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    McGhee: We dug in deep

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    Accies draw in pictures

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    Hamilton Accies 1 – 1 Motherwell

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    Hamilton: A closer look

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    McHugh: Back doing what I love

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    McGhee: We’re full of optimism

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    Anderson in charge of Lanarkshire derby

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    Phil O’Donnell: 1972-2007

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    TV: Highlights from Caledonian Stadium

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    McGhee: We dug in for win

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    McGhee: We dug in deep

    ‘Well boss Mark McGhee was thrilled to see his side dig in deep with ten men and bag a last minute equaliser against local rivals Hamilton this afternoon.

    The result brings an end to the year and means the club have come through what the manager described as a “pivotal” stage of the season with four points out of a possible six.

    Louis Moult’s late header this afternoon means the club sit just two points off the top six ahead of the January break, and have some breathing space from the bottom sides in the table.

    Speaking to MFC TV after today’s Lanarkshire derby, the ‘Well manager said: “We started very convincingly and created a couple of chances which we should have taken and could have taken – I know Scotty was angry at himself for missing his header and Craig didn’t get quite enough on his.

    “Then of course we lose a man and that’s made it difficult for us and eventually they’ve got a goal which was a slack one to concede from our point of view – they got in behind us from a throw in and suddenly we’ve lost a game.”

    He added: “We dug in, we changed it and pushed on, put two up front and tried to put them under pressure and eventually we got the goal that I think we thoroughly deserved.

    [pullquote] We dug in, we changed it and pushed on, put two up front and tried to put them under pressure and eventually we got the goal that I think we thoroughly deserved. [/pullquote]

    “So whether we would’ve won with eleven men, who knows, but I think it’s a fantastic achievement for the boys here in a local derby, in front of our supporters who were magnificent and so were the smaller group who went up to Inverness on Wednesday night.”

    The Fir Park gaffer made sure to touch on the impressive performance from young Allan Campbell, who made his first team debut.

    He said: “Young Allan Campbell has come in, playing in a game where we’ve went down to ten men and doing such a fantastic job. It’s another debutant and another one from the academy, through Scott Leitch and then Crags, which just shows that there is such a flow of these young players coming in to the team.”

    In dramatic fashion, Louis Moult headed the Steelmen level in the last second of the match and McGhee admitted that it was the sort of moment which is “the best in the world” for a striker.

    He said: “As a centre-forward, getting a chance like the one that fell for Moulty is just the best feeling in the world.

    “I said to him after the game, what a feeling that is, it’s the best feeling in the world being presented with a chance like that in the last minute of the game to get your team a point and it’s the second best feeling in the world as the manager seeing your forward do that.”

    [pullquote]From my point of view to all of the supporters, happy New Year, thanks for your support and see you next year.[/pullquote]

    Motherwell go in to the January break on a two match unbeaten run, and face Rangers in the Scottish Cup for the first match of 2017.

    McGhee said: “The break now is good timing because we can now get Las fit, Hammy fit and Cadds fit too. Carl McHugh can have a rest too because he’s come straight back in and played two fantastic games and 90 minutes in both too, so he can now recover, draw breath and look forward to a really positive second half of the season.”

    He added: “We’ll use the break constructively and positively, we’ll give the boys some time off next week and then give them a really hard week following, both physically and mentally, to get them back ready for the cup match.

    “We can all go home now, have a quiet glass of wine and a mince pie or whatever, and look forward to a very positive 2017 and from my point of view to all of the supporters, happy New Year, thanks for your support and see you next year.”

  • Archive

    Accies draw in pictures

    Images from today’s 1-1 draw with Hamilton Accies in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

    Snaps courtesy of SNSPix

    [svgallery name=”hamilton311216″]

  • Archive

    Hamilton Accies 1 – 1 Motherwell

    [tab:Match report]

    Ten-man Motherwell snatched a last minute equaliser against local rivals Hamilton at the SuperSeal Stadium this afternoon.

    It was a spirited performance from the Fir Parkers – and a thrilling conclusion to the calendar year.

    An early red card for Lee Lucas reduced the visitors to ten after just 26 minutes and it looked as though the Steelmen would be on the receiving end of a 1-0 loss despite being the better team and despite being a man down.

    Alejandro D’Acol gave the hosts the lead in the 54th minute but that was cancelled out by Louis Moult’s dramatic last minute header in front of the 2,103 travelling ‘Well fans.

