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‘Well boss Ian Baraclough is aiming for a more successful season after a disappointing 2014/15.

The Steelmen fell from league runners-up the previous season to second bottom and a Premeirship Play-off against Rangers.

Thankfully, the Steelmen came through that match to retain their top-flight status and a positive summer in terms of recruitment has left ‘Well fans more hopeful of a better campaign ahead.

However, Baraclough knows that the buzz could evaporate if his side don’t manage some success from their difficult start to the campaign, which includes four of last year’s top six teams along with promoted Hearts in the first five matches.

[pullquote]For me, we will be looking up the way and that might be helped by a good start to the new campaign. Yes, we have a tough run of fixtures to begin with but you’ve got to go and play them all.[/pullquote]

Speaking to the gathered press at ‘Well’s pre-match news conference, the Fir Park boss said: “We’ve certainly got to improve on last year; that scenario cannot happen again.

“We can’t be involved in any end-of-season play-offs; we don’t want that even although last year ended euphorically.

“For me, we will be looking up the way and that might be helped by a good start to the new campaign. Yes, we have a tough run of fixtures to begin with but you’ve got to go and play them all.

“Inverness is a good, but difficult first match, but we want to go and show that we’ve had a positive pre-season and these players have something to prove.”

If you haven’t as yet bought your 2015/16 Season Ticket, there’s still time before the Steelmen are scheduled to play at Fir Park.

Motherwell are in the Highlands this weekend before their ‘home’ campaign gets underway with a match against Dundee United on Saturday 8th August.

‘Well fans have been buying in encouraging numbers so far this summer and with six new faces and the return of Lionel Ainsworth, Louis Laing and Scott McDonald, the squad is almost complete.

We still believe whether bought individually or as part of a family package, the season ticket represents tremendous value.

We have also continued our ‘WELLevate’ scheme which allows any adult or senior citizen buying a season ticket at Fir Park to claim a juvenile ticket absolutely free of charge or TWO Under 16s tickets if you sit in the Cooper Stand…

Season Ticket uptake has grow over 34% over the last five years because of this brilliant initiative – perhaps the single most effective way of recruiting new, younger fans over the last 100 years

The excellent Season Ticket offers which can be used to earn a host of discounts in a number of well-known businesses is back and bigger than ever.

The likes of KFC and Dominoes have been added to a 37 strong list which already contained the likes of McDonalds, KFC, Pizzahut, LivingWell Health Club, Evans Halshaw, M&D’s and many, many more.

We’ve enjoyed a fantastic run in the last six or seven years with many highs and lows along the way. Together, the club and our loyal fans can continue to grow Scotland’s best community and family club.

From more information and prices, click the banner below:

Motherwell today completed the signing of Middlesbrough goalkeeper Connor Ripley on loan until January.

The 6ft 3-inch stopper, son of former England winger Stuart, came through the ranks at Blackburn Rovers before signing for Boro in 2009.

The former England Youth International made his debut for the Teessiders two years later in the Championship against Reading and also turned out for the club against Burnley, as well as making an FA Cup appearance against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

Ripley enjoyed two short emergency loan spells with both Oxford United and Bradford City and, most recently, an extended spell with Swedish side Östersund, where he turned out a total of fifteen times for the Superettan club.

The 22-year old has signed initially until early January and will compete with Dan Twardzik for a spot in the starting eleven.

[pullquote]I want to play at the highest standard possible. I know I am going to have to work hard to get into the starting eleven, but if I can do that and improve as a goalkeeper, I’ll be happy.[/pullquote]

He will wear the number one shirt and will travel north with the squad for Saturday’s SPFL Premiership opener against Inverness Caledonian Thistle at the Caledonian Stadium.

Speaking of his move, Ripley said: “I’m very pleased to be here and after the gaffer gave me a call yesterday to say everything had gone through, I couldn’t get in the car quick enough to get up to Scotland.

“I want to play at the highest standard possible. I know I am going to have to work hard to get into the starting eleven, but if I can do that and improve as a goalkeeper, I’ll be happy.

“I can obviously take inspiration from some of the goalkeepers who have came up to Motherwell in the recent past and I’ll hopefully do the same.”

Young Steelmen striker Craig Moore has joined Scottish League One side Ayr United on loan.

20-year old Moore made his debut for the Steelmen back in August 2013 in the UEFA Europa League match against Kuban Krasnodar in Russia.

He made his SPFL Premiership bow two months later, against Hearts, and scored with his first touch, a stinging 25-yard drive into the top corner.

Since then he has found regular first-team football hard to come by, particularly after a cruciate ligament injury at the tail end of the 2013/14 season kept him sidelined for several months.

