the 19-year-old said: “We’ve played them a few times now and it will always be special for me to play Kilmarnock.
“My first league start was against them and we got a really positive result that day. It was a really nice day, I scored as well and all my family were there, so it’s a day I will never forget.
“Hopefully we can replicate that result on Saturday – because we need to. We got a clean sheet that day and that’s something we’ve been missing.
“Staying up means everything to the club, so to be in a relegation battle right now is not where we want to be.
“We spoke at the beginning of the season that this is not where we want to be in years to come, so hopefully we can stay up this year and use it as a platform to kick on in this league.
”If selected, hopefully I can score again. We know if we perform well we can beat Kilmarnock.”
Accies climbed off the foot of the Scottish Premiership table on Wednesday night, but they are only two points ahead of rock bottom Hearts, who have a game in hand.
But gaffer Brian Rice insisted his focus is on what his team can do and not about their rivals.
“Whatever happens elsewhere is outwith our control,” he stressed. “We can only focus on ourselves, but there’s certainly no doom and gloom around here.
“If you come and see the boys training, they are in every day working hard, as they should be doing, and the spirits are high.
“There’s not one game in this league where we are favourites to win, we are underdogs every week, so we’ve got to meet that challenge.”
Follow Lanarkshire Live Sport on Twitter via @LanLiveSport , like us on Facebook or find us on Instagram for the latest sports news, pictures and video.
