Motherwell caretaker boss Stuart Kettlewell says Sunday’s Premiership clash against Hearts is a different challenge for his side, but they must go into it with confidence.
Kettlewell steered Motherwell to a 2-1 win over St Mirren on Wednesday night, their first at home in the league since August 20.
That was also their first Premiership victory since beating Dundee United 1-0 on October 29, and the former Ross County gaffer admits it has given the whole club a massive lift.
Kettlewell is under no illusions how difficult it will be against a side flying high in their place.
He said: “There’s always a relief when you win, especially when you’ve been on a bad run, but I didn’t also see people hiding in the days leading up to St Mirren.
“Undoubtedly there’s going to be a renewed confidence on the back of a win against what I think is a very good Premiership side in St Mirren.
“That has to give them a springboard and a belief to face the next challenge, which is Hearts on Sunday.
“There has been an obvious feel-good factor, I think, when you’ve earned the three points, as we did; it was hard-fought.
“Again, watching the boys coming in this morning they rightly feel good about the work that they’ve done.
“I think you almost need to put a full-stop on that, take lots of the good aspects, but we now need to think about what we approach on Sunday.”
Having played Hearts twice this season and lost 3-0 at home – despite dominating on chances – and fell to a 3-2 loss against 10-man Jambos in Edinburgh, Kettlewell says his side can match them in certain areas.
Kettlewell said: “The challenge that awaits us on Sunday is going to be really difficult. I’ve made no secret of how good I think Hearts are.
“We are under no illusions that it’s going to be a very difficult game.
“I’ve watched Hearts on a number of occasions this season. I really admire how they play, there’s a lot of good players and they have a good manager, quite clearly.
“But its another challenge that you have to enjoy taking on and meeting head-on.
“The teams have met twice this season. One was a defeat here where Motherwell played really well, lost 3-0, but were very good in the game.
“There was also a game at Tynecastle where Hearts were reduced to 10 men. Motherwell created a number of chances and potentially could have got something out of the game.
“As good as they are, we’ve already shown this season that we can match them in certain aspects of the game.”
Kettlewell says Motherwell have to pretty much start from scratch again, but can do so with a spring in their step.
He said: “It’s a completely different game for me to plan, it’s a different game for the players to approach, and I think you just need to embrace that next challenge.
“I think it’s slightly different from Monday past when you’ve lost out on the Scottish Cup, there’s a lot of uncertainty, a lot of doom and gloom.
“Now you go and face a game on the Sunday, where you’ve won and you’ve proved to yourself that you an go out on the pitch here at Fir Park and you can get that result.
“I would be disappointed if anybody was coming in with any apprehension – I think you’ve just got to embrace the next challenge.
“You have to approach this with confidence, you have to believe in yourself.”
Kettlewell hopes to have “one or two” players back from injury on Sunday, but says he has to be wary of the fact they haven’t played for some time.
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