Ya Bezzer!

Barnsley or Italy? Tough one! Love Italy, a great country to live in, only wish I could.

The first 15 or 20 minutes were very good, looked like we could score three or four and Dundee United weren't at the races. However Lasley's injury really knocked us off our stride, it was another 40 minutes before we started playing again. Luckily we rallied again in the later stages and probably deserved to win the match although it was fortunate that Dundee United scored both or goals for us. Really poor refereeing performance again, although I did think he got the penalty decision spot on.

A move outside of Motherwell will see smaller crowds, especially if it's located in a ''nowheresville' like Ravenscraig. As for the fanciful nonsense about any new stadium being of architectural merit - dream on. 'Securing the clubs future for 100 years?' I'll take that with a pinch of salt. Will there even be professional football in Scottish provincial towns a generation from now? I don't think anyone can answer that question, never mind three or four generations into the future. And, yeah, I am in a bad mood.

I thought today was the poorest I've seen us this season but I don't get this either. We've not hit any great heights but at the same time I don't think we've been poor or boring either over the season. Sometimes we seem to lack a little cutting edge but I think the team are trying to play the right way but we have a small and inexperienced squad and it's not always going to work out perfectly. This time last season we had 6 goals from open play, this season we have 9. Last season we scored in open play in 4 out of 7, this season 6 out of 7. The only really 'pish' performance that sticks out in my mind under Brown (and I only see home matches) was the 1-0 defeat to Falkirk last season. We weren't great today but maybe a little perspective is needed. To do that just remember back to St. Johnstone thumping us at home in Jim Gannon's last match as manager. Much worse than anything that's happened at Fir Park since.

Looked about 3 yards off from where I was sitting! May have been the angle though...

No great performances. Lasley and Jennings worked hard, Murphy took his goal but I'll give it to Humphrey, felt he was unlucky to get hooked unless he was still feeling the injury he got on the East stand wing. Took his goal well, made a few good tackles and looked dangerous, still needs to improve his delivery though.

I missed the Celtic match but today was easily the worst home performance of the season. We score in 3 minutes and never got out of first gear. When St. Mirren scored to make it 1-1 it looked like there was only going to be one winner and it wasn't us - we were all over the place, no organisation, no plan, very unusual for a Craig Brown team. We got lucky on a few occasions. St. Mirren went close just before half time and Saunders got injured putting his head in a dangerous place to prevent a certain goal. Really we were gifted our goals by St. Mirren who looked very poor at the back. The first goal was a bad mistake from the defender although Humphrey took the goal well. The penalty was bizarre, what the defender was thinking about is anyone's guess, still good to see us score from the spot for a change! Third goal looked offside to me but maybe the television will show something different, anyway it was a good counter attack and nice to see Murphy getting nearer to double figures for the first time. Randolph [6] Difficult day for defenders and goalkeepers looked a wee bit dodgy on some crosses today. Saunders [7] Saved a certain goal with a very brave header, some great but possibly flukey cross field balls! Craigan [6] Not his best day, big boys up front gave him some problems. Reynolds [6] Partly to blame for St. Mirren's goal with a slack clearance but did OK. Hateley [6] Decent enough performance at left back - for most of the match anyway. Lasley [7] Worked hard Jennings [7] Some good touches, grafted Humphrey [7] Took his goal well, started in good form but faded as the match went on, still one of his better performances, was unlucky to be subbed felt Blackman should have hit the bench before Humphrey. Murphy [6] Not his best match but got the goal that made it safe Blackman [5] Little impact today Sutton [5] Like Blackman didn't offer much of a threat Forbes [2] Gow [4] Had a role in the goals Hammell [2] Rare sub appearance!

I said it at the time, Breidablik wouldn't finish last in the SPL, although I suppose that doesn't refute your supposition!

You won't find me arguing with that, however at the same time clubs have very little scope for reducing prices. We are struggling to survive and so are most of the other clubs in the SPL. There is no cash scam where clubs are posting huge profits and fleecing the fans. We simply couldn't sustain a decrease in income of 20% when we are already near to the bare bone. I'm afraid I'm pretty bleak about the future of Scottish football. Will be watching professional football in Motherwell in 2020 or 2030? I'm not so sure.

Jammy Rangers score a winner 4 minutes in injury time. But at least it gives some extra incentive to win today, we could open a bigger gap between 3rd and 4th.

I'd put Hateley at right back and drop Saunders. Nothing against Saunders though but he reminds me a lot of Paul Quinn in the early days, I think he's someone who needs to be nurtured a bit over 2 or 3 seasons rather than a Mark Reynolds who went straight into the first team and never left it. I agree with the sentiment that this is the sort of game we need to win if we want to finish the season in our current position. The although we are sitting 3rd the league table is still pretty tight at the moment, 3 points at this stage in the season could really help to define the whole season. Today is a real 6 pointer. A win puts us 9 points ahead of the teams at the bottom of the table, a lose would have St. Mirren only 3 points behind.

Listened to the Falkirk Hearts game on the radio and apparently Hearts were shocking. I mean Falkirk scored 4 and they are hardly a free scoring team. The key might be whether Zaliukas plays. Whenever he is missing they seem vulnerable at the back. We have a good away record this season and I think we can get something out of the match. A point would be good, a win at Tynecastle would be great. I'm going to be away all Saturday so some nervous checking of phone going on, no doubt.

