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Motherwell have a number of players out on loan at present. Below, we take a look at how they got on in the last four weeks. 

Matty Connelly

Matty Connelly has had a disrupted period on loan with East Kilbride. The young shot stopper has had to return to Motherwell briefly to cover injuries within the goalkeeping department.

However, he has since made two appearances for Kilby, taking his season tally to 24. In the one league match, Connelly helped his side win 4-2 against Bo’ness United. East Kilbride remain in pole position to finish top, with two points separating them from Celtic B in second, who have played three games more.

In his other appearance, Connelly’s side faced Queen’s Park in the semi-final of the SPFL Trust Trophy. Despite going behind in the early stages, East Kilbride scored twice to take the game to extra-time, but lost out 6-2 in the end.

Max Ross

There’s only been one game since our last report for Albion Rovers, which was against Bo’ness United. M.Ross started, as he has done in every game since he signed for Rovers, with his side unfortunately falling to a 1-0 defeat in the Lowland League Cup.

They will play their first league match since the end of December this weekend against Stirling University.

Brannan McDermott

Brannan McDermott and Broomhill have only been in action once in 2025 due to multiple matches being postponed. That match took place midweek in the Lowland League Cup, where Broomhill produced an upset, knocking Berwick Rangers out of the competition thanks to a 3-1 win.

McDermott, who played the full 90 minutes, helped his side get off to an excellent start, providing an assist for the first goal of the night.

Olly Whyte

Cowdenbeath have had two games since the last loan report, with Olly Whyte starting both matches. They beat Stirling University 2-1, pushing them further away from the wrong end of the table.

They then went to penalties against Gala Fairydean Rovers in the Lowland League Cup. Whyte was substituted on in the second-half having been named initially on the bench. Cowdenbeath exited the competition, losing 5-3 on penalties.

Dylan Wells

After recovering from injury, Dylan Wells has been back in action for Edinburgh City, as the Citizens continue their push for a promotion playoff spot.

Wells made his return to action as a second-half substitute against East Fife at the end of January. He came on in the 70th minute, with City losing out 4-1.

He then came off the bench again on the hour mark against Stirling Albion. In what was a frantic game, Michael McIndoe’s side came away with all three points thanks to a 4-3 win.

Edinburgh have opened up a four-point gap to fifth-placed Spartans and are only 11 points off top spot.

Filip Stuparevic

Morton went almost a month without playing a game and only played their first match of 2025 on 25 January against Queen’s Park at Hampden.

The wait was worth it, with Morton winning 2-1, where Stuparevic played 65 minutes. He then followed that up with a goal against Partick Thistle at Firhill in a 2-2 draw, finishing from close range. That was his sixth goal in Morton colours as the race of the promotion play off spots heating up in the Championship.

Luca Ross

L.Ross and Annan Athletic have won one, drawn one, and lost one since the last loan report. He played the full 90 minutes in the draw with Montrose and defeat against Inverness. In the 89th minute against Montrose, L.Ross burst down the line before setting up Tommy Muir to draw Annan level.

He then came off the bench with 5 minutes to go in a 3-1 win over Kelty Hearts. That result was huge for Annan, as it kept them two points clear of the relegation playoff. It also closed the gap to Montrose in seventh to just a point.

The youngster is now up to 14 appearances in all competitions for Annan this season.

Mark Ferrie

Bonnyrigg Ross had lost three prior to our last report, but since then, they have found sustained form in League Two. They’ve played five matches, winning two and drawing one.

Ferrie has been an ever-present in the side, starting each of their last three matches. In the other two, he has come off the bench to feature, taking his number of appearances to 17 for the Rose.

Rose have moved up to seventh in the table on 25 points, with only six points separating fifth to ninth.

Zander McAllister is the latest Motherwell Academy player to be called up for international duty. 

McAllister has been named in Brian McLaughlin’s 20-man squad to travel to Turkey later this month.

The Under 17 group head East to take on Austria in a double-header. Both matches are friendlies are will be used for preparation for Under-17s Round Two (League B) matches that will take place later in the year.

