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Veteran midfielder Keith Lasley admits he has had a frustrating few weeks watching from the sidelines.

The 32-year old has been forced to miss three of the last six SPL games after his ordering off against the Dons in the Scottish Cup then going over the disciplinary point’s threshold following a harsh booking at home to Rangers.

The former Plymouth man is now back available to resume his partnership with Steve Jennings and is hoping to kick things off with a win tomorrow.

“The last few weeks have been frustrating,” he admitted. “I’ve been missing out every other week it feels like and it’s been disappointing but I’m just looking forward to being back involved in what is a big game on Saturday.

“One positive is that you get time to recharge and there is nothing better for getting you back up for getting out there than having to sit there and watch a game because it is a frustrating thing as any player will probably tell you. Hopefully this week I can be back in the mix and get an opportunity to get back out there.

[pullquote]I’ve been missing out every other week it feels like and it’s been disappointing but I’m just looking forward to being back involved in what is a big game on Saturday.[/pullquote]

“We’ve had strange results against St Johnstone this season with the 3-0 results at each other’s grounds and the 3-2 game here.

“There has certainly been a lot of goals in the games so we’ll maybe look forward to that which will be good for the fans. St Johnstone have proven themselves to be a good team and they’ll be coming here thinking if they can get a result they can put themselves right back in the mix for third.

“That will be their mindset but ours will be to try and get as many points on the board as possible and Saturday will be our first chance to do that.”

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‘Well boss Stuart McCall has urged his side to rediscover some of the form that has taken them to within four games of third place.

The Steelmen are in a four-way tussle with Dundee United, Hearts and tomorrow’s opponents, St Johnstone for what is likely to be a spot in next season’s UEFA Champions League qualifiers.

‘Well have only taken one point from the last four matches and face and excellent Saints side but still with a three-point cushion over nearest rivals United.

Peter Houston’s men take on Hearts in Saturday’s early kick-off but the former Scotland midfielder is calling for his men to focus only on playing some of the football that has won them many plaudits this term.

He said: “It’s going to be a tense, nervy, edgy  final four games for every club that are fighting to be as high up the league as they can but I want the boys to bring the quality out tomorrow.

“We’ve got good players, we’ve talked all week about the way we want to go out and play the game and that’s what we aim to do.

“One thing St Johnstone have got is that they are a real hard working group. If you’ve got good senior pros in your dressing room you’ve got a good chance of having a good side out there and St Johnstone have certainly got that. Sandaza is out but I’m sure they’ve got other players desperate to come in and take his role.

“We’ve just got to go out and as an individual, be the best you can be. Don’t be tense and nervous, just go out and produce what you’ve produced all season and we’re confident that will be enough to get us the points that we need.”

-WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW ON MFC TV-

There are only a few hours left for you to bid on the fantastic ‘Matchday Experience’ set for early May.

The club and its partners have run various events in the past allowing fans and clients to play on the hallowed Fir Park turf, but none have ever been the true matchday experience quite like this.

You have this one opportunity to bid for this incredible event; for one day you will feel and be treated like a first-team player.

-CLICK HERE FOR ALL THE DETAILS, INFORMATION & TO BID –

Skysports.com users are giving you the chance to vote for the official PFA Scotland Goal of the Season winner.

Throughout the season, their panel of experts have been pulling together the best goals from the SPL and beyond to produce this shortlist of 12 classic strikes.

You can make your selection by voting in our poll to the right of the page and how can anyone look past Higgy’s overhead-kick against Hibs!

The vote closes on Thursday May 3 and the winner will be presented with an award at a special ceremony to be held in Glasgow at The Hilton Hotel on Sunday May 6.

So to vote for Motherwell’s top scorer – CLICK HERE.

The Cash Converters Player of the Month for March is flying winger Chris Humphrey.

Chris returned to the starting line-up after a scintillating substitute performance at East End Park and since then, he has turned in some terrific displays.

‘Well fan Joe McKelvie won the privilege of presenting the trophy by voting for Chris at Cash Converter’s SPL page.

For your chance to present the April award, all you need to do is vote for which Motherwell player you think has been our stand-out performer over the last four weeks, and, if you are correct, you could be chosen from all entries received to congratulate our star man in person.

To cast your vote, go to Cash Converters SPL page or CLICK HERE.

Referee for Saturday’s Clydesdale Bank Premier League clash with St Johnstone at Fir Park will be Bobby Madden.

It will be only be Bobby’s second ever Motherwell game. His first came back in January of this season as the Steelmen slipped to a disappointing 1-0 defeat at home to Inverness; Grégory Tadé grabbing the game’s only goal.

The 33-year old has been fourth official on a number of occasions, including Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup last month and the Semi Final with St Johnstone at Hampden last April.

The whistler has taken charge of games in all four domestic divisions this campaign and both Cup competitions, the most notable being Celtic’s 2-1 win over Dunfermline and Rangers’ victory over Inverness by the same scoreline.

His most recent SPL appointment came at the start of April as Hibs took all three points against Inverness in the Highlands, winning 3-2.

Madden himself was at the centre of controversy at the turn of the year when he was forced to cancel a game between Dunfermline and Kilmarnock at East End Park due to thick fog. Unfortunately, at kick-off, the worst had cleared and he was on the end of some severe, and, it has to be said, over-the-top criticism from some quarters when it was an extremely difficult and unpredictable call.

