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 Phil McGhee Fir Park

Motherwell went 1-2 to Celtic at Fir Park but results elsewhere have guaranteed the Steelmen a top-six finish.

The Fir Parkers were second best during a first half where Celtic peppered the home goal, including a missed penalty from Leigh Griffiths.

However, the Scotland striker made up for that on the 44th minute, putting the visitors ahead at the break.

Motherwell were far better in the second half and looked a real threat. Scott McDonald thought he had brought the Steelmen level, but had a goal chalked off. However, he wouldn’t be denied shortly after, sweeping home from fifteen yards.

However, there would be a string in the tail when Griffiths scored the winner, drilling through the unfortunate Ripley.

Mark McGhee opted for the same team that took all three last weekend in Inverness, including last weekend’s goal scorer Marvin Johnson. The winger had a couple of early shots at goal, but nothing that would trouble Craig Gordon.

That was about it though for the home side as Celtic dominated for large spells, and the Motherwell boss would have his goalkeeper to thank for a string of saves.

Patrick Roberts, Nir Biton and Griffiths all have shots beaten away by the on-loan Boro striker.

Midway through the half, £12 million pound man Roberts was tripped in the box by Morgaro Gomis and referee Collum righty pointed to the spot. Griffiths pulled his effort wide of Ripley’s left-hand post with the keeper at full stretch.

Ripley was again in top form when he denied Colin Kazim-Richards after the Turkish was put through on goal.

Kieran Tierney and Roberts, again, forced saves from Ripley. Many of the shots were straight at the keeper, but he had still made seven saves by the time the game was 40 minutes old.

However, the resistance was finally broken on the 44th minute. Tierney received the ball in space on the left, and he picked out Griffiths in the box who drilled it low into the bottom corner.

The interval gave the ‘Well management team time to reshape and they were a far bigger threat in the second half.

Indeed, ten minutes in they had the ball in the net through Scott McDonald, but it was controversially ruled out for offside when television pictures appeared the show the Aussie was in line with Moult as he squared it across the six-yard box.

The equaliser wasn’t far away though. Chris Cadden got the better of Tierney deep in Celtic territory, and the youngster did brilliantly well to cut back for McDonald who thumped it high past Gordon to level things up.

However, with play swinging end to end, it was Celtic who would eventually grab the winning goal. Tierney and Griffiths again combined, and when the striker connected with the cross, it somehow squirmed between Ripley’s legs and into the net.

It was a bitter blow for ‘Well, who battled hard to try and get level again, but to no avail. However, results elsewhere in the day mean Motherwell’s unbelievable run of form has been rewarded with a top-six finish.

[tab:As it happened]

 Ally Reilly at Fir Park

FT | 1-2
Motherwell 1 – 2 Celtic

93′ | 1-2
Late chance for Moult but he clips his shot from Thomas’ cut back wide of the post.

91′ | 1-2
Celtic sub, Roberts off for Armstrong.

Four minutes added on.

89′ | 1-2
Motherwell sub, Thomas replaces Gomis

86′ | 1-2
Ainsworth tries a shot from range but its comfortable for Gordon.

82′ | 1-2
McManus booked for a foul on Biton.

You can vote for your Match Attax Man of the match now. Tweet your age, name and choice with hashtag #MatchAttaxMOTM

78′ | 1-2
Corner to Motherwell…Moult wins the header but nods over.

76′ | 1-2
And Cadden limps off for Ainsworth

75′ | 1-2
Motherwell sub, Lasley off for Leitch

75′ | 1-2
Goal – Tierney the supplier again for Griffiths who fires beyond Ripley.

74′ | 1-1
Kazim-Richards and Kennedy having a bit of afters off the ball there. Seemed to raise a hand to the Motherwell man?

70′ | 1-1
Celtic sub, Rogic on for Johansen

61′ | 1-1
McDONALD equalises for Motherwell!! Cadden does well down the right and pulls it back for the Aussie!!

GGGGOOOOAAAALLLL!!!

54′ | 0-1
Motherwell have the ball in the net but the linesman’s flag is up against McDonald!

49′ | 0-1
Johnson’s low cross takes a deflection and Gordon gathers under pressure from Moult.

46′ | 0-1
Chance already for Moult as he gets into the box but Gordon gathers his cutback

Celtic get it underway..

Both teams back out for the second half…

HT | 0-1
Motherwell 0 – 1 Celtic

44′ | 0-1
Goal – Griffiths opens the scoring for Celtic, getting on the end of Tierney’s cut back.

41′ | 0-0
Ripley is on fire! Another two fine saves to deny Celtic!

