Latest News

The eleventh issue of ‘Steelmen’ is on sale now ahead of the Fir Parkers clash with Celtic in the Ladbrokes Premiership. 

Here, we take a look at what can be found inside the 68-page programme.

Feature interviewee Peter Hartley reflects on the Steelmen’s season so far and eyes a second consecutive victory in the Ladbrokes Premiership following victory over Aberdeen and on the back of cup heartbreak.

‘Well boss Stephen Robinson and skipper Carl McHugh give their updates following a terrific run for the club but on the back of a crushing loss on Sunday, and we take a look back at some historic victories over Celtic.  

There are the usual updates from the Community Trust and the Well Society, along with another instalment of ‘Goal Zone’ – where we look at Louis Moult’s landmark 50th strike. 

Feature writer Andrew Paterson profiles avid collector and ‘Well fan Stuart Graham in his latest ‘We are the Motherwell FC’ piece. 

An in-depth look at Brendan Rodgers Celtic side is featured, as well as the new ‘Scouting Report’ section, where some of the Hoops key men are profiled. 

An update on Stephen Craigan’s U20s side is included too, with some historic features again included in the programme, one looking at the career of John Goldthorpe and the other looking at the King’s Cup back in 1927.

Our increased kids content remains, with quizzes, games and prizes to be won for young ‘Well fans.

You’ll also get an update from the Ticket Office as well as an in-depth look at tonight’s match-officials.

All this and more is available for £3 and is on sale from the Club Shop as well as the usual sellers located in and around the ground pre-match.

You can also order back editions or take a subscription to the magazine for the rest of the season by visiting the website of our publishers, Curtis-Sports.

Motherwell host Celtic as the two sides do battle in the second of three clashes in the space of a week.

Following Sunday’s Betfred Cup final loss, the Steelmen will be keen to bounce back from the 2-0 defeat which denied the club picking up a first piece of silverware in 26 years.

However, manager Stephen Robinson and his players are not on the revenge path, but instead hope to use the cup heartbreak to fuel some added determination.

Celtic travel to Fir Park for the first time in nearly a year, on an afternoon when the dramatic encounter in Lanarkshire ended 4-3 to Brendan Rodgers side.

And with a trip to Glasgow awaiting the ‘Well on Saturday, it is a busy spell against the champions, but an opportunity for the Fir Park side to bring to an end their 65-game unbeaten run.

As has been the case all season though for ‘Well boss Robinson, his attention is on the here and now.

The Northern Irishman believes focus is key for his players, and revealed a hunger and determination in the dressing room and around the club to go head-to-head with Celtic straight away.

“I think we need to concern ourselves about the here and now, and the here and now is Wednesday night and then Saturday,” he said.

“Obviously there was disappointment around the club after the game which was only natural, but we’re over that now and you get another opportunity in football.

[pullquote]What an opportunity on Wednesday night because we were in the game for 55 minutes, make no mistake, so we’ll make sure we’re prepared and ready to go again.[/pullquote]

“What an opportunity on Wednesday night because we were in the game for 55 minutes, make no mistake, so we’ll make sure we’re prepared and ready to go again.”

Andy Rose echoes his manager’s sentiments, and revealed the togetherness around the dressing room at full time on Sunday, as the ‘Well squad made sure to comfort and motivate 20-year-old Cédric Kipré following his red card.

Rose, who is hungry for a second bite at Brendan Rodgers unbeaten Celtic side, insisted the loss on Sunday only fuels more determination around Fir Park.

“I don’t know if it’s revenge, maybe just added determination,” the 27-year-old said. “We had a great meeting yesterday and came to the conclusion that we can use it to fuel us for the rest of the season.

“We can feel good about what we’ve done but at the end of the day you want to win trophies and we had a fantastic opportunity to get one and we just missed out. So we kick on from here, take a lot of belief out of it and look forward to the rest of the season.”