• Austria v Scotland
• Monday 17 February 2025
• 1pm Kick Off
• Arslan Zeki Demirci Sport Complex, Turkey

• Scotland v Austria
• Thursday 20 February 2025
• 9am Kick Off 
• Emir Hotels Ilica Stadium, Turkey

Motherwell duo Aaron Thomson and Jack Dalziel have been included in the Scotland Under 16 squad.

Stephen Clarke has put together a squad of 20 that will travel to Cyprus later this month for their first matches in 2025. The young group are taking part in three friendlies, as part of a tournament.

The first match is against the host nation on Wednesday 19 February, before they take on Romania on Friday 21 February. They will round off their time away with a match against Northern Ireland on Monday 24 February.

• Cyprus v Scotland
• Wednesday 19 February 2025 
• 12:30pm Kick Off 
• Pafiako Stadium, Cyprus 

• Romania v Scotland
• Friday 21 February 2025
• 9am Kick Off  
• Geroskipou Municipality Stadium, Cyprus 

• Scotland v Northern Ireland
• Monday 24 February 2025 
• 9am Kick Off 
• Geroskipou Municipality Stadium, Cyprus 

Motherwell have a number of players out on loan at present. Below, we take a look at how they got on in the last four weeks. 

Seven of our academy graduates have had their loans extended until the end of the season earlier this month.

Those who will remain at their respective clubs until the end of the campaign are:

• Dylan Wells (Edinburgh City)
• Mark Ferrie (Bonnyrigg Rose)
• Matty Connelly (East Kilbride)
• Olly Whyte (Cowdenbeath)
• Max Ross (Albion Rovers)
• Brannan McDermott (Broomhill)
• Luca Ross (Annan Athletic)

Matty Connelly

With two games postponed in the last four weeks, Connelly has made a further two appearances for East Kilbride. The 21-year-old is on 22 appearances now.

EK won both of those games, against Berwick Rangers and Albion Rovers. Kilby remain top of the tree in the Lowland League, two points clear of Caledonian Braves, with three games in hand.

Max Ross

Defender Max Ross has turned out a further five times for Albion Rovers in the last four weeks, taking his number of appearances this season to 13. His last two games have been postponed, but M.Ross started the three games prior.

Rovers are seventh in the league, on 31 points, with their eyes looking up the table.

Brannan McDermott

Brannan McDermott is still yet to miss a minute of action for Broomhill in the Lowland League. With 13 appearances to his name and one goal, McDermott’s side was on the losing side against Gretna last time out.

Broomhill sit second from the bottom of the Lowland League table but are only six points off East Stirlingshire in 13th place, so will be optimistic about moving upwards.

Olly Whyte

Another team that has felt the effects of the weather is Cowdenbeath, where Olly Whyte currently plays. The midfielder is on 25 appearances for the season, with two goals to his name.

Rested against Caledonian Braves, Whyte played the full 90 minutes in the other three matches since our last report. One win, one draw, and one defeat in their last three has Cowdenbeath 14th in the table on 21 points after 21 games.

Dylan Wells

Dylan Wells has made a further two appearances for Edinburgh City in the last four weeks. He is currently on five games for the Citizens but has missed the last four games.

Edinburgh City went unbeaten in six games before losing three of their last four matches. They are currently in the promotion playoff race, with manager Michael McIndoe picking up the manager of the month award in League Two for December.

Filip Stuparevic

Filip Stuparevic is back fit and has featured heavily for Morton in the last four weeks. He’s now made 14 appearances and scored his fifth of the season against Partick Thistle last month.

Morton have won two and drawn two in the last four, with Dougie Imrie winning the manager of the month award in the Championship for December, with Cameron Blues named the player of the month for December also.

Morton are yet to play in 2025, with their most recent match against Raith Rovers cancelled due to a gas leak at the stadium.

Luca Ross

18-year-old Luca Ross has seen his minutes for Annan Athletic rise in the last four weeks. Not featuring in November, L.Ross has played in each of Annan’s last five matches, starting the last two. Annan have drawn three of their last five, winning one.