He has spent time on loan before though, a successful period at then Championship side Cowdenbeath where he hit seven goals in 12 games for the Blue Brazil.

With competition for a starting slot intense following the arrivals of David Clarkson, Wes Fletcher, Louis Moult and the return of Scott McDonald, Moore’s loan will run until 4th January 2016 as he aims to push Ian McCall’s side towards promotion.

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Young Motherwell u15s attacking midfielder, Alise Stewart has been attracting attention from international scouts 2 years above her age category.

Alise has been an outstanding team player for her club and has the attitude and work ethic to go with it.

Now, thorough hard work and determination, Alise has been rewarded with the opportunity to represent her country, a life’s dream come to fruition!

I had the privilege of catching up with our young superstar who tells us more…

Full name: Alise Stewart

Age: 15

Nickname: Lisey

Team: Motherwell u15’s

Favourite Football team: (Other than Motherwell of course…) Celtic

Playing Position: Midfield/Striker

Favourite Female player: Alex Morgan

Favourite Male Player: Lionel Messi

Favourite Song: Ohh, that’s too hard, I have far too many!

Favourite Food: That one’s easy! Mash potatoes and broccoli with gravy.

What are your favourite things to do in your spare time: I love playing football or going out with my friends.

What/who inspires you to play football?

My team and coaches are my inspiration. I love it so much because my team are like a family to me, they support me the whole way, it’s such a good feeling #wellfamily

How long have you played for Motherwell for?

2 years now, I love it.

What days do you train for Motherwell?

I train twice a week on a Tuesday and Thursday. Training is intense, but it’s brilliant! You don’t have time to get distracted, only time to work hard which I love.

What do you like most about being part of the Well family?

I love how close my team are and how well we all get on together, not only as a club but outside of football as friends too.

Do you hope to play for the ladies team in a couple of year?

Hopefully, that’s what my aim is.

Alise, thank you for letting us meet and get to know you a little better. Now A little birdie has told me about your recent achievement. Can I just say a huge congratulations from myself and all at the ladies senior team, we are so proud to hear you have been selected to represent your country at under 17s, you must be so proud.

How did you feel when you first found out you had been scouted for the u17 age group? I was so Shocked and actually, I was nervous too! Mostly, I was just really really excited though.

It’s a really fantastic achievement to represent your country Alise especially at such a young age! Everyone at the club is so proud of you! So tell us a little about what happens next and who you will be playing against?

Well, we have a training camp from the 4th to 6th of August at Toryglen in Glasgow. It’s going to be intense I’m sure but I can’t wait! At the camp we will do lots of training sessions and maybe some team building activities. We will be staying at a hotel and playing games against other players at the camp. There are a lot of other talented girls who have been selected, so it will just be a great experience, I’m really looking forward to showing what I’m made of.

What are your aspirations in football and internationally?

I want to play as long as I can! I really hope to represent my county more and more than I already have and travel around the world doing what I love.

You say you would love to travel and play, if you could pick any country and any team in the world to play for, who would it be?

In terms of who I would want to play for, that’s easy… It would have to be my home country, Scotland! There is no better feeling than putting on your home shirt and representing where you come from. In terms of travel though, I would just love to see lots of different parts of the world whilst doing what I love, playing football, that would be my ultimate dream.

Alise, it has been an absolute pleasure to get to know you a little better and thank you for taking the time to share this amazing achievement with us all. We are very proud of your achievement and wish you all the best at the International camp in August. You are a fantastic player and a wee star. I am confident we will see you not only in a ladies Motherwell shirt in a couple of years, but in many many different Scotland shirts in the years to come!

To keep up to speed with Alise’s international duty and under 15s team news, follow the team on Twitter @MwellGirls15s

For all the latest info and live match tweets follow the ladies on twitter @MotherwellLFC

Follow me on twitter @dibsy_

‘Well skipper Keith Lasley hopes the ‘Well squad can pick up where they left off the previous ahead of Saturday’s SPFL opener.

The Fir Parkers faced the unenviable task of trying to circumnavigate the Premiership play-off double header against Rangers in late May.

However, Ian Baraclough’s men turned in two terrific performances to win the match 6-1 on aggregate and send fans into the summer in a positive mood after what had been disappointing campaign.

Now, with the season opener against Inverness at the Caledonian Stadium just a few days away, Lasley hopes to continue that sort of form into the new campaign.

[pullquote]We’re looking of for a continuation of how we finished last season, particularly in the Rangers game.[/pullquote]

Speaking at the launch of Motherwell’s partnership with back of shirt sponsor Castle Water, the veteran midfielder said: “We’re looking of for a continuation of how we finished last season, particularly in the Rangers game.