    But it was at the first whistle when Motherwell could have went 1-0 up. Scott McDonald looked set to give Mark McGhee’s men a very early lead when he got on the end of Moult’s superb cross, but Accies stopper Gary Wodds tipped over the bar superbly to deny the Aussie his third goal in three games.

    Twenty minutes later, the Fir Parkers went even closer to taking the lead and it was Moult’s header from Lucas’ cross. The Englishman beat Woods but had to look on as it was hooked off the line by Accies skipper Michael Devlin.

    It was the only notable chances of the first half, but the biggest talking point happened just two minutes after Moult was denied on the line.

    Lucas, after taking too big a touch, lunged in on Massimo Donati and, while he appeared to win the ball, was given his marching orders for what was most certainly a dangerous foul.

    The second half brought about more chances but it was Hamilton who took theirs.

    They had the ball in the back of the net in the 53rd minute through Ali Crawford but the linesman’s flag cut the celebrations short.

    The Accies midfielder was involved just seconds later though as the home side did take the lead.

    Some good play by Crawford down the right afforded the midfielder a chance to get a good cross in to the box and D’Acol managed to arrive unmarked to head his side in front.

    Despite being a man down, Motherwell continued to push and create chances and in the heart of midfield, Carl McHugh and youngster Allan Campbell, who earned his first start in the first team, worked tirelessly to make up the energy lost by the earlier sending off.

    Craig Clay worked himself some space well in the 57th minute but his shot was blocked and turned behind for a corner – which was over hit by McDonald.

    With just 21 minutes remaining, Woods produced a brilliant save to turn a low, goal bound effort from Moult around the post and keep his side ahead.

    At the other end of the park, Stephen McManus did brilliantly to clear off the line and keep the deficit to one and in the final seconds of the match, ‘Well fans started their celebrations ahead of the New Year.

    McHugh’s terrific tackle and cross was inch perfect for Moult, who headed low past Woods into the bottom left corner to secure a thoroughly deserved point.

    It was a fantastic end to a fantastic few days for Motherwell, who go in to 2017 on 21 points – just two points off the top six.

    [tab:As it happened]

     Alastair Reilly at the Superseal Stadium

     

    A thoroughly deserved point for the Steelmen!!

    FT: Hamilton Accies 1 – 1 Motherwell #HAFCvMFC

    90+3′ | 1-1
    MOULT HEADS HOME THE EQUALISER!!!

    GGGOOOAALLL!!!!

    90′ | 1-0
    Three minutes added on…

    85′ | 1-0
    Motherwell sub, McMillan off for Ainsworth

    81′ | 1-0
    ‘Well have a bit of pressure but Accies break and only McManus’ goal-line clearance denies Crawford.

    77′ | 1-0
    Accies sub, Brophy off for MacKinnon

    69′ | 1-0
    Woods again to the rescue for Accies! Moult was slid in and he got a low shot away which the ‘keeper knocked past the post.

    62′ | 1-0
    Great chance! Tait hangs up a free-kick which finds Moult unmarked but he can only head straight at Woods!

    57′ | 1-0
    Ball breaks to Clay inside the box but he can’t wriggle free of his man and Devlin knocks it out for a corner.

    56′ | 1-0
    Controversy here. Accies player raised his hand to McDonald but it’s the Aussie that gets the booking.

    54′ | 1-0
    Goal – Accies take the lead. D’Acol heads home a Crawford corner.

    53′ | 0-0
    Phew. Samson does well to deny Brophy and Crawford sticks in the rebound but the linesman’s flag goes up!

    51′ | 0-0
    The Steelmen have a corner…..McDonald clips it in and McManus’ goal-bound header is blocked!

    48′ | 0-0
    Decent chance there for Accies as Longridge gets in at the back post but McManus takes no chances and knocks it wide for a corner

    Half time change for Accies, Sarris off for Kurtaj

    Both sides are back out and we’re ready for the second half. COYW!!!

     

    [tab:Reaction]

    Motherwell manager Mark McGhee:

     

    Hamilton Accies manager Martin Canning:

     

    [tab:Man-of-the-match]

    [poll id=”305″]

  • Archive

    Hamilton: A closer look

    The Steelmen face local rivals Hamilton tomorrow afternoon in the final match of the calendar year – looking to go in to the January break in winning form.

