MOTHERWELL got a crucial three points in their battle to avoid the drop as goals from Kevin van Veen and Max Johnston got interim manager Stuart Kettlewell’s job interview off to a flyer against St Mirren at Fir Park.
It was a nervy evening for the struggling Steelmen, with Saints pulling a goal back through Ryan Strain, but the home fans finally had something to cheer as their team moved up to ninth with a rare victory…
Kettlewell puts his stamp on Motherwell
The caretaker Motherwell manager wasn’t slow in mixing thing up, both in terms of his personnel and formation. The former Ross County boss made four changes to the team that lost so limply in Kirkcaldy at the weekend, and decided to match up to St Mirren by deploying a 3-5-2.
That meant sticking a couple of square pegs in round holes, with right-back Paul McGinn and midfielder Callum Butcher again being asked to slot in as centre-backs alongside Dan Casey. Up top, he paired Van Veen with Jonathan Obika, and it was the Dutchman’s clever movement that led to the opening goal.
The striker spun in behind the Saints defence, timing his run perfectly to get onto a brilliant through ball from Blair Spittal. It looked as though Saints defender Richard Taylor had done enough to muscle his opponent wide, but at the last second, Van Veen stuck out his leg to poke the ball across goal and beyond Trevor Carson.
The use of wing-backs also worked to Motherwell’s advantage, as Johnston ran in behind Scott Tanser on the right for the home side’s second soon after, chesting the ball down before hooking it across goal and somehow finding the opposite top corner.
Whether the youngster meant it or not, only he will know, but we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. His first goal for the club was a beauty, and could be absolutely vital come the end of the season.
Some steel finally been added to Steelmen?
The additions of Casey and Butcher to this Motherwell team seem to have instilled bit of backbone to a side who were so easy to beat under former manager at least, and while their defensive frailties are far from solved – as evidenced by St Mirren’s goal and a few other scares - it is a start at least.
That concession was indeed far too easy, Tony Watt getting down the outside and cutting the ball back to where a host of visiting players were queuing up to finish, Strain eventually applying the finishing touch after Keanu Baccus’s effort was blocked.
While that stunted Motherwell’s early momentum, it did not however drag them under, as it may have in previous weeks.
After the break, the expected St Mirren barrage on the Motherwell goal didn’t quite materialise straight away, but late on in the game they started to throw more and more balls into the home area.
While there were a few scares, including a disallowed goal for a foul in the build-up to Curtis Main’s scrambled finish, they ultimately stood firm to spark scenes of wild celebration not seen at this ground since the summer.
Home discomfort versus away-day blues
This was a tale of two lamentable records colliding, with Motherwell having won just once at home this season prior to this encounter – a 1-0 win over Livingston back in August – and St Mirren having picked up full points from just two away matches for their campaign to date.
That hinted at a share of the spoils perhaps being the likeliest outcome, but something ultimately did give, and it was Motherwell who got their own particular monkey off their backs.
It wasn’t pretty at times, and particularly as the second half wore on and the home players hacked and slashed at their clearances, you could feel the nerves both on the park and in the stands.
The relief was palpable when referee John Beaton blew his final whistle, and Motherwell – remarkably given their horrendous form – move up to ninth in the Premiership fight for survival.
As for Saints, they missed the chance to go fourth, and their form away from the SMiSA Stadium is currently the thing standing between them having a good season and an outstanding one.
