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With the Premier Sports Cup starting on Saturday against Edinburgh City, Stuart Kettlewell reflects on where his squad is at. Pleased with summer business so far, the manager says that more incomings should be expected. 

Theo Bair’s participation in Copa America is also discussed, as well as Lennon Miller’s progression.

Stuart Kettlewell gives his thoughts after Motherwell’s 4-2 win over Linlithgow Rose.

Goals from Lennon Miller, Moses Ebiye and Harry Paton meant the Steelmen rounded off pre-season undefeated.

Motherwell rounded off pre-season with an 4-2 win away to Linlithgow Rose.

Lennon Miller, Moses Ebiye and Harry Paton scored the goals that gave Motherwell the win in Gary Thom’s testimonial match.

The Steelmen controlled the opening stages and were first to offer a threat on goal. Davor Zdravkovski collected the ball from McDermott down the right but his cross was inches away from Tom Sparrow.

Minutes later Shane Blaney advanced forward as the Rose defence sat in. The shot was a decent option but it flashed inches wide of the target.

Rose had their first threat on the Motherwell goal after 15 minutes as Dylan Paterson twisted and turned on the edge of the box but his effort on goal was high and wide.

Motherwell were handed a chance to open the scoring after 20 minutes as Filip Stuparevic burst through and was fouled in the box. Teenage midfielder stepped up and made no mistake from the spot.

It was very nearly a second moments later as Seddon’s deep cross into the box found the head of Kofi Balmer who rose highest but saw his header brilliantly saved by Cammy Binnie.

Chances were coming thick and fast as Filip Stuparevic, with his back to goal, turned his man and aimed to curl his shot into the far corner but again Binnie was on hand and palmed his effort off the post.

Ten minutes before the break it should have been two after great play from Miller in the middle of the park released Ferrie but his shot went narrowly past with Sparrow inches away from converting at the back post.

The second half started in the same vein as Motherwell continued to dominate and create chances.

Stuparevic was again involved, seeing his shot parried away by Binnie and then threading in O’Donnell whose cross was converted by Ferrie but the linesman’s flag went up.

Rose drew level against the run of play with fifteen left to play as Kofi Balmer fouled his man. Substitute Alan Sneddon converted from the spot but a minute later, the Steelmen were back ahead.

Good play down the left from Paton created some space and his low cross found Ebiye who applied a fine first-time finish – the Nigerian has now scored in all four pre-season games.

Rose then drew level again with five minutes left – McGiff pouncing on a loose ball in the area – but incredibly they were again behind a minute later.

A ball through the defence from Halliday found Ebiye and he cooly faked his way inside the box and curled an unstoppable shot into the top corner.

The win was cemented a minute from time when academy graduate Dylan Wells burst into the left side of the box and laid it on a plate for Harry Paton to slot home.

Focus now turns to Saturday, as we return to competitive action, taking on Edinburgh City in the Premier Sports Cup.

Rachel Todd is our third signing of the summer.

The former Dundee United and St. Johnstone captain will trade the city of Discovery for North Lanarkshire after three seasons at Foundation Park.

Capable of operating between the back four and forward line, Todd primarily played on the left flank whilst featuring throughout the entirety of the Tangerines 2023/24 SWPL campaign. Todd netted eight times across the previous campaign and captained the side to a closely-fought SWPL playoff victory over Kilmarnock to retain United’s Premier League status ahead of the forthcoming season.

“I’m delighted to have joined the club,” Todd noted.

“Paul and Leanne really expressed their interest in bringing me to the club early over the summer and their vision for the future really attracted me to Motherwell.

“I am excited to get started and can’t wait for the season ahead.”

Despite a tough SWPL campaign with United, Todd guided her side to Premier League survival after defeating promotion-hopeful’s Kilmarnock through a one-legged playoff-final at the Falkirk Stadium.

“I am delighted to bring Rachel to the club,” head coach Paul Brownlie added.

“We identified Rachel as a key target during the previous season and have been working to get this over the line for many months.

“Earning the captaincy at both Dundee United and St. Johnstone emphasises how important Rachel has been to both her previous clubs. A natural leader, Rachel will really develop our squad for the season ahead.”

We have been given an home tie against East Stirlingshire in the first round of the SPFL Trust Trophy. 

The first round will be played in the midweek of July 30/31, with the second round a fortnight later on 13/14 August.

