Dragoje Lekovic

Name: Dragoje Lekovic

DOB: 21/10/67

POB: Sivac,
Yugoslavia

Position: Goalkeeper

Clubs: Buducnost, Red Star, Mogren Budva, Kilmarnock,
Sporting Gijon, Malaga,
AEK Larnaca, Perth
Glory

International caps: 14

You cannot ask for a better start to a football career than
being on a youth team that wins the World Youth Cup. And what a team the
Yugoslavia side of 1987 was: Davor Suker, Zvonimir Boban, Robert Jarni, Predrag
Mijatovic, Igor Stimac, Robert Prosinecki and, of course, Dragoje Lekovic. Now,
every other player in that list may have gone on to have more illustrious
careers than their former custodian, but none of them can say that they spent
two years learning from Boddy Geddes.

Quite what the safe pair of hands in Killie’s rise back from
the First Division said to his eventual successor is anybody’s guess, but
presumably he didn’t teach the young Montenegrin to pursue cross balls in a
manner that Graham Speirs would later describe as like a “blind man chasing a
moth”. Well, unless Geddes grew insanely bitter about the perceived slight on
his abilities by bringing in a replacement that he decided to sabotage the
competition, like a storyline from a bad TV American show.

In the end Lekovic will always be remembered fondly by Rugby Park
fans by the bottom-line in his Killie career, which was that he was one of the
heroes that brought the Scottish Cup back to the town for the first time in 68
years.

It was certainly the pinnacle of his time in Ayrshire.
Viewed as the long term replacement to Geddes, Lekovic was eventually trusted
with the gloves four months into his move from Mogren Budva – where he, like so
many people, decided to leave because of the escalating violence that was
occurring in the region. Unfortunately the eccentric keeper was soon making
costly errors – including letting a routine pass-back roll under his foot
allowing Rod McDonald to score in an away trip to Partick – and found himself
back on the bench.

It was clear that their new signing had talent, he just
couldn’t adapt quickly to the Scottish game. He played like he’d never before
viewed a ball leaving the turf and couldn’t understand the desperate dedication
of his teammates, which inspired this great quote.

“In my second match for Kilmarnock,”
remembered Lekovic, “I had to shout ‘please, stop all the talking!’ Well,
everybody makes mistakes, you know. I say to the boys ‘just relax, take it
easy!'”

It was a night and day attitude compared with what was being
expected of him as Kilmarnock’s number one.
The club possesses a great history when it comes to goalkeepers and they
weren’t going to be satisfied with Lekovic’s unreliability regardless of how
entertaining he was. His lack of vocal command and physical presence didn’t
help matters either.

Regardless, Kilmarnock
stuck with him and he would finally oust Geddes of the position when the
veteran left for Raith Rovers in 1996. This was to be Lekovic’s best year, with
the club securing their Premier Division status once more and winning the
Scottish Cup Final. The encounter was a bit of a damp squib with plenty of
nerves and little action between two teams (Falkirk
the opposition) that understood this was an opportunity they would not against
receive for a long time. Paul Wright scored the game’s only goal but our hero
would play his part as well, diving to superbly hold onto a Kevin James’ header
when Falkirk pushed forward late in the game.

The following season started well enough until the marriage
was broken up shortly into the new year when Sporting Gijon decided that their
horrible (and record breaking) 1997/98 season could actually get worse and went
to Kilmarnock to prize the keeper out of Ayrshire. In the midst of a run that
wouldn’t see them win in 23 games, Lekovic stepped into his debut against Mallorca and promptly let in three goals. Four more
matches would follow before it was concluded he wasn’t the answer to their
problems and the bench beckoned once more. The team were relegated long before
the season finished.

He would leave the club in the summer before taking up a
bit-part role at Malaga, a similar one in Greece, before
retiring with Perth Glory in 2003.

Where is he now? Lekovic stayed out of professional football
for eight years before reappearing as part of Branko Brnovic’s management team
at the Montenegro
national side. The pair had played together while both at their first club
Buducnost and remained friends ever since.

Show: Deja-Vu