    And on the back of a hugely important 2-1 win over Inverness on Wednesday night, Mark McGhee’s side could not only move in to the top six with a win tomorrow, but could also put some breathing space between the bottom sides in the table.

    This is the second Lanarkshire derby of the season, following Louis Moult’s historic four goal haul back in September, when the ‘Well won 4-2 at Fir Park.

    The Steelmen have picked up five points in the last four games whilst Accies arrive on the back of a four game losing streak.

    The derby match will provide an opportunity for the hosts to put an end to their poor recent run whilst exacting revenge on the loss against Motherwell earlier this season.

    ‘Well boss Mark McGhee feels that the win earlier this week will give his side an element of optimism and is looking to end the year on a high.

    He said: “We didn’t train yesterday, we were travelling back down the road after a pool session yesterday morning so we need to get the energy back up.

    “It’s a short turnaround so we did it right, we stayed over after the game, we got straight to bed and then had the pool session yesterday morning. We’ve done the best we can to prepare so we’ll see how things are today.

    “I think on the back of that result they should go to Hamilton, a local derby, full of optimism.

    On the back of that result they should go to Hamilton, a local derby, full of optimism. You can only win the two games if you win the first one, so we’ve won the first one and that’s half the job done.

    [pullquote]If we could get another result and go in to the break on the back of two wins, then I think we can reassess, we can get people fully fit hopefully and then go in to the second half of the season full of optimism.[/pullquote]

    He added: “You can only win the two games if you win the first one, so we’ve won the first one and that’s half the job done.

    “We’re not trying to prove to anyone else, we’re only trying to prove to ourselves that what I’m saying about the boys is true – that we’re competitive with everyone in the division.

    “In order to keep saying that we have to have got decent results in these two games.

    “If we could get another result and go in to the break on the back of two wins, then I think we can reassess, we can get people fully fit hopefully and then go in to the second half of the season full of optimism.”

    ‘Well skipper Keith Lasley will likely miss tomorrow’s match as he works hard to recover from his shoulder injury.

    Dougie Imrie and Scott McMann will miss out through suspension for the Accies while Greg Docherty will likely be out through injury.

     

    Out of action for four months now, Carl McHugh is back and hungry to help his side to another victory.

    The Irishman vows to make up for lost time after suffering a head knock in the opening league game of the season against Kilmarnock.

    The combative midfielder has been battling symptoms of concussion since then but made his long awaited return to action on Wednesday night.

    Ahead of tomorrow’s big derby match, Carl is the one to watch as his influence on the team continues to shine.

    Hailed by manager Mark McGhee as the man of the match during his side’s 2-1 victory on Wednesday night, Carl admits he is delighted to be back in the team.

    He said: “It’s great to be back after being out for so long and to come back in for a win was great too so I’m delighted.”

    The 23-year-old revealed some of the challenges he faced with such a complex injury. He said: “It’s been really tough, it was a tough period because it was a strange injury.

    “It wasn’t a hamstring injury or something like that where you know when you’ll be back – there’s no real time scale on it and I was lucky with the support I had from the club.

    [pullquote]It wasn’t a hamstring injury or something like that where you know when you’ll be back – there’s no real time scale on it and I was lucky with the support I had from the club.[/pullquote]

    “From the gaffer and Alan Burrows to the medical staff of Aileen and JP, and Andy Boles too, the support was brilliant and I can’t speak highly enough of them.”

    He added: “I had great support at home from my family too and that made things a little easier for me.”

    Despite being out of action for four months, Carl managed to get himself back to match fitness in time for the Inverness match with only around a week of training.

    And the Irishman added that he initially wanted to play on during the Kilmarnock win back in August, but if he had, it may have caused him even more problems.

    He said: “It was strange to be honest because when I played the game against Kilmarnock I had that scar on my face but I felt all right after it, I felt grand.

    “It was about four days after that I just kind of went downhill, I started getting the symptoms of the post-concussion syndrome like the headaches and the dizziness and it just went from there and the symptoms just wouldn’t leave.

    “In a way I think getting the scar during the game was a blessing in disguise because that forced me to go off because at the time I didn’t feel anything, I didn’t feel like I was concussed and if you play on that’s when you can be in trouble.”