Annan are trying to maintain the gap to Inverness, who are currently in the relegation playoff spot. They are seven points clear of Caley and are four points off of Montrose in seventh.

Mark Ferrie

Forward Mark Ferrie has turned out another three times for Bonnyrigg Rose in the last four weeks. Starting the last two matches, Ferrie has been deployed in various positions across the front three.

Rose have lost three of their last three games, leaving them in the relegation playoff position. However, the league is congested with fourth place only ten points away from Bonnyrigg Rose. They also have games in hand on those above.

Motherwell have a number of players out on loan at present. Below, we take a look at how they got on in the last four weeks. 

Matty Connelly

Matty Connelly is now on 20 appearances for East Kilbride this season. An impressive 2-0 win over Celtic B has put Kilby at the top of the Lowland League tree at the weekend, and they followed it up with a comfortable 4-1 win over Broomhill midweek.

It’s been an exciting month for Connelly. He started and played every minute since our last report, despite a short spell back at Motherwell to cover the absence of Krisztián Hegyi.

Connelly played the full 90 as Championship side Falkirk knocked East Kilbride out of the Scottish Cup. They still have a semi-final tie in the Challenge Cup against Queen’s Park to look forward to.

Max Ross

Max Ross is up to eight appearances for Albion Rovers. He had started all of the last eight games for Rovers but missed out in their most recent match against Tranent.

Albion Rovers are on 27 points after 18 games. They’re seventh in the table.

Brannan McDermott

With matches postponed, Brannan McDermott has only played two game since our last loan report.

That was a 3-2 defeat to Stirling University and a 4-1 defeat midweek against East Kilbride. He played the full 90 in both matches.

Olly Whyte

Olly Whyte has now played 22 games for Cowdenbeath as he continues to impress in the middle of the pitch.

Since the last loan report, Cowdenbeath have exited the Scottish Cup. Brechin won 4-1 after extra time, where Whyte played the full 120.

That has been one of three games since the last report. In the other two, Whyte has started and played the full match. He netted a brace against Linlithgow Rose last Saturday, helping his side towards a 2-0 victory.

That was Cowdenbeath’s third victory in the Lowland League, moving them five points ahead of bottom.

Dylan Wells

After a delayed start to the action for Edinburgh City, Dylan Wells has now made his debut and has played three times.

Edinburgh City are flying in the league, winning all four of their last four matches in League Two.

Wells made his debut against Peterhead. He came on at half-time and played the second-half. He was then a substitute for his second appearance against Dunfermline in the Scottish Cup, where the Citizens fell to a 2-1 defeat.

Having impressed from the bench, he was handed his first start on Saturday against Stirling Albion, where he scored after 38 minutes. City won 3-0 with Wells coming off in stoppage time.

Filip Stuparevic

Filip Stuparevic has made one further appearance since our last report. The Serbian netted a double against Raith Rovers in November, taking his goal tally to four for the season.

He has picked up a knock and missed out on their most recent match against Livingston.

Luca Ross

Luca Ross has made two further appearances for Annan, having recovered from a minor injury.

The winger was brought into the action on Saturday against Cover Rangers for the last ten minutes. Annan drew 1-1.

With Dumbarton and Inverness both receiving 15-point deductions for entering administration, Annan are 10th in the table, eight clear of Inverness.

Mark Ferrie

Mark Ferrie has now played nine games for Bonnyrigg Rose this season, with their match being postponed last Saturday against Spartans.

Ferrie has started three out of the last four games, with Bonnyrigg’s last loss in the league coming back in early October.

Despite a six-point deduction, Bonnyrigg are only three points off of the promotion playoff spots.

Motherwell have a number of players out on loan at present. Below, we take a look at how they got on in the last four weeks. 

Matty Connelly

Matty Connelly has made a further seven appearances for East Kilbride since our last update, taking him up to 17 games for the season.

Throughout the month of October, and November so far, East Kilbride haven’t lost a game. Connelly hasn’t missed a minute of action. They are top of the Lowland League and have reached the semi-final of the SPFL Trust Trophy, after they knocked out Championship opposition in the form of Ayr United on Tuesday night.

