The international break will provide a vital two-week hiatus for the women of steel, and an opportunity to reflect on the season so far, as Paul Brownlie’s side sit three points adrift of Partick Thistle in the final top-six place.
Misfortunes and inconsistency on the road have continued to hinder the early signs of optimism for the squad, who have yet to secure their first points away from home despite maintaining the fourth best home record in the league, outside only title-chasers Celtic, Glasgow City and Rangers. Defender Chelsie Watson acknowledged that the international has come at the perfect time for the squad.
“The international break has come at a good time,” Watson said.
“It gives us a chance to reflect on our performances, time to recover well but also an opportunity to prepare properly for the next round of fixtures.
“Paul and Leanne both spoke about the importance of the break and the timing of it. We have been given individual training sessions to keep us up to speed, so that when the time comes, we are ready to hit the ground running.”
Motherwell brought their month-long goalless drought to a close in emphatic style, drilling six-goals past a dysfunctional Dundee United side to narrow the gap to the top-six in a rampant display at K-Park.
Bailley Collins netted her first Motherwell goal to break the deadlock in the opening 10-minutes before strikes from Jo Addie, Kayla Jardine, Laura McCartney and Gill Inglis put the women of steel five-ahead. Collins, who fired Motherwell into the ascendency, also netted late on to secure an exceptional six-goal victory.
“The game against Dundee United was massive for us as a group,” Watson explained.
“It really showed the strength of the squad’s character. We had been struggling to convert chances in previous games, so to have scored six was great and it merited our performance on the day.”
“We’ve had some really good performances, but have let ourselves down in some games where we know we can get results in.”
The following week, Motherwell travelled to the capital with high-flying Hearts in their sights, but the side struggled to replicate the desire and spirit epitomised in the performance of the previous week.
Hearts racked up five-goals in quick succession and despite a miraculous strike from Amy Anderson, Motherwell were unable to overcome the early setbacks and were consigned to defeat.
“As a squad, we know we are capable of so much more than what we’ve shown so far, but it’s our job to put it right.
“I definitely believe in the quality we have as a group of players, we set high standards every day both individually and collectively. We just need to continue driving our standards and the performances will come.”
“We know how competitive the league is now and it’s something that motivates us to be better everyday. We will be ready to go when the break is over.”
An impressive four wins from their opening five home fixtures at K-Park has secured the entirety of the squads points this season, but replicating those performances on the road will be crucial to earning the elusive top-six place that narrowly escaped their grasp last season.
“We love playing at K-Park and we’ve had some great results and performances there so far,” Watson explained.
“We love the support we get there which really helps us through tough games, but we can’t afford to have off games no matter where we play.”
“Each week we face a new challenge so it’s important that the mentality within the group remains strong and I believe we have that.”