Should Motherwell progress to the second round, we will face East Kilbride or Celtic B.

Kick-off times and venues will be announced shortly.

A message from Chairman Jim McMahon ahead of the voting period opening today.

A lot of the debate about the Barmack offer and the Well Society (WS) plan has been constructive and forward looking.

Some has been more negative and I cover a couple of those aspects below in the hope they can now be put to the side in the decision on how to vote.

Point one, I can somehow benefit personally if the deal goes ahead.

I don’t have shares in the club. I have never held shares. I have contributed to the WS since it was formed. I have one vote as a member.

Point two, why do this now?

We don’t need to. And here my words “We have enough money to see us through this season and a bit of next” have been quoted and it’s been suggested they should be “Shouted from the rooftops.”

They are completely accurate and I agree they should be shouted out. Everyone involved in getting us into that position should be proud of what has been achieved over the seven years of fan ownership. But my next sentence should be included for balance.

“You get the best deal when you don’t need the money – if you do need money the terms will be much less attractive.”

This is an attempt to move away from season-to-season budgeting to a more sustainable basis.

As has been pointed out, this is a vote on the Barmack proposal not the WS outline plan. But there is one key area where some read across is vital – new investment.

New investment will determine how the club’s finances look in the future. Both plans trail that. The Barmack deal outlines the investment amount, £1.95m, which has stringent safeguards built in and accepts that all the increased value from that investment stays inside the club.

The WS plan also looks to bring in new investors and highlights that the Society is talking to interested parties. It is unfair to expect that aspect to have been finalised and to ask for chapter and verse on how this would work at this point.

But it is fair to ask in general terms: 

1. How many interested parties are there at present?
2. If they all become investors how much investment would that mean in total?
3. Will all of this be new money?
4. Will this be put in as ordinary share capital and therefore become part of the permanent capital in the club?
5. Will this be at a value for the club which is greater than the Barmack offer? 
6. Will this come with the agreement of the investor that all the extra value created by their investment will stay in the club?

This basic information will allow members and shareholders to weigh the current offer against other alternatives.

Jim McMahon

Chairman

Motherwell continued their preparations for the 2024/25 season with a 2-1 over Livingston at Fir Park on Saturday afternoon. 

The Steelmen returned from their pre-season camp in The Netherlands six days ago and this match against the Lions was their second friendly match in Scotland.

Stuart Kettlewell named a strong starting 11, boasting the likes of Stephen O’Donnell, who had the captain’s armband. Lennon Miller and Andy Halliday started in the middle of the pitch with new face Liam Gordon deployed at the heart of the defence.

The match started brightly for the hosts, with academy graduate Ewan Wilson released down the left-hand side before firing a low ball into the box that found Dylan Wells, whose shot was well saved by keeper Shamal George.

After that bright start, the game started to settle down, with Motherwell having most of the possession. Keeper Aston Oxborough was called into action on 20 minutes, saving a free-kick comfortably.

On 28 minutes, we seen the breakthrough. A free-kick won on the left-hand side by Miller was taken by Halliday who found an unmarked Shane Blaney at the back post who converted with the composure of a striker.

It was almost 2-0 just minutes later when Halliday slipped the ball through for Moses Ebiye. The Nigerian couldn’t quite get the ball under control and eventually the danger was cleared by the Livingston defence.

Ebiye was involved in the next opportunity on 36 minutes. The striker swivelled on the byline, firing the ball into Wells who seen his effort saved once again.

60 seconds later, Miller found himself up the top end of the pitch. The 17-year-old took his man on before being brought down in the penalty area. The referee pointed straight to the spot. However, in a turn of events, the linesman seen the incident differently and the decision was changed to a free-kick.

It would matter nothing as Halliday’s free-kick was saved by George but the rebound fell to Ebiye who fired home to double the Steelmen’s lead.

At the break, there was only one change for Motherwell with new signing Krisztian Hegyi coming on for Oxborough.

Livingston started the brighter in the second period and got their goal just before the hour mark. Robbie Muirhead’s free-kick caused the Motherwell backline problems with defender Daniel Finlayson getting on the end of the cross before Tete Yengi tapped home from close range.

That goal sparked a number of substitutes from both sides which saw the game simmer down. A number of Motherwell academy graduates got minutes including Luca Ross, Brannan McDermott and Mark Ferrie. New signings Steve Seddon, Tom Sparrow, Kofi Balmer and Filip Stuparevic were also involved in the second-half.