    [pullquote]When you sign for a new club you want to make an impression on everybody. Hopefully I can make up for lost time in the coming months and show that I’ll be a good signing for Motherwell.[/pullquote]

    He added: “There were some tough days and everybody can go through tough times but I’m just lucky now that I’m able to go out in the morning and do what I love doing, go to training and be involved in games so I’m just so, so happy that I’m back involved.

    “Hopefully it’s over me now, it’s behind me, I can move on and have a good start back to my career.”

    Looking ahead to tomorrow’s derby, the summer signing said: “It won’t have an affect on my game though, that’s the type of person I am.

    “It was a really important game on Wednesday night and it was a tough game too with the conditions and everything but it was just great to come out with a win and hopefully now we can kick on and get a bit of momentum before the break.”

    He added: “When you sign for a new club you want to make an impression on everybody – your teammates, the supporters and everything – and having that happen in the first game is just one of these things that can’t be helped.

    “Hopefully I can make up for lost time in the coming months and show that I’ll be a good signing for Motherwell.”

     

    Hamilton Accies don’t need much of an introduction to ‘Well fans, with the Lanarkshire Derby a standout in the fixture list for both sets of supporters.

    Since Hamilton’s promotion to the top flight in the 2008/09 season, the rivalry has intensified – with tomorrow’s visitors recording 35 wins in 121 league clashes.

    For Martin Canning and assistant Guillaume Beuzelin, it’s their third trip to Fir Park since they took charge at Hamilton back in January 2015.

    Recent derby clashes between the two sides have not been short of goals, with the most recent derby ending in a historic 4-2 victory for the ‘Well when four goals from Louis Moult secured the three points.

    Their first visit as coaches ended with the Steelmen notching a 4-0 victory in front of a jubilant home support.

    However, the next time the duo came to the home of the Steelmen, the outcome ended in a thrilling 3-3 draw.

    The club have been involved in some hugely positive results on their own patch though, with few ‘Well supporters needing a reminder of the 5-0 loss against Accies back on New Year’s day 2015.

    It’s been a mixed start to the season for tomorrow’s visitors, who currently occupy eleventh spot in the table and are in the middle of a four game losing run.

    On Tuesday night, Accies fell 2-1 to Aberdeen at the SuperSeal Stadium, when Dougie Imrie levelled from the penalty spot after Ash Taylor gave Dons the lead in the 34th minute. Adam Rooney gave his side the lead in the second half and Hamilton, who were reduced to ten men late on, failed to find a way back in to the match.

    While four losses on the trot makes for bad reading for Accies fans, it is certainly worth pointing out that the defeats have come against the Old Firm.

    Their trip to Parkhead ended in a narrow 1-0 loss and that was followed by an equally narrow 2-1 loss against Rangers on their own turf.

    A second meeting with Celtic followed, this time at home, but Canning’s side slumped to a 3-0 loss before losing to Aberdeen on Tuesday.

    Hamilton will likely look to strengthen in the upcoming January transfer window after welcoming a few new faces in summer.

    Georgios Sarris arrived from the Turkish leagues and Danny Seabourne from Partick Thistle – but perhaps the biggest signing was the arrival of ex-AC Milan and Celtic midfielder Massimo Donati, who penned a one-year deal with the club.

    The Italian defensive-midfielder, who has slotted in at centre-back at points this term, will be a key component for the hosts tomorrow, with the return of Carl McHugh to the middle of the Motherwell midfield making the battle in the middle of the park an interesting one.

    The two Lanarkshire sides will be keen to end the year on a high before the January break – and it is an enticing fixture awaiting the travelling ‘Well fans tomorrow afternoon.

     

  • Archive

    McHugh: Back doing what I love

    Carl McHugh vows to make up for lost time after returning from a four-month injury lay off.

    The combative midfielder, who suffered a head knock in the opening league game of the season against Kilmarnock, has been battling symptoms of concussion but made his long awaited return to action on Wednesday night.

    Hailed by manager Mark McGhee as the man of the match during his side’s 2-1 victory, Carl admits he is delighted to be back in the team.

    Speaking to the press this morning, he said: “It’s great to be back after being out for so long and to come back in for a win was great too so I’m delighted.”

    The 23-year-old revealed some of the challenges he faced with such a complex injury. He said: “It’s been really tough, it was a tough period because it was a strange injury.

    “It wasn’t a hamstring injury or something like that where you know when you’ll be back – there’s no real time scale on it and I was lucky with the support I had from the club.

