LEE CLARK wants to turn Kilmarnock into a hotbed of young talent that has major clubs banging on the door to do deals.

Clark prides himself on his past history for developing players and selling them on for serious money and has placed that philosophy at the centre of his blueprint for the Ladbrokes Premiership side.

“I’ve signed a long-term contract and I’ve got plans,” said the 43-year-old, who will sit in the stand for tonight’s William Hill Scottish Cup fifth round replay. “I’m excited by the challenge and the group of young players here.

“I want to make them better. If that means fighting off bids for them, that’s what I want. People wanting to take your players off you means you have been successful.

“We had success at Huddersfield and, obviously, Jordan Rhodes has gone on to move for combined fees of close to £20million to Blackburn and then Middlesbrough.

“He was someone I got to know as assistant manager at Norwich, when he was a young boy at Ipswich.

“I took him to Huddersfield and remember having a conversation with Roy Keane, who was then manager of Ipswich. I think we only got Jordan because Connor Wickham was coming through at the same time and Roy felt he only had room for one of them.

“Anthony Pilkington moved to Norwich City for £2.5m, but he was just coming back from a broken ankle. If he didn’t have that, he would have gone for double that fee.

“Lee Peltier went on to Leicester for a seven-figure sum.

“At Birmingham, I gave Demarai Gray, who went to Leicester in the January window (for £3.7m) his debut at 17. In terms of first loans, I took Danny Drinkwater from Manchester United and Jordan Ibe from Liverpool. I also gave Jack Butland his debut at Birmingham City.

“Birth certificates mean nothing to me. It is about the ability of the player.”

Clark took Huddersfield Town to the play-offs twice, but was sacked in 2012 and has endured difficulties since at Birmingham City and Blackpool.

Birmingham were going through a costcutting programme when he went there and he saw owner and chairman, Carson Yeung, tried and convicted for moneylaundering during his stay.

After being released from St Andrews in 2014, he took over at Blackpool and found himself in the middle of a war between supporters and the chairman, Karl Oyston. His last game in charge was abandoned after 48 minutes because of a pitch invasion in a home game with Huddersfield.

“Of course, that hardened me,” he said. “The club started that season with five players signed on the morning of the first Championship game.

“I had different scenarios at Birmingham City. When I took over there, the owner had been put under house arrest and stuff like that. That involved a lot of cost-cutting inside the club, which is still a huge club with huge expectations.

“All those things have given me a lot of experience and can only benefit me going forward.”