Their run to the semi-final has been littered with success against teams in the divisions above, including Cove Rangers and Airdrie.

Max Ross

Max Ross has now made seven appearances for Albion Rovers. He has started in the last seven games for Rovers.

Winning four, drawing two and losing one, Ross and Albion Rovers are up to seventh in the Lowland League table, as they look to close the gap on those above.

Brannan McDermott

At Cowdenbeath, Brannan McDermott has started all five games since our last loan report. He’s now up to seven appearances.

He scored his first goal in a 2-2 draw with Albion Rovers. He is yet to miss a minute of action this season.

Olly Whyte

Since the last update, Olly Whyte has started all five games. Although they haven’t won a game in the league since the start of October, Cowdenbeath produced a remarkable Scottish Cup upset in late October.

They knocked out League Two Spartans at Ainslie Park, winning 2-1.

Dylan Wells

Dylan Wells hasn’t featured for Edinburgh City as yet. He picked up a knock but will return this weekend.

Filip Stuparevic

Filip Stuparevic is up to nine appearances for Morton this season. Now an established starter for Morton, Stuparevic’s side picked up a big point against Ayr United last weekend.

In their most recent match, Morton were defeated 2-1 by Livingston in the quarter-final of the SPFL Trust Trophy, where the Serbian played 64 minutes.

Luca Ross

Luca Ross has made one further appearance since the October report for Annan Athletic.

He was named on the bench for Annan against Queen of the South at the end of October.

Mark Ferrie

Mark Ferrie is up to five appearances for Bonnyrigg Rose. He has started the last four matches for Rose.

In their last match against Elgin City, Ferrie’s dink in the second-half got him off the mark for the season, helping his side on the way to three points. He picked up the man of the match award in the process.

Bonnyrigg are fifth in the League Two table, they are on 17 points as they close down on the playoff spots.

Motherwell have a number of players out on loan at present. Below, we take a look at how they are getting on. 

Matty Connelly

Matty Connelly was named on the bench for the first match after he joined East Kilbride. Since then, Connelly has started every match for EK.

The 21-year-old has ten appearances, keeping three clean sheets.

He was the hero at the weekend as he saved Chris Mochrie’s penalty to send EK through to the next round of the SPFL Trust Trophy

Max Ross

Max Ross joined Albion Rovers last month and was named on the bench for his first game.

He was introduced to the starting 11 in his second outing, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2-1 win over Civil Service Strollers.

M.Ross then played 64 minutes against Cumbernauld Colts, where the game ended 1-1.

Brannan McDermott

Brannan McDermott made his debut for Broomhill in a 4-1 defeat against Cowdenbeath.

He then started against Tranent, where he was awarded the Broomhill man of the match in a 3-0 defeat.

Olly Whyte

Olly Whyte has established himself a first-team starter for Cowdenbeath and has amassed 15 appearances already in all competitions.

He won a vital penalty against league leaders Caledonian Braves, where his side drew 1-1.

The 17-year-old has played against Championship opposition in the form of Greenock Morton in the Trust Trophy, where Cowdenbeath narrowly lost out 1-0. Once again, Whyte won a penalty.

Dylan Wells

Dylan Wells is yet to make his first appearance for Edinburgh City.

Filip Stuparevic

It hasn’t taken long for Filip Stuparevic to make his mark at Morton.

The Serbian made his debut against Ayr United, when he was introduced into the action for the last 15 minutes.

He then made the starting 11 for their next match against Raith Rovers, where he scored a fine header, helping his side to a 2-0 win.

Filip then made it two goals in two games when he scored the opener against Hamilton Accies from the penalty spot.

Luca Ross

Luca Ross has made four appearances so far for Annan Athletic, starting four out of the last five games.

He was an unused substitute against Montrose and was cup-tied for the SPFL Trust trophy defeat to Queen’s Park.

Mark Ferrie

Mark Ferrie came on as a second-half substitute against Forfar Athletic, to make his debut for Bonnyrigg Rose.

An impressive 30 minutes from the striker, saw him start against East Fife. Ferrie played the full 90 minutes. Rose were reduced to 10 men after just 14 minutes.

