The women of steel narrowly missed out on a place in the top-six despite an emphatic and clinical 1-3 victory away to Aberdeen at Cormack Park.
The hosts snatched the opener against the run of play from the penalty spot after a dubious hand-ball decision, before a quick-fire Carla Boyce equaliser pulled the visitors level on the stroke of half time.
The striker secured her brace from the penalty spot midway through the second-half, with a late Kayla Jardine strike putting the game beyond any doubt. However, results elsewhere mean Motherwell will miss out on a top-six finish this season.
Manager Paul Brownlie made two changes from the side that cruised to a comfortable 2-1 victory over Dundee United last week. Emma Lawton and Kaela McDonald-Nguah both missed out through injury, with Niamh Noble and Lauren Doran-Barr both returning to the starting XI.
Neither side mounted any notable opportunities on goal, despite the end-to-end nature of the game.
However, the hosts fired themselves ahead minutes before the break. A drilled delivery from the right flashed across the face of goal, and much to the bemusement of the Motherwell players, the referee quickly awarded a spot kick for a suspected handball. Hannah Stewart stepped up, and calmly placed her strike beyond the reach of Emily Mutch.
Motherwell flooded the opposition box in search of an equaliser, and moments later they had their reward. A clever interchange of play between Tiree Burchill and Gill Inglis ricocheted into the path of Boyce, who floated an audacious effort over the keeper to bring her side level as the half-time whistle loomed.
On the hour mark, the visitors had overturned the early setback. A clever change of direction from Katie Rice wrongfooted her opponent, who caught the midfielder with a late-lunging tackle; leaving the referee no alternative but to award his second penalty of the evening. Boyce stepped up and coolly sent the keeper the wrong way for her second of the game.
As the full-time whistle drew closer, Motherwell had their third. An accurate long ball sliced through the high Aberdeen defensive line, leaving Jardine in acres of space, and the youngster made no mistake as she buried a powerful volley into the top-left corner.
Despite a magnificent team-performance, the women of steel miss out on the top-six by one single point. Paul Brownlie’s side will turn their attention to cup action next weekend, as a visit from Glasgow Women stands in their way from a trip to Hampden Park in the Scottish Cup.