    [pullquote]It wasn’t a hamstring injury or something like that where you know when you’ll be back – there’s no real time scale on it and I was lucky with the support I had from the club.[/pullquote]

    “From the gaffer and Alan Burrows to the medical staff of Aileen and JP, and Andy Boles too, the support was brilliant and I can’t speak highly enough of them.”

    He added: “I had great support at home from my family too and that made things a little easier for me.”

    Despite being out of action for four months, Carl managed to get himself back to match fitness in time for the Inverness match with only around a week of training.

    And the Irishman added that he initially wanted to play on during the Kilmarnock win back in August, but if he had, it may have caused him even more problems.

    He said: “It was strange to be honest because when I played the game against Kilmarnock I had that scar on my face but I felt all right after it, I felt grand.

    “It was about four days after that I just kind of went downhill, I started getting the symptoms of the post-concussion syndrome like the headaches and the dizziness and it just went from there and the symptoms just wouldn’t leave.

    “In a way I think getting the scar during the game was a blessing in disguise because that forced me to go off because at the time I didn’t feel anything, I didn’t feel like I was concussed and if you play on that’s when you can be in trouble.”

    [pullquote]When you sign for a new club you want to make an impression on everybody. Hopefully I can make up for lost time in the coming months and show that I’ll be a good signing for Motherwell.[/pullquote]

    He added: “There were some tough days and everybody can go through tough times but I’m just lucky now that I’m able to go out in the morning and do what I love doing, go to training and be involved in games so I’m just so, so happy that I’m back involved.

    “Hopefully it’s over me now, it’s behind me, I can move on and have a good start back to my career.”

    Looking ahead to tomorrow’s derby, the summer signing said: “It won’t have an affect on my game though, that’s the type of person I am.

    “It was a really important game on Wednesday night and it was a tough game too with the conditions and everything but it was just great to come out with a win and hopefully now we can kick on and get a bit of momentum before the break.”

    He added: “When you sign for a new club you want to make an impression on everybody – your teammates, the supporters and everything – and having that happen in the first game is just one of these things that can’t be helped.

    “Hopefully I can make up for lost time in the coming months and show that I’ll be a good signing for Motherwell.”

  • Archive

    McGhee: We’re full of optimism

    ‘Well boss Mark McGhee feels his side can go in to tomorrow’s derby match full of optimism after Wednesday’s win over Inverness.

    The manager described these two matches as “pivotal” to the season, and with a positive start midweek, he hopes to end the year on a high too.

    Speaking to the press this morning, McGhee said: “We didn’t train yesterday, we were travelling back down the road after a pool session yesterday morning so we need to get the energy back up.

    “It’s a short turnaround so we did it right, we stayed over after the game, we got straight to bed and then had the pool session yesterday morning. We’ve done the best we can to prepare so we’ll see how things are today.

    “I think on the back of that result they should go to Hamilton, a local derby, full of optimism.

    [pullquote]On the back of that result they should go to Hamilton, a local derby, full of optimism. You can only win the two games if you win the first one, so we’ve won the first one and that’s half the job done.[/pullquote]

    He added: “You can only win the two games if you win the first one, so we’ve won the first one and that’s half the job done.

    “We’re not trying to prove to anyone else, we’re only trying to prove to ourselves that what I’m saying about the boys is true – that we’re competitive with everyone in the division.

    “In order to keep saying that we have to have got decent results in these two games.

    “If we could get another result and go in to the break on the back of two wins, then I think we can reassess, we can get people fully fit hopefully and then go in to the second half of the season full of optimism.”

    With the season coming to a brief standstill in January, the Fir Park gaffer admitted he feels the season hasn’t fully got going.

    He said: “I don’t feel we’ve even started – we’ve been stop-start, stop-start, stop-start with injuries and the nature of the fixtures too.

    “I don’t feel we’ve had a proper run at it with the 13 or 14 players we want fully fit week-in, week-out.”

    On the return of Carl McHugh to fitness, McGhee said: “Carl should be fine to get at least some of the match tomorrow and I thought his performance the other night, both in sporting terms and in football terms it was heroic.

    [pullquote]Carl [McHugh] should be fine to get at least some of the match tomorrow and I thought his performance the other night, both in sporting terms and in football terms it was heroic. [/pullquote]

    “He hasn’t kicked a ball since he went off injured against Kilmarnock back in August, he’s trained for a week, and to be fair I thought he was man of the match.

