Ash Taylor insists Kilmarnock aren’t in the Premiership to make up the numbers this season.
The Rugby Park centre-back was used to high finishes and European football at Aberdeen and he won’t settle for scraping through this term.
And although he is adamant they’ve not discussed specific targets, it’s clear Taylor himself wants to look up rather than down heading into Saturday’s season opener against Dundee United.
The 31-year-old told the Kilmarnock Standard: “As a player you don’t want to settle for just taking part, as a squad we are not just here to take part in a league.
“We want to have a successful season and if that’s pushing for the top six then so be it.
“We’ve not really discussed aspirations for the season yet. I am sure we will sit down and decide what we want to do this season but as players we want to just do as well as we possibly can.
“It was so tight last year in this league. It showed just how competitive the league can be.
“Plenty of teams in the bottom six could have made it into the top six, it’s one of those situations that we look at that with optimism and we will try and go up and do well.”
A tough season awaits last season’s Championship winners and it couldn’t get much harder in terms of starts with Killie taking on last season’s top-six sides in their opening five matches.
However, Taylor is relishing that uphill task and added: “There’s no better way to have it really; thrown straight into the fire.
“You want to be tested against the top teams in the league, and if you come out of that doing well, then it’s a good sign for the rest of the season and you’d then hope to put a run together."
“I wouldn’t have it any other way, you want to put yourself against the top players and the top teams, I am sure all of the boys are looking forward to it.”
He added: “The squad is shaping up well, I think the gaffer is still trying to get a couple more in to help us as well.
“It’s a squad game, the bigger and the better the squad we have the better, playing in the Premiership is demanding.
“Anything can happen, and when you factor in injuries it’s important to have a squad that can cope.
“If we get a couple more in that can help us along the way then that would be ideal and we can just focus on that first league game.”
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