He was also in charge for the entertaining UEFA U21 Qualifying clash between Albania and Moldova in Korçë back in September. The home side won 4-2 with the Moldovans reduced to ten men courtesy of a late red card to midfielder Mihail Platica.

He has also refereed a fixture in the UEFA Champions League when he was appointed to the First Round Qualifier between Birkirkara FC and FC Santa Colomo in July of 2010.

His domestic card count record is encouraging too. Of the 27 matches he has handled this term; only 74 cautions have been dished out (2.5 per match) with only two ordered off.

Bobby will be ably assisted by Brian McGarry and Gary Sweeney with Calum Murray on fourth official duties.

Motherwell FC Community Trust is looking to make a real difference to unemployment in the area through the setting up of a Work Club in partnership with Job Centre Plus which will meet in the Learning Centre in the Davie Cooper on Saturday mornings at 10am.

The aim of the Work Club is to make use of local resources and knowledge to allow people to work together to offer addition support. The Work Club will also offer unemployed people a place to meet and exchange skills, opportunities, make contacts, share experiences, and receive support to help them back in work.

At Fir Park, people attending the Work Club regularly will have a fantastic view of the Stadium from the Learning Centre and will qualify for free tickets for SPL games outwith the Old Firm.

Charlie Bennett, General Manager of Motherwell FC Community Trust said: “We are very pleased to working in partnership with Job Centre Plus over this initiative. Recently we have been involved in a number of employability programmes including the Future Jobs Fund, Get into Sport and Leisure and the Community Jobs Fund which have all been a great success”

The Work Club will deliver an innovative programme over a 12 week period which will cover:

Your Career
Identify areas of interest using online tests, Sign Posting to websites with further information on specific career choices etc

Curriculum Vitae Workshops
What is a CV? How to prepare a CV? CV Application Packs, Good CV’s/Bad CV’s, Tailoring CV’s to certain posts etc

Skills & Qualities
Identifying personal skills and qualities, matching skills and qualities with vacancies

Goal Settings
What are goals? What are Long/Short term goals, Why is goal setting important? How to set and monitor goals.

Barriers
This workshop will help people to identify any barriers into employment and look at ways of overcoming these barriers.

Job Search
Where should you be looking? Website Information, website directories, keyword searches etc

Job Applications
Good practice, supporting statements, reference information, personal information, disclosure etc

Supporting Statements
How to prepare a supporting statement for particular vacancies

Interview Techniques
Preparation for interviews, types of interviews, interview questions, good interview/bad interview

Communication
Types of communication: Eye Contact, Speech, Body Language, Listening

For more information on the Work Club or any of our other programmes please contact us at community@motherwellfc.co.uk or by calling us on 01698 239 926

Three goals in the second-half handed Celtic all three points against Motherwell at Fir Park this afternoon.

-WATCH ALL THE GOALS ON MFC TV-

Captain for the day Stevie Hammell cut a disappointed figure as Motherwell crashed to a 3-0 home defeat this afternoon.

The left-back was part of a Steelmen side that matched Celtic all over the park for the first hour of the match but a quick-fire double from substitute Tony Watt changed the complexion of the game.

The former Scotland International couldn’t hide his frustration and admitted the players were in confident mood ahead of the game.

“It’s disappointing,” he sighed.

“I thought in the first half there wasn’t much in it and they didn’t have many chances. We started the second-half well but then they got a goal which was poor from our point of view.  It was a good finish from the lad but after that we didn’t really create enough.

“The first half went pretty much to plan. They had a lot of the ball and surprised us with their shape but once we got to grips with that we created a couple of chances and the keeper has pulled off a great save from Chris.

“It’s difficult to put your finger on why but once they scored they caught us on the break a couple times and the third goal killed us off.

“It’s such a disappointment as we were all looking forward to the game. We were confident and focused but it’s ended as a disappointing day for all.”

-WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW ON MFC TV-

Stuart McCall was left frustrated after another poor performance against the Old Firm but his thoughts have already turned to next Saturday’s match with St Johnstone.

Motherwell battled hard against Celtic and matched the SPL Champions until substitute Tony Watt scored a quick-fire double to give Neil Lennon’s side a commanding lead.

Korean Cha Du-Ri added insult to injury with a third to confirm Celtic’s sixth consecutive win against the Steelmen.

40-times capped Scotland midfielder McCall admitted he was disappointed with how the game went but was keen to stress the importance of putting the defeat to bed as quickly as possible with St Johnstone the visitors to Fir Park next Saturday.

“I am hugely disappointed,” he admitted.

“I felt before the game we had a real chance of securing a point at the very least. That was still the case at half-time; it had been an open game. They had a few chances, we had a few chances and their keeper made a few good blocks from Chris Humphrey.

“It was much the same in the second until they brought on the sub in young Watt and he has changed the game. We defend poorly, let the cross come in and he finishes it at the back stick and that was the crucial goal.

“But it is gone now. As much as we are all bitterly disappointed but there’s no point moping about and feeling sorry for we have a massive game against St Johnstone next week. All our focus is now on winning that massive game.”

-WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW ON MFC TV-