    “It was a fantastic performance, I was delighted for him and to get the win on the back of him putting that effort in was brilliant for him.”

    With the transfer window opening soon, McGhee spoke of his preparations for a key stage of the campaign.

    He said: “Martin Foyle is here today so we’ll be speaking to him at length about his targets and his recommendations for January as well as looking at and assessing what we have already.

    “We won’t be going out and buying players, but we do have some flexibility with the budget that we’ll be able to bring in one or two players on a loan deal or perhaps permanently.”

    He added: “It is something I think we’d definitely consider, and I know that a few of the boys, including Faddy, have been in touch with him so over the next few weeks we’ll gather his thoughts and if he is thinking about coming back then we’d certainly be in the market for him.

    “We went and beat Hamilton there last year so we have no fears of going there, we also aren’t a team who have fears of playing on the surface because we train on that often.”

  • Archive

    Anderson in charge of Lanarkshire derby

    Referee for Saturday’s Lanarkshire Derby at the SuperSeal Stadium is Euan Anderson.

    Anderson, 33, will be handling his second Motherwell match of the season after he oversaw the Fir Parkers 1-2 loss against St Johnstone at Fir Park back in August.

    A goal from Chris Cadden gave the Steelmen the lead just after half time but St Johnstone responded through Danny Swanson to draw level before Steven McLean snatched the win with 15 minutes remaining.

    Saturday’s clash against Hamilton will be Anderson’s first ‘Well away match of the season, but the official took charge on three occasions last term – just one of those matches away from home for Motherwell.

    The first was a vital 3-1 home win over Dundee back in December, when goals from McDonald, Moult and Pearson gave McGhee’s men all three points.

    The second was a month later, when Motherwell again won at home, this time the comfortable 5-0 victory over Cove Rangers in the Fourth Round of the William Hill Scottish Cup.

    The third and final match was the Fir Parkers final league game away to Celtic, which ended in a 7-0 defeat.

    The Dumbarton-based whistler was promoted to category one in the summer of 2011 and has taken charge of a number of Motherwell matches in the past, his first coming in the Scottish Cup fourth round defeat to Albion Rovers at New Douglas Park on November 2013 where a first goal of the season for Albion’s Gary Phillips ensured the Coatbridge outfit’s qualification to the next round of the cup.

    He was also in charge of Motherwell’s 2-1 win away to Kilmarnock in 2014/15 season where goals from Stephen Pearson and Lee Erwin secured three points for Well’ on this occasion with an Anthony Straker own-goal being the only blotch to the copybook on that day.

    The win was part of a three match win streak that Well’ put together on the backend of the 14/15 season, commencing with a 4-0 victory over Hamilton and a 5-0 victory over St Mirren to bookend the Kilmarnock fixture.

    Euan will be assisted by Stuart Stevenson and Stephen Mitchell with Steven Reid on fourth official duties.

  • Archive

    Phil O’Donnell: 1972-2007

    Motherwell FC remembers the late, great Phil O’Donnell, who tragically passed away nine years ago today.

    O’Donnell came through the youth ranks at Fir Park before eventually making his senior debut against St Mirren 25 years ago.

    He would go on to famously score in the iconic ’91 Cup Final against Dundee United, which ‘Well eventually won 4-3 in such dramatic circumstances.

    Phil continued to develop, won the PFA Young Player of the Year Award in 1992 and 1994, and earned one cap for the Scottish national team, playing for 15 minutes as a substitute against Switzerland in September 1993.

    His form attracted the attention of bigger clubs and Tommy Burns and Celtic eventually paid £1.75m for his services in September 1994, a club record that still stands to this day.

    He spent five years in Glasgow, winning the Scottish Cup again and formed part of the Hoops side that famously denied Rangers ten-in-a-row under Wim Jansen back in 1998.

    [pullquote]Everyone at the Motherwell, including all the supporters, miss him dearly, but also remember all the good times we shared.[/pullquote]

    He would later join Sheffield Wednesday and spend four years at Hillsbrough before returning home to Fir Park under Terry Butcher in 2004.

    After being named Captain he enjoyed a real resurgence in form, before being tragically taken before his time in a game against Dundee United nine years ago this very day.

    ‘Well boss McGhee said: “I only got to work with Phil for a short period, but in those few months it was clear he was a great guy, but also a great captain and a very talented footballer.