37′ | 0-0
Another big save from Ripley! This time he denies Kazim-Richards from 12 yards!

31′ | 0-0
Straight up the other end, McDonald sets up Johnson but both his efforts on goal are blocked. Corner to ‘Well.

30′ | 0-0
BIg save from Ripley, sliding out at the feet of Griffiths as Celtic broke away. Looked like a goal was inevitable!

29′ | 0-0
Game goes a bit crazy there with challenges flying all in over the pitch but play rages on and Johnson’s cross is turned wide

27′ | 0-0
Griffiths drags his penalty well wide of the post!

MISSED!!

26′ | 0-0
Celtic penalty! Roberts caught by Gomis’ trailing leg.

25′ | 0-0
Great chance for Celtic as Tierney pulls the ball back to Griffiths but he overdoes it and backheels straight to Lasley who clears

19′ | 0-0
Biton stings Ripley’s palms from range and Griffiths follows that up with a shot well wide of the post. Still 0-0.

16′ | 0-0
Good save by Ripley! Roberts again coming in off the left, opts for the right foot this time but Ripley is equal to his low shot.

13′ | 0-0
Hopeful effort by Johnson, from all of 30 yards, which is comfortably saved by Gordon.

10′ | 0-0
Corner to Celtic, taken by Roberts but comfortably swept clear by McDonald.

8′ | 0-0
Roberts cuts inside and the ball finds its way to Johansen just inside the box. He shoots, but its straight at Ripley

5′ | 0-0
Chance for Griffiths but his header loops just over the bar.

2′ | 0-0
Chance! Johnson cuts the ball back to Cadden on the edge of the box but he shoots straight at Gordon.

[tab:Reaction]

Motherwell manager Mark McGhee:

“We were beaten by the Champions-elect. They deserved to win the game but we are very aggrieved that once again a decision has gone against us.

“I have watched it over and over and I know the linesman has only one look at it but for me it is onside and it should have stood. But we can’t have any complaints.”

Celtic assistant John Kennedy

“It was important that we took advantage of Aberdeen slipping up last night. The first half performance was good, we had some good chances but we didn’t quite capitalise and in the second half we had to dig very deep but at this time of the season it is about results, that is the most important thing.”

[tab:Man-of-the-match]

[poll id=”270″]

Mark McGhee expects no favours as he tries to guide Motherwell into the SPFL Premiership top-six.

The hosts can secure their spot in the league’s top half if they take something from Saturday’s match with Champions Celtic at Fir Park.

A run of six wins from the last seven games has pushed ‘Well into fourth, however, with Partick Thistle beating Dundee United and Dundee drawing with Celtic on Tuesday night, the Steelmen could find themselves in the bottom half of the table after the split if they lose to Celtic while the Partick, Dundee and St Johnstone all win – or Saints even manage a draw.

McGhee surveyed the top-six landscape ahead of the visit of the league leaders and said: “It reinforces what I said earlier in the week, that I wasn’t prepared to think anything other than we were going to need something against Celtic.

“You can’t trust anybody in this league, everyone is capable of beating everyone else, taking something from everyone else.

“I think that if we don’t get anything on Saturday we are in trouble. The mentality of the other three teams will be good enough to go and get wins.

[pullquote]“So I think we need something on Saturday. I haven’t allowed myself to get into any other frame of mind, so I am not caught trying to pick myself up, I am ready for it.[/pullquote]

“We also know the difficulty in that. We are playing Celtic, we are not playing one of the others similar to us. We are playing a better team than us and somehow we have to conjure a way to get something out of that.”

Motherwell won 2-1 at Parkhead in December and McGhee believes only the same level of workrate will give them the chance of the double over a side who are trying to stay ahead of second-placed Aberdeen in the title race.

He said: “That win was based on hard work and if we remember that, then that will be the starting point. We can’t have any fancy ideas of how we are going to play, the type of football we are going to play. First and foremost we have to be prepared to work harder than them.

“We’ve got to imagine that they are going to play as well as they possibly can. The stakes are huge for them as well.

“I do think the title race is genuine. I believe Celtic will win the title. They are enough points ahead at the moment that they will see it over the line eventually. But I think Aberdeen are genuine contenders.”

Stephen McManus says he relishes the pressure of a top-six battle, rather than the hell of trying to avoid a relegation battle.

The Steelmen endured a torrid season last term, eventually finishing in eleventh, meaning a Play-off double header against Rangers.

And although it ultimately proved successful, with a 6-1 aggregate win, no one at Fir Park enjoyed the experience whatsoever.

A terrific recent run has lifted ‘Well into fourth in the table, but they still require something from Saturday’s match against Celtic to guarantee a spot in the top-six when the league splits.

