Motherwell

Watt’s late winner in Paisley ends Motherwell slump

St Mirren 0 – 1 Motherwell Motherwell ended their three game winless run when Tony Watt’s added time winner punished St Mirren’s ill discipline. The striker used his experience to get away from his marker and catch a Lennon Miller free-kick to break hearts in Paisley after Alex Gogic was sent off. Ellery Balcombe’s fine save denied Jair Tavares early on, tipping the shot onto the crossbar. Not long after Aston Oxborough denied Conor McMenamin with an almost identical stop. The keeper denied the Northern Ireland international once again in the second half to ensure a clean sheet for his side. Both sides continued to push but Balcombe was on hand to deny Steve Seddon and Aspostolos Stamatelopoulos before the deadlock was finally broken. Discipline cost of the Saints when Gogic was given his marching orders after his dismissal with just minutes to go. The result means Motherwell open up a four point gap on the home side, sitting in fifth and seventh respectively. Attendance: 6,111 Line-ups: St Mirren: E. Balcombe, R. Taylor, A. Gogic, M. Fraser, S. Tanser, M. O’Hara, K. Phillips, E. Bwomono (J. Ayunga 84′), G. Kiltie (R. Idowu 67′), T. Olusanya (M. Mandron 68′), C. McMenamin Substitutes: J. Ayunga, C. Boyd-Munce, A. Iacovitti, R. Idowu, D. John, M. Mandron, E. Mooney, O. Smyth, P. Urminsky Motherwell: A. Oxborough, S. Blaney, L. Gordon, D. Casey, S. Seddon, E. Wilson (H. Paton), A. Halliday (S. Nicholson 83′), Jair Tavares (M. Kaleta 77′), L. Miller, A. Stamatelopoulos (M. Ebiye ’77), T. Watt Substitutes: K. Balmer, E. Ebiye, K. Hegyi, M. Kaleta, T. Maswanhise, S. Nicholson, S. O’Donnell, H. Paton, D. Zdravkoski

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Motherwell collapse sees Dundee score three in seven minutes

A Lyall Cameron double helped Dundee secure an important three points to move into the top six as Motherwell fell to another defeat. The result means the visitors have now lost three in a row and sit only one point above seventh place St. Mirren. Dundee opened the scoring after Oluwaseun Adewumi curled a shot past Aston Oxborough after just fourteen minutes in. Motherwell levelled only five minutes later when Apostolos Stamatelopoulos bundled the ball in as the contest looked set to be a back on forth for the remaining time. Unfortunately that was as good as it got for Stuart Kettlewell’s men as Scott Tiffoney regained the lead just after the hour mark, finishing a rapid counter. Within seven minutes Motherwell had conceded two more as a deflection allowed Lyall Cameron to stretch his side’s advantage Cameron then grabbed his second, truly putting the game to bed, Motherwell left to rue a lack of intensity on the counter. The side had chances but were unable to get the better of Jon McCracken, who has looked much improved since a difficult start to the season. Dundee control ball as much as scoreboard One of the lesser heralded sides of the league this season, Tony Docherty may have felt his side had a point to prove. They served all three on this occasion, putting to bed a Motherwell side that sat above them until tonight. Looking comfortable on the ball and with the lion’s share of possession, the home side were able to stifle any momentum the visitors attempted to build. Adewumi, Cameron and Tiffoney were terrific on the night but they are supported by the engine that is Mo Sylla, whose ability to keep the ball under pressure has been key to their build up. A mere blip or time to worry? At the start of the season, being sat in top sixth entering December would have been a position worth shouting about given the calibre of the league. However after a third loss in a row, some cracks are beginning to show in this Motherwell side. Not simply the defeats but the way they have gone down all too easily, with nine goals conceding in their last three games, which including a hiding at home to Hibs at the weekend. Perhaps too much pr With five more games to come in December, with two of those against the old firm, Kettlewell will need to get his side firing sooner rather than later. Attendance: 5,381 Line-Ups: Dundee: J. McCracken, B. Koumetio (S. Kelly 85’), A. Portales, R. Astley, S. Tiffoney (F. Roberston 69’), M. Sylla, J. McGhee, J. Mulligan, O. Adewumi (J. Vetro 90’), L. Cameron, S. Murray (S. Palmer-Houlden 69’) Substitutes: S. Braybrooke, T. Carson, E. Ingram, S. Kelly, C. Main, S. Palmer-Houlden, F. Robertson, H. Sharp, J. Vetro Motherwell: A. Oxborough, D. Casey, L. Gordon, K. Balmer, S. Seddon, E. Wilson, L. Miller, H. Paton (A. Halliday 68’), Jair Tavares (M. Kaleta 68’), A. Stamatelopoulos (M. Ebiye 68’), T. Watt (T. Maswanhise 75’) Substitutes: S. Blaney, M. Ebiye, A . Halliday, K. Hegyi, J. Koutroumbis, T. Maswanhise, S. Nicholson, D. Zdravkovski

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Resurgent Hibs secure three points in Motherwell

Motherwell 0 – 3 Hibernian Hibernian earned a vital win away to Motherwell, leapfrogging Hearts and easing, albeit temporarily, pressure on manager David Gray. The visitors took advantage of some slackness saw a launched ball from Nicky Cadden float over Aston Oxborough who misread the its trajectory, as the ball was laid the ball into the path of Junior Hoilett who duly converted. Looking to avoid history repeating itself, Hibs sought a second to create a much needed buffer and they duly delivered when Motherwell’s defenders failed to clear the danger from a corner. Mykola Kuharevich took full advantage and doubled their lead. Motherwell had their best chance of the game but Jordan Smith tipped a shot over the crossbar. Not looking to sit back, Gray’s men continued to push on and Smith continued to look a changed man from the error strewn display against Aberdeen. His long ball again poorly dealt with by the home side allowed Josh Campbell to put the game out of reach for Stuart Kettlewell’s side. Despite coming away with nothing, Motherwell remain fifth.   Line-Ups: Motherwell: A. Oxborough, K. Balmer (M. Ebiya 71′), L. Gordon, D. Casey, E.Wilson (S. Seddon 82′), A. Halliday (Z. Robinson 46′), D. Zdravkovski (H. Paton, 72′), M. Kaleta, L. Miller, T. Maswanhise, A. Stamatelopoulos (T. Watt 46′) Hibernian: J. Smith, J. Iredale, R. Bushiri, W. O’Hora, N. Cadden, J. Newell (Kwon Hyeok-Kyu 82′), N. Triantis, C. Cadden (L. Miller 89′), J. Hoilett (J. Campbell 69′), E. Youan (M. Boyle 82′), M. Kuharevich (D. Gayle 69′) Referee: Grant Irvine Attendance: 5,212

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