Another 90 minutes in the bag for Stuart Kettlewell’s side who travel to Linlithgow Rose on Tuesday night to round off their pre-season programme before the Premier Sports Cup starts next Saturday against Edinburgh City.

Stuart Kettlewell gives his reaction after Motherwell’s 2-1 win over Livingston in pre-season.

His team returned to action on Scottish soil with Shane Blaney and Moses Ebiye scoring against the West Lothian side.

We can confirm that the voting papers are being distributed today to Club shareholders who should receive their packs in the coming few days.

Should any shareholder not receive theirs by the end of next week we would urge you to contact the Club by email to shares@motherwellfc.co.uk or by telephone 01698 333333. The Well Society will be in touch separately with their members.

Ahead of the voting commencing on Monday (8th July) the Executive Board felt it appropriate to summarise the investment proposal from Erik and Courtney Barmack, following further queries posed to the Club and also in light of recent releases from all parties.

Within the Barmacks’ and the Well Society’s (WS) business plans, there are lots of interesting ideas. We welcome both. Having studied both at length, it is our view that combining these ideas, locally and internationally, gives us the best chance of broadening our reach and appeal, and therefore generating additional revenues.

The Barmacks’ proposal would mean:

• Certainty of new funding of £1.95m in addition to our existing funding sources.
• Certainty of continuance of fan ownership – the WS will own 50.1% of the shares and the Barmacks have undertaken to work in partnership with them on every aspect of the club’s business.
• There is a buy back option for the WS which is built in as a safety measure. This has been questioned by some as being potentially detrimental to the WS because it could deplete its resources to the extent that it could endanger its future. However, if the buyout clause were to be triggered, there is likely to be money in the player transfer fee account which the WS can access, alongside further funds which the WS will raise meantime, to acquire the Barmacks’ shares, thereby allowing the WS to retain its strategic reserves.
• There would be no external debt to burden the Club’s future finances.
• All the club assets including Fir Park Stadium are ring fenced and therefore completely protected within the club.
• 100% of any extra revenues and growth generated, remains to be reinvested within the club. Any return on the Barmacks’ investment can only be from selling on their shares after a minimum of six years and does not involve the Barmacks gaining from the realisation of any club assets.
• The WS plan also envisages outside investment, partly by linking with strategic partners who will invest in return for a share of the extra income generated or cost savings. All of that value will therefore not stay in the club – unlike the Barmacks’ proposal.
• Experience suggests that finding investor(s) who are willing to commit to a total investment of £1.95m with the conditions agreed in the Barmacks’ proposal would be extremely difficult, especially when the investor cannot become the majority shareholder.

When we started seeking investment for Motherwell FC, it was to change from the current model of season-to-season budgeting, heavily reliant on player transfer income to break even and instead move onto a more certain funding basis which facilitates more strategic longer-term planning.

That is a very difficult task, and two key outcomes are required to achieve it.

• Regular and certain funding
• Significant new sources of income

We believe that the Barmarks’ offer, working in partnership with the WS, gives us the best chance of achieving those outcomes. In our opinion, it also fairly values the Club when factoring in all of the safeguards incorporated within the proposal.

Therefore, the MFC board is recommending that shareholders accept the proposal.

The Barmacks’ business can be found here. 

The Well Society’s business plan be found here. 

Mason Blyth-Clark is our second signing of the summer.

The forward joins the women of steel ahead of the forthcoming 2024/25 SWPL campaign on a season-long loan deal from Rangers.

The Scottish youth international makes the switch across the River Clyde after featuring for local rivals Hamilton over two consecutive loan spells. Blyth-Clark’s performances were rewarded after picking up the Accies players player of the season award.

“I’m delighted to have joined Motherwell,” Blyth-Clark said.

“I’m excited by the vision Paul and Leanne have for the club and I feel I can really develop myself as a player here.

“I can’t wait to get started.”

The pacey 17-year-old joins the women of steel having gained a wealth of professional experience, having featured 22-times for the Accies and twice for parent club Rangers.

‘This is another great addition to the squad,” head coach Paul Brownlie added.

“Mason adds a new dynamic to the squad in the final third and is a technically exciting young player who can really drive us forward this season.

“Despite her age, Mason already has a wealth of experience at this level and we believe Motherwell is the perfect next step in her footballing journey.”