McManus, however, welcomed the tension that comes with trying to finish in the top half.

The 33-year-old said: “After the start we had and where we were at certain times of the season, sitting third bottom, second bottom, you would have taken staying in the division.

“But when you get so close to something you want it even more and we would love to finish in the top six.

“It would be a great achievement but if it is not to be for whatever reason, when we walked off the pitch against Kilmarnock we would have taken where we are now.

[pullquote]”If you had said to us that we would be in this situation with a game to go with the possibly of getting into the top six we would have bitten the hand off you for it, because having gone through the experience last year of playing in the play-off games, it wasn’t enjoyable.”[/pullquote]

The former Celtic and Middlesbrough defender knows the league leaders will be difficult opponents but insists the gap between all the teams in the league has reduced since he was at Parkhead as a youth player up until 2010.

McManus, who signed for Well from Boro in 2013, said: “We know it is going to be a tough game.

“I have been in the situation where you are fighting for a title and need to win every game you are playing in.

“Celtic will be looking to come to get maximum points, they know they will have to be right at it. The demands are still on Celtic players to win every game, but we have our own aspirations about the top six.

“We don’t fear anybody just now and are looking forward to it.”

Referee for Saturday’s Sky Live clash with Celtic here at Fir Park is the experienced Willie Collum.

One of Europe’s most recognisable officials, Willie will be handling his third ‘Well fixture of the current campaign. The other two both ended in 1-2 home defeats. The first was at the hands of Aberdeen when Marvin Johnson’s early opener was cancelled out by Niall McGinn and Ash Taylor.

The second, at the end of January, ended with Ross County taking the points to Dingwall when Stephen Pearson’s late goal wasn’t enough to earn the Fir Parkers anything after Jackson Irvine and Brian Graham had put the Staggies into a commanding lead.

Those results are on the back of the six he took charge of last term too.

The first was at Rugby Park in late August, the home side running out comfortable 2-0 winners.

The second was the instantly forgettable 0-4 reverse against Hamilton Accies at Fir Park when goals from Mickael Antoine-Curier, Tony Andreu and a double from Ali Crawford gave the Accies their biggest win at Fir Park in over 80 years.

He was the man in the middle for the 2-2 draw with Ross County when Tony Dingwall’s double, including a 94th minute equaliser, cancelled out John Sutton and Henrik Ojamaa’s goals.

In January of that season he took charge of Motherwell’s 2-0 defeat to Aberdeen, in which he controversially sent off Stephen McManus; a decision which was later rescinded after an appeal.

The fifth was ‘Well’s 1-1 draw with St Johnstone at Fir Park in January. Murray Davidson gave Saints and early lead before Louis Laing saw red on his debut. 10-men Motherwell battled back and equalised through John Sutton, who fired spectacularly into the back of Alan Mannus’ net.

The last was a 3-1 win over Kilmarnock at Fir Park, with goals from McDonald, Erwin and Ainsworth doing the damage.

His overall record in charge of the Steelmen reads nine wins, seventeen defeats and seven draws from thirty-three matches (in all competitions).

In those games, Motherwell have scored 45 and conceded 60.

68 players have gone into the book, 32 wearing Claret and Amber, while six players have been dismissed – Ian Murray of Hibs at Easter Road seven years back, Jerard Aafjes at Falkirk seven seasons ago, Paul Dixon at the end of 2009/10, Henrik Ojamaa at the Caledonian Stadium and Fraser Kerr down at Rugby Park. Stephen McManus was shown a red card against Aberdeen but that was later rescinded after an appeal and Louis Laing was given his marching orders last January on his Fir Park debut.

Willie will be assisted by Douglas Ross and Alistair Mather with David Munro listed as fourth official.

Under 20s boss Stephen Craigan gives his post-match thoughts after his team came from a goal down to beat Partick Thistle.

Highlights from Excelsior Stadium as Motherwell come from behind, courtesy of  a Dylan Mackin double.

Motherwell Under 20s fought back from a goal down to beat Partick Thistle at the Excelsior Stadium this afternoon.

Thistle, who were the home side, got themselves in front after 36 minutes when Neil McLaughlin finished an excellent move with a close-range finish.

It stayed that way until the 71st minute when Mackin got on the end of a looping Ferguson free kick to head home.

Motherwell lifted their game and after being denied what looked like a clear penalty, they were eventually awarded one for a tug on sub Josh Moore. Mackin stepped up, kept his composure and slid the ball down the middle to hand the Fir Parkers all three points.