On teammate Kipré, Rose added: “Cedric, first and foremost, is a really great guy. He was devastated and I felt really sorry for him, mainly because he’s had such a brilliant season and it’s his first season really in mens football.

“Playing week in, week out at the back he’s been a rock for us and there’s some big, big matches in his future that’s for sure. He’s a great guy, he’s a great player, he’s learning every day and comes in with a great attitude.

“He’s very popular in the dressing room so of course the boys were very quick to make sure he knew what we thought of what happened and that we’re with him, and I look forward to his performance tomorrow.”

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers could be without Moussa Dembele and Nir Bitton, who are struggling for fitness, but boasts enough depth to ensure rotation is a possibility for the Parkhead side.

	Motherwell V Celtic
	Wednesday 29th November 2017
	7.45pm
	Fir Park, Motherwell
	Tickets on sale from the Fir Park Ticket Office.

Please note, this is a ticket-only fixture – no cash turnstiles will be in operation.

Admission prices are as follows:

• Cheaper price is for the John Hunter Stand only.
• Concessions are listed as over 60s, 16-18s and students with a valid matriculation card
• Fans who require ambulant or wheelchair access should contact Brian Davidson on 07725 917161

If you can’t make it tonight, don’t miss the action by tuning in to mixlr.com/motherwellfc for live commentary or follow the match on Twitter @MotherwellFC

You can see the match highlights on MFC TV’s YouTube channel, as well as full reaction and a match report right here on the official website.

‘Well boss Stephen Robinson believes focus is key for his players as they head in to their second meeting with Celtic in the space of four days.

The Northern Irishman admitted that he felt it wasn’t necessary to appeal Cédric Kipré’s red card, and that he’d much rather have the defender in training this week than involved in any hearings.

The manager also revealed a hunger and determination in the dressing room and around the club to go head-to-head with Celtic straight away.

Robinson said: “We’ve appealed numerous decisions and we’ve wasted a lot of time and money because it costs us money every time we appeal.

[pullquote]I think we need to concern ourselves about the here and now, and the here and now is Wednesday night and Saturday.[/pullquote]

“Another reason is we want Cédric Kipré totally focused on Wednesday night and Saturday, and the reality is the ban wouldn’t be until next season and by then he could be in the Premier League.

“I think we need to concern ourselves about the here and now, and the here and now is Wednesday night and Saturday.”

Robinson added: “Obviously there was disappointment around the club after the game which was only natural, but we’re over that now and you get another opportunity in football.

“What an opportunity on Wednesday night because we were in the game for 55 minutes, make no mistake, so we’ll make sure we’re prepared and ready to go again.”

Andy Rose has stood beside teammate Cédric Kipré following his cup final red card, saying the defender is destined for a bright future in the game.

The Australian midfielder revealed the togetherness in the dressing room at full time on Sunday, as the ‘Well squad made sure to comfort and motivate 20-year-old Kipré.

Rose, who is hungry for a second bite at Brendan Rodgers unbeaten Celtic side, insisted the loss on Sunday only fuels more determination around Fir Park.

“I don’t know if it’s revenge, maybe just added determination,” the 27-year-old said. “We had a great meeting yesterday and came to the conclusion that we can use it to fuel us for the rest of the season.

“We can feel good about what we’ve done but at the end of the day you want to win trophies and we had a fantastic opportunity to get one and we just missed out. So we kick on from here, take a lot of belief out of it and look forward to the rest of the season.”

On teammate Kipré, Rose added: “Cedric, first and foremost, is a really great guy. He was devastated and I felt really sorry for him, mainly because he’s had such a brilliant season and it’s his first season really in mens football.

“Playing week in, week out at the back he’s been a rock for us and there’s some big, big matches in his future that’s for sure. He’s a great guy, he’s a great player, he’s learning every day and comes in with a great attitude.

“He’s very popular in the dressing room so of course the boys were very quick to make sure he knew what we thought of what happened and that we’re with him, and I look forward to his performance tomorrow.” 