“We want to be a team that is hard to beat but we also have some good threats in our team as well and we can play expansive football. We know we can counter attack with pace and that is vital, especially away from home. It’s a real key component of the modern game and we have that here.

“We still believe we have really good footballers in this team and we need to go and show that to the fans because although on the whole, last season was poor, there was some good football played at times and it up to us to go and enhance that even more.

“Hopefully we can get off to a positive start on Saturday and take it from there.”

Motherwell Football Club is today delighted to announce Castle Water will be the new back-of-shirt sponsor for the 2015/16 season.

Castle Water is a Licensed Provider of water and waste services throughout Scotland, and from 2017 will also supply business customers in England & Wales.

They are able to serve the requirements of the largest multi-site customers, right through to small family businesses.

Speaking about the new partnership, which will see the Castle Water logo adorn both Motherwell home and away strips, Motherwell General Manager Alan Burrows commented: “We are absolutely delighted to be partnering with Castle Water for the new season and look forward to what we hope will be a long and healthy relationship.

[pullquote]As a new and fast growing company, Castle Water is proud to work with Motherwell FC, and we all look forwarding to supporting the Club both on the pitch and in the community.”[/pullquote]

“From the outset we were incredibly impressed by the vision and desire the company has for the future as well as the Castle Water ethos of offering customers a service based on trust, dedication and accountability, as part of their ethical practice policy.

“That mirrors the philanthropic, community-based project currently underway at Motherwell with Les Hutchison’s involvement and the ultimate transition to full fan ownership.”

Castle Water Chief Executive John Reynolds added: “As a new and fast growing company, Castle Water is proud to work with Motherwell FC, and we all look forwarding to supporting the Club both on the pitch and in the community.”

For more information on how your business can get a quote and save money on your water bill, call 01250 833 101, email info@castlewater.co.uk or visit www.castlewater.co.uk.

Referee for Saturday’s SPFL opener against Inverness in the Highlands will be the experienced Crawford Allan.

With the season just getting underway, it’s obviously Crawford’s first ‘Well match of the campaign.

However, he is a familiar face to ‘Well fans having been a top flight official for over a decade.

He handled four matches during the 2014/15 season, including two Friday night defeats at Pittodrie, ‘Well losing 2-1 and 1-0 respectively, the instantly forgettable New Years defeat at New Douglas Park and, most recently, the 1-1 draw with Ross County at Fir Park last season.

A vastly experienced, Crawford handled two games the previous seasons (2013/14).

The first was a narrow 1-0 win over Hibs in November 2013 when a Stephen McManus header gave the 10-man Steelmen all three points.

The other, five weeks later, was the important 1-2 victory at Ross County, which kicked off an incredible six game winning run. A brace from John Sutton was enough to edge out the Staggies and got ‘Well back to winning ways after the disappointment of an early Scottish Cup exit and a thumping from Celtic.

Tragically, Allan took charge of the ‘Well game on the 29th December 2007, forever etched in history as the date when Phil O’Donnell tragically passed away in the 5-3 victory over Dundee United.

Speaking publically, Allan admitted Phil’s death had a profound effect on the whistler but won heartfelt praise for the way he handled what was an extremely difficult situation and his sensitive approach will be forever appreciated by everyone at Motherwell Football Club and is recognised each time he returns to Fir Park.

In another twist of fate, Crawford is only one of two referees to have ever taken charge of a Motherwell away game at Fir Park as the Steelmen faced hosts Gretna during the 2007/2008 campaign.

His record in charge of the ‘Well is a fairly mixed, with the Fir Parkers winning eight, drawing seven and losing seven of the twenty two games in total. In those games, 63 players have seen yellow, 38 in Claret and Amber, whilst four have been sent for an early bath, the most recent being Shaun Hutchinson in that match against Hibs two seasons ago.

Allan will be ably assisted by Alastair Mather and Stuart Hodge with Mat Northcroft on fourth official duties. Referee observer is Kevin Toner, SPFL Delegate is David Patience.

Motherwell FC can today confirm the ticket prices to Saturday’s Ladbrokes Premiership opener against Inverness CT

Ian Baraclough’s men kick-off the new season with a tough trip to the Highlands this Saturday, 1st of August, with a 3pm kick-off.

The ticket prices are as follows:

Fans should also note a supporters bus (subject to numbers) will leave from Wishaw at 9.10am and Motherwell at 9.30am.

Anyone wishing seats should call Anne on 01698384050 or Jim on 01698299650, as soon as possible.

Extended highlights from the Energy Assets Arena as ‘Well go down 1-2 to English Championship side Preston North End.