Stephen Craigan made five changes to the team that lost last midweek to Hibernian. Samson, Chalmers, Turnbull, Fletcher and Thomas all dropped out, replaced by Long, Hall, Hastie, Falconer and Mackin.

‘Well started the game on the front foot and Jack McMillan forced an early shot that Thistle keeper Conor Cullen comfortably gathered.

Thirteen minutes later, the hosts someone narrowly survived. MacLean’s looping corner was perfect for Ferguson, but his header came crashing back off the bar. The rebounded bounced up for Falconer, but his acrobatic overhead kick went wide of target.

Thistle’s first real shot of the game came on the 32nd minute when Dom Docherty, who had been booked for dissent ten minutes earlier, took on a shot from distance, but it sailed high and wide of target.

However, with their next attack, the Jags would take the lead.

A good passing move eventually found Andy McCarthy in the middle of the park and he quickly released Kevin Nisbet down the right channel. In space, the striker squared it across goal for McLaughlin who slotted home at the far post.

‘Well had an opportunity to hit back quickly when a long ball over the top had Jake Hastie racing in on goal, but his low shot was saved by the legs of Cullen. Two minutes later, the same player had another shot, but it sailed high over the crossbar.

Thistle were ahead at the interval and made the better start to the second period. Nesbit had a fine outside-of-the-right-foot shot land just the wrong side of the post before Brett Long in the visitors goal had to get down well to save from McLaughlin minutes later.

‘Well gradually started to work their way into things again and substitute Josh Moore brought out a decent save from Cullen with a hit from twenty yards. Then, eight minutes later, Jake Hastie smashed a close range effort inches over the bar and there was a sense that the team in all claret had stepped it up.

That proved to be the case when they brought themselves level after 71 minutes. A long, floated free-kick from David Ferguson looked to have been over hit, but it actually tempted keeper Cullen off his line, but that allowed Mackin to out-jump him and head the ball home into an empty net.

That gave Craigan’s men the encouragement they needed and they looked sharper and quicker to ever ball. They should have had a penalty seven minutes later when James Penrice pushed Mackin under the ball as it looked as if he was going to head home.

However, ‘Well would eventually get a penalty shortly after when the same player was adjudged to have pulled Moore’s shirt from a free kick. It looked soft, but perhaps justice for the previous incident that went unpunished.

Mackin stepped up and coolly slotted the ball down the middle to put his team ahead.

Luke Watt almost added a third as the game reached its conclusion, but his low-range effort fizzed inches wide.

Motherwell: Long, Watt, McMillan, Ferguson, Hall, Campbell, MacLean (Moore – 46mins), Falconer (Turnbull – 46mins), Mackin, Hastie, R. Leitch (Maguire – 88mins)

Subs Not Used: Morrison, Livingstone

‘Well boss Mark McGhee has won the Ladbrokes Premiership Manager of the Month award for March.

The Fir Park boss had a 100% record three wins from three games during the month, which is included in a run that includes six wins in the last seven matches that has propelled the Fir Parkers from eleventh to fourth in the table.

It’s the second time the 59-year old has won the award since his return, after earlier collecting December’s gong for an identical run of wins.

McGhee said: “I am delighted to win this award but it is every bit as much a recognition to the players and staff at Fir Park.

“Everyone deserves tremendous credit four our recent run and the aim now is to try and maintain our form though a busy April and May.”

Highlights from Caledonian Stadium as Marvin Johnson scores in the last minute to hand ‘Well all three points.

‘Well boss Mark McGhee was happy to take all three points despite not turning in a vintage performance.

There was little between the teams in a game that certainly won’t be remembered for being a classic.

Substitute Lionel Ainsworth put ‘Well in front with a scrappy goal before Iain Vigurs levelled from the penalty spot.

However, with virtually the last kick off the ball, Marvin Johnson burst clear and finished with aplomb to give the visitors an important win.

“We’ve had a few sore ones this season like that, where we’ve lost goals in that sort of time in a game.

[pullquote]It is not a game by any shape or form I can say we deserved to win, but all those ones we’re talking about we didn’t deserve to lose. So we’ll take this.[/pullquote]

The result moves ‘Well into fourth but they still have a fight on their hands to secure a spot in the top six.

“It is six wins out of seven and that’s obviously why we’re sitting fourth tonight. The reality is we’ve still got work to do,” McGhee said.

“Partick Thistle can still catch us, so the job isn’t finished. Maybe it will be by the time we play Celtic (on April 9), but we’ll see.

“We’ll be preparing ourselves until then that we need a point out of the Celtic game.

“As well as we’ve done, all we have for ourselves at this moment in time is a good position to finish in the top half.