Despite take the lead, the Under 20s lost 1-2 to Hibernian this afternoon at Forthbank Stadium.

Under-20s boss Stephen Craigan admits his side have been wasteful of late in the final third.

The Northern Irishman has been largely impressed by a number of aspects of the youngsters play, but after the 2-1 defeat against Hibs he insisted things need to improve in front of goal.

Speaking to MFC TV at full time, Craigan reflected on a frustrating but dominant 90-minutes for his side.

[pullquote]It’s probably summed up where we’ve been in the last three or four games where we’ve been pleased with our general play.[/pullquote]

He said: “It’s probably summed up where we’ve been in the last three or four games where we’ve been pleased with our general play.

“Probably at times the final thing we do with the ball – we had some good crosses in, we had some missed placed passes in the final third, the final shot.”

He added: “So I think the bottom two-thirds are fine but it’s just that final thing that we do with the ball is letting us down.”

Motherwell under-20s conceded late goals in either half as they lost 2-1 against Hibs this afternoon.

Stephen Craigan’s youngsters surrendered a one goal lead at Forthbank Stadium on an afternoon in which they dominated large spells of the game.

And in truth, the ‘Well were unlucky not to get anything from the Development League clash.

An early penalty claim went unrewarded when Jake Hastie was bundled to the deck in the opening ten minutes. The youngster was set to nod Adam Livingstone’s pin-point cross on goal before he was blatantly pushed in the back. 

Less than a minute later though, and it was a penalty for the Fir Park side thanks to the terrific anticipation and pace from Alfie Agyeman to latch on to a ball from Luke Watt. The young forward knocked the ball beyond Hibs stopper Maciej Dabrowski but was wiped to the ground – allowing Ross MacLean the chance to dispatch the spot kick confidently.

Despite a dominant opening 45, somehow Craigan’s side went in to the break level when the visitors capitalised on a lapse at the back. Jordan Armstrong lost the ball when put under pressure and a low delivery across goal was tapped beyond PJ Morrison by Olly Shaw to equalise for the Edinburgh side. 

The second half panned out in a similar nature to the first, with the hosts controlling the match but failing to make their dominance count. 

Another penalty claim in the 51st minute could have reasserted the Fir Parkers lead, but yet again, Hastie was denied and play was waved on.

Agyeman struck a venomous effort narrowly over the bar as Craigan’s side pushed to try and edge the encounter.

However, with just five minutes left, Hibs snatched the win with a fortuitous counter attack.

The ball broke kindly for the visitors but some neat play afforded Shaw space in the box, and he curled an impressive finish beyond Morrison to strike a second consecutive defeat for the under-20s. 

Chairman Jim McMahon has today released the following statement:

Almost 12,000 of you made the trip to Hampden Park on Sunday and, although you were sent home ultimately disappointed, I want to thank you for your incredible support.

I want to express my pride for how the players, manager and staff performed, and I extend that to the supporters as well. Together, we never gave up. We supported each other throughout, even long after the full-time whistle.

Like everyone else watching, I was completely engaged in what was a fascinating, end-to-end first half.

The second half started with a bang and was building towards a contest that would’ve been a perfect advert for Scottish football. A match that all parties – fans, broadcasters, sponsors and commentators – could relish.

To have the game as a sporting spectacle killed off by one incident changed what most were talking about after the match, leaving them feeling ‘What?’. That’s a great shame.

But we now have to move on. We hold our heads high and behave with dignity. As Stephen Robinson said so eloquently after the game, our season doesn’t end here.

I am sure that you will give all our players, Cédric in particular, a special welcome on Wednesday night and roar them on to what will hopefully be an important three points.

Highlights from Hampden Park as Motherwell put on a brave show but fall short in the Betfred Cup final against Celtic.

Images from Sunday’s 2-0 defeat to Celtic in the Betfred Cup final.

Snaps courtesy of SNSPix

[svgallery name=”celtic261117″]