At this stage in a cup competition any home tie is a good one and we avoided the OF. Dundee Utd aren't the team they were last season and as someone else pointed out Webster is a huge lose for them. Could go either way but this in my opinion is a decent draw.

Football is a pretty simple game. If you can either go through a team, over a team or round a team and really only the very top sides in the world have the quality of player to go through a team. That leaves us with two options and a major problem in that we don't have a genuine wide man of any quality. That's why we are being forced down the middle. Humphrey's deliver is shocking there is no point in playing him if he can't hit a cross into the box. Brown's tactic has been to scare the opposition with Humphrey's pace and pin back the full back. Once teams cotton on to the fact he doesn't have a final ball and he's useless defensively they won't fall for it anymore. Humphrey will drop out of the first eleven in the second round of matches unless he miraculously finds the ability to cross the ball. Murphy is not a natural wide player. His instinct when he gets the ball is to come inside not to take it down the line. Murphy should be playing just behind the front player in the role John Sutton was playing yesterday, if not right up front since he is the best finisher we have at the moment. We are badly missing a O'Brien, a McCormack, even a Slane. Overall though, we shouldn't talk like there is a CRISIS. If we maintain our current form (2-1-2) we should easily make the Top 6 and our results so far are better than the comparative fixtures last season (1-2-2).

He said "our defence WILL concede a goal a week" which plainly isn't the case! The point I was making is that since the Hibs game, which has proved to be a one off so far this season, we've only conceded a penalty and the goal today.

We've conceded 2 goals in our last 4 league matches so if you do your arithmetic that's a goal every two weeks. And one of them was a penalty. Our defence really isn't that bad. The only teams to concede less are Rangers, Celtic and Kilmarnock and by this time tomorrow probably only Rangers and Celtic. Overall we have 5 clean sheets in 11 matches. Can't blame a spade for being a spade. Our squad is primarily defensive players or battlers. Outside of Jamie Murphy we don't have a single player with the technical ability to create any chances. The only other player in the squad that ever approaches having any creativity is Ross Forbes. Basically we are missing O'Brien who was the difference between us being creatively sterile last season. As for Humphrey, sorry to sound like a broken record, but mince shot out a cannon is still mince, no matter how fast its traveling.

No real stand out today. Give it to Reynolds.

Defences well on top today. Aberdeen came for a point and got it, playing 9 men behind the ball most of the time. Can't remember either goalkeeper having a serious save to make and we just couldn't create chances despite having most of the possession. Final ball and crossing was poor and I felt a few players were played out of position (Murphy, Sutton) and had little impact. Didn't get a good view of the Aberdeen goal so I can't comment much on that. Randolph (6) Virtually nothing to do except pick the ball out of the net. Saunders (6) Decent display at right back Craigan (7) No problems during open play, didn't see the Aberdeen goal though. Reynolds (7) Comfortable afternoon, brought ball forward on a number of occassions. Hateley (7) Return to a bit of form for Hateley....at full back. Humphrey (5) Kids, once there was a Motherwell player called Andy Roddie.... Jennings (6) Looked a bit sluggish today. Sutton (5) Not convinced by Sutton playing in midfield Lasley (7) Poor final ball but looked like one of the few players today that had some fire in his belly Murphy (5) Got the goal but his worst display for a while, should be played down the middle. Blackman (5) Faded out of the game with very little supply. Gow (2) Not much time McHugh (2) As above Forbes (2) As above

My football memory only extends back to the early eighties but certainly for most of the 1980's Scotland's European places were monopolized by Rangers, Celtic, Dundee Utd and Aberdeen. Hardly anyone else got a shot. It's funny how fans sometimes say the league is boring now because the Top Two are always the Top Two but back then the Top Four was always nearly the Top Four with Hearts occasionally making a challenge. The league was actually much more static then than now and clubs like ours had next to no chance of competing for cups and European qualification. It was only in the very late eighties when Aberdeen and Dundee Utd started fall back that we started to emerge. Never mind the cup win, I remember being ecstatic when we finished 6th in the league in 1990/91 - such dizzy heights had never been experienced before!

Missed the Celtic match seems like ages since I last saw a game! I'm actually a wee bit worried about this one. Aberdeen doing not bad so far this season (well, until recently). Our patchy home record of late. McGhee coming back to Fir Park. And a nagging feeling that Paul Hartley while have some kind of red letter day. Now since I'm usually wrong about most things I'm going to look at all my worries and predict a comfortable 2-0 win.

Yeah, I thought the Earth was a globe! Maybe they are Flat Earthers over at UEFA, wouldn't surprise me.

Good start! 85 minutes to hold on.....

Not to bothered about Northern Ireland but a 'Well legend! Remember he made his debut for us back in the McLeish era and a couple of seasons aside he's been at Fir Park the whole time, probably longer than a lot of the supporters! Claret and amber the whole way through.

Or Colin O'Neill! Sadly I qualify on all three criteria but I walk 5 miles to work every day so when I get home I'm having a sit down!

Could Hammell, Reynolds, Lasley etc play against Liechtenstein - yes. Could Hammell, Reynolds, Lasley etc play against Spain - no. The problem is we don't really have any players at that level but especially at centre back I think there are 4 or 5 players ahead of Reynolds.