Split blitz from Saints exposes Steelmen’s soft centre

Apr 22 2009 by Graham Miller, Wishaw Press

MOTHERWELL boss Mark McGhee was left lamenting what might have been following Saturday’s lunchtime loss at home to St Mirren.

The two-goal defeat consigned his club to seventh place and five, frankly meaningless matches against the SPL’s struggling outfits.

The Fir Park club went into the fixture confident that they could secure a vital win and in the process put pressure onto Mixu Paatelainen’s Hibs, who were to lose to title chasing Rangers the following day.

But the Motherwell team were unable to come up with the goods when it mattered and in the process blew their chances of an exciting end to the season.

The failure to finish in the top six is a costly one for the club as it is estimated that there is a six-figure deficit for teams who end up in the bottom half of the table.

McGhee said: “I’m disappointed that it’s happened the way it has happened. We’ve bounced back from a bad run in November and December and that put us in a position today where we had a chance.

“To work as hard as that and to do as well as that, only to throw it away, which I felt we did, is frustrating. And that’s not taking anything away from St Mirren.

“We dominated the first-half but we still didn’t produce enough quality to win the game, and that was disappointing.”

The pivotal moment in Saturday’s match was a blunder by ’Well defender Mark Reynolds when he gifted the ball and consequently the opening goal to Saints’ Steven Thomson in the 77th minute.

But the Fir Park boss insisted: “The period before the goal was more important. We had to make our pressure count and score a goal. We didn’t and that made it more difficult for us. In a game like that, I expected us to score first.

“We got a bit desperate as the game wore on.

“The level of performance wasn’t down to nerves. We just weren’t good enough on the day.”

McGhee kept the players in the dressing room for an hour after the game as he digested the consequences of the result.

“I said to them that they can do better as individuals than they did today,” explained the boss.

“As a team, we can certainly do much better. The way we played last season was as good as any Motherwell team have done in the last 40 years.

“And we will continue trying to reproduce that level of football going into next season.

“But I want to see those who want to be with us now.

“I’m not prepared to wait until the start of next season because there is going to be changes, if necessary, and that includes these last five games.

“Anyone who doesn’t want to be part of it can tell me now and move on.

“Every single one of them has the opportunity to be with us next season but they have to show me over the next five games that they want to be here.”