    “His legacy is all the qualities he had and represented, which embodies exactly the type of club we’re trying to be; A family club who care passionately for each other, but also encourages determination to succeed and a drive for quality.

    “Everyone at the Motherwell, including all the supporters, miss him dearly, but also remember all the good times we shared.”

    As they are each and every day, the thoughts of everyone at Motherwell FC are with Phil’s wife Eileen, four children Megan, Olivia, Christopher and Luc and the rest of the close and extended O’Donnell family.

    Phil O’Donnell, brave as a lion. Our Captain, Forever 10.

  • Archive

    TV: Highlights from Caledonian Stadium

    Extended highlights from Caledonian Stadium where goals from Craig Clay and Scott McDonald give ‘Well a fine 1-2 win over Inverness CT.

  • Archive

    McGhee: We dug in for win

    ‘Well boss Mark McGhee hailed his side’s 2-1 win away to Inverness tonight as one of the best results since his return to the club just over a year ago.

    Goals from Craig Clay and Scott McDonald secured all three points for the Steelmen at a blistering Caledonian Stadium.

    And speaking to MFC TV after the match, the manager didn’t hide his emotions, expressing his delight at the effort from his players and his desire to follow up on tonight’s win with another good result on Saturday in the Lanarkshire derby.

    McGhee said: “It’s a massive win and in many ways I think that’s the best result we’ve had since I’ve been back at the club.

    “It was a massive game for us tonight and it was a difficult game too. Inverness are a tough side, they’re strong and physical, the conditions were difficult, although the pitch was excellent, the conditions were still difficult.”

    [pullquote]It’s a massive win and in many ways I think that’s the best result we’ve had since I’ve been back at the club. It was a massive game for us tonight and it was a difficult game too.[/pullquote]

    He added: “The boys dug in and they eventually got the break through, then we stayed vigilant and got the second goal which looked to have killed the game.

    “Then of course they get that goal late on which makes things a little bit hairy and you always worry, but we’ve seen it through and it really was a fantastic performance.”

    The Fir Park boss admitted that the game was a bit scrappy, but his side put in a good performance in tough conditions.

    He said: “It was a team performance and Lee Lucas has got himself in the team now, Carl McHugh was back tonight and played the full 90 minutes.

    “It was a magnificent effort and it was a scrappy game at times with the weather, but it’s a really important result for us.

    [pullquote]In a sense it justifies everything I’ve said about the boys because I feel we could’ve beat St Johnstone, we could’ve beat Kilmarnock, we could’ve beat Celtic and we could’ve beat Aberdeen, and I can’t keep saying that unless we come here and get a result, but now I feel justified.[/pullquote]

    “In a sense it justifies everything I’ve said about the boys because I feel we could’ve beat St Johnstone, we could’ve beat Kilmarnock, we could’ve beat Celtic and we could’ve beat Aberdeen, and I can’t keep saying that unless we come here and get a result, but now I feel justified.”

    Goal scorer Craig Clay fired in a stunning effort to open the scoring for Motherwell, and McGhee hopes he can follow up his first goal in a ‘Well jersey with more this season.

    The boss said: “One of the things I said in the team talk at the hotel was directly to Craig. We see him scoring in training and yet he’s missed a few opportunities in matches.

    “Now that wasn’t quite an opportunity for him tonight, but I still expect goals from him, I asked him for goals before the game, and he’s delivered.”

    McGhee highlighted the return of Carl McHugh too, and said: “I thought Carl was absolutely magnificent. Keith Lasley was missing tonight and we miss Las massively, his energy and desire in the middle of the park, but Carl came in tonight and was an able substitute for him.

    [pullquote]Now we’ll regroup, we’ll stay up here tonight, do things properly and have a run down tomorrow morning before we travel back down the road.[/pullquote]

    “We’re glad to have him back, and to ask him to play 90 minutes on his first game back and for him to come through it the way he did is testimony to the type of lad he is.”

    Looking ahead to Saturday’s Lanarkshire derby, the ‘Well manager revealed the level of belief it will bring to the team, and the supporters too.

    He said: “A win like this gives you such belief and there’s a short period of time between now and the game on Saturday, which is the same for Hamilton.

    “Now we’ll regroup, we’ll stay up here tonight, do things properly and have a run down tomorrow morning before we travel back down the road.”