In their most recent game, Ferrie came off the bench at half-time as Rose defeated Dunbar 3-2.

Jack Dalziel, Lucas Weir and Arron Thomson have all been called up to Scotland’s Under 16 squad. 

It’s victory shield action for Scotland this month, as they face off against Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Wales.

Scotland last won this tournament outright in 2013, and have also came joint top in 2019 and 2021.

• Scotland U16 v Republic of Ireland U16
• Tuesday 8 October, 2024 
• 11:30am kick off
• Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld

• Scotland U16 v Northern Ireland U16
• Thursday 10 October, 2024
• 11:30am kick off
• Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld

• Scotland v Wales
• Sunday, 13 October, 2024 
• 3:30pm kick off
• Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld

Motherwell were eliminated from the Youth Cup on Tuesday afternoon, following a narrow 1-0 defeat to Ross County. 

Torran Lambie’s penalty was the difference between the sides in a match that saw plenty of action.

That action started after just four minutes. Zack Tomany managed to get on the end of Mikey Booth’s corner; however, the winger’s header went just wide of the post.

Three minutes later, Ross County’s Calum Brown forced a good save from Jack McConnell in the Motherwell net after the Staggies broke forward.

Jakub Leszcynski went nearest next for County, with the forward muscling his way past the Motherwell defender but shooting wide.

Tomany went close again on 14 minutes. The winger picked up the ball on the left-edge of the box, cut inside, and curled an effort on target, but Jayden Reid was on hand to tip over the bar.

On 28 minutes, the best chance of the game arrived. Arran Clark fed a lovely ball in behind for Zander McAllister; the midfielder continued his run and poked the ball past the on-rushing keeper. The ball rolled towards goal, but the Ross County defence got back in time to scramble clear.

Five minutes later, captain Booth curled the ball around the wall from a free-kick and found the inside of the post with the keeper beaten.

Motherwell stopper McConnell was called into action on 40 minutes when, at the end of a Ross County counter, Leszcynski unleashed a strike towards goal, but the keeper got a strong fingertip to the effort to keep the ball out.

The second half was somewhat quieter. But on 52 minutes, the match-winning moment arrived. Left-back Andrew Arnott was punished for diving in to block a shot in the area. The full-back’s attempt at the block ended up in him colliding with the County player, and the referee pointed to the spot.

Substitute Lambie stepped up and, despite McConnell going the right way, converted. 0-1.

That goal sparked Richard Foster into making some alternations to his side, with the introduction of Nathan Lawson.

It almost had the perfect impact instantly after conceding. Rocco McColm fired just wide of the post, when a cross into the area eventually fell for the midfielder.

Lucas Weir and Robbie Hunter were introduced to the action, and it was the former who came close with a header on 70 minutes from a glancing header.

Weir again went close four minutes later, when he held the ball in back to goal, swivelled, and got a shot away, which was saved.

Ultimately, their efforts would come to nothing, and Ross County held onto the win, progressing to the fourth round of the Youth Cup.

“It’s been a disappointing day,” Richard Foster said.

“Firstly, you always want to progress in the cup. We haven’t achieved that, and that’s a sore one to take.

“But secondly, our performance wasn’t there. We saw in flashes some spark from individuals, but nowhere near the level I know these players can reach.

“There was a lack of fight and energy. That’s something we have addressed openly in the dressing room after the game.”

Motherwell: McConnell (GK), Williamson, Gillies, Marshall, Arnott, McAllister (Forrest 61′), Booth, McColm, Tomany (Weir 61′), McLean (Hunter 61′), Clark (Lawson 52′). 

Motherwell subs: Friel, Creer, Thomson, Forrest (61), Lawson (52′), Hunter (61), Weir (61). 

Full-back Brannan McDermott has joined Lowland League side Broomhill on loan until January. 

The 18-year-old played a part in the friendly match against Livingston at Fir Park in July, and also made his competitive debut for the club against Edinburgh City in the Premier Sports Cup.

McDermott heads out to Broomhill, in what is his first loan move in his career.

Good luck, Brannan.