Motherwell booed off after another defeat

Dec 17 2008 by Andrew Weston, Wishaw Press

BOOED off at half-time, booed off at full-time - clearly these are worrying times for the Fir Park faithful or at least the 3339 who bothered to turn up on Monday evening to jeer their team as the Steelmen lost 2-0 to Kilmarnock

Forget AS Nancy; Saturday’s game against local rivals Hamilton suddenly has become the most important game in Motherwell’s season to date.

Stand-in skipper Keith Lasley said after Monday evening’s match that it was too soon to say that Motherwell are now involved in a relegation dog fight. However, if they lose at the weekend, he may have to reconsider his view. Last season seems a long, long time ago.

Graeme Smith, Stephen Hughes and Chris Porter are free to speak to other clubs in January and will be available on a Bosman next summer.

But if Motherwell are to get out their current predicament they simply must hang on to at least two of them, if not all three.

The resolve of Mark McGhee and John Boyle and the relationship between the two could be severely tested next month if a big money offer is tabled for any of the above.

The Motherwell boss failed to find a like-for-like replacement for striker Ross McCormack in the summer – something that was always going to be difficult – and it has cost the Steelmen dearly.

Monday was a typical example of how the Cardiff man is missed in these parts.

For all their territorial possession and chances created against Kilmarnock, you were never really convinced that the strike duo of John Sutton and Chris Porter would produce the goods.

Both are lacking confidence and it seems to be affecting the whole team.

Post match, Motherwell fans would have looked at the team sheet with both intrigue and concern.

17-year-old defender Steven Saunders was fast-tracked into the ’Well starting line-up for the first time in place of the suspended Paul Quinn. That was the intriguing part.

The concern would have been the news that Scotland internationalist David Clarkson, who had been sorely missed in the last couple of games, was again unavailable after fracturing his hand during training on Saturday.

The fans’ concerns were fully justified as they watched their team squander numerous opportunities and then suffer defeat thanks to a simple header from Manuel Pascali in 24 minutes and a sucker-punch second goal 13 minutes from time from former Airdrie man Allan Russell.

The first shot on goal went to Kilmarnock in the fourth minute.

Donovan Simmonds’ long-range effort had Graeme Smith scrambling to his right but the stopper managed to knock the ball to safety despite Russell lurking in the six-yard box.

In eight minutes, Chris Porter had the opportunity to open the scoring for ’Well but his powerful shot from an acute angle eight yards out flew over the bar.

Moments later, Porter was nearly put clean through by Keith Lasley but the former Oldham player was unable to control the ball and get a shot on goal.

In what was a pulsating start to the contest, the two best opportunities of the early exchanges occurred at both ends in the space of 60 seconds.

Firstly, striker Simmonds was afforded space in the box after a Gary Hay cross from the right but the on-loan Coventry City forward could only nod the ball straight into Smith’s hand.

No sooner had the ball left the goalie’s gloves than Sutton had rounded his opposite man at the other end but he blazed over from a tight angle after Hughes had looped a speculative pass over the Killie back line.

Kilmarnock midfielder Gavin Skelton then fizzed a powerful left-foot drive just over the bar.

The Rugby Park side, already suffering from an ever-growing injury list, lost the services of influential Danny Invincible on the half-hour mark.

Despite this setback, they took the lead four minutes later. Gavin Skelton, a casualty of Gretna’s demise last season, sent in a teasing corner-kick to the danger area which was met by Manuel Pascali, who scored with a glancing header. The home defence were nowhere to be seen.

Sutton was thwarted at the other end by Grant Murray before Porter headed over from six yards out three minutes from the interval.

Steve Hammell also pinged an effort straight at Alan Combe from long range.

The lively Skelton tested Smith with a sweetly struck drive from the edge of the box five minutes after the restart but Smith parried the ball.

Hughes then tried his luck from outside the area for the hosts but the shot was straight at Combe.

Just before the hour mark, Motherwell’s best chance of the match was created by Chris Porter.

The striker, unhappy having been seemingly manhandled in the box minutes earlier, made space for himself on the left edge of the box. From there, he let loose with a powerful left foot drive that was brilliantly finger-tipped onto the bar by Combe.

In 66 minutes, Combe was once again the saviour for the visitors, saving brilliantly at the feet of Chris Porter after a sclaffed Stephen Hughes effort.

With the match descending into a midfield scrap, Kilmarnock grabbed their second goal.

A seemingly innocuous ball landed at the feet of Allan Russell on the right hand side of the Motherwell box.

He was afforded plenty of room and let the ball bounce and composed himself before drilling it past the hapless Graeme Smith.

Darren Smith was brought on late but it made little difference as the visitors travelled back to Ayrshire extremely content with their night’s work, with the home side left to reflect on the fact a loss against Hamilton on Saturday would see Scotland’s third-best team last season joint-bottom at Christmas.

Motherwell: Graeme Smith, Saunders, Klimpl, Reynolds, Hammell, Lasley, Malcolm (O'Brien 64), McGarry (Darren Smith 82), Hughes, Porter, Sutton (Murphy 55).

Kilmarnock: Combe, Fowler, Murray, Wright, Hay, Invincibile (Flannigan 31), Pascali, Hamill, Skelton, Simmonds, Russell (Sammon 86).

Booked: Murray.

Goals: Pascali 35, Russell 77.

Att: 3339