Motherwell maintained top spot in Group G of the Premier Sports Cup with a 3-1 win over Clyde at New Douglas Park.
Lee Hamilton cancelled out Moses Ebiye’s early opener before a penalty from Lennon Miller and a first goal for Filip Stuparevic put to bed any fears of a repeat of Tuesday night.
Motherwell almost got off to a great start after just four minutes. Ewan Wilson’s cross seemed to confuse Kinnear in the Clyde goal which allowed Stephen O’Donnell to sweep the ball back across goal but Zach Robinson saw his effort cleared off the line.
Robinson had a second chance just moments later as he capitalised on some slack defending but from a tight angle couldn’t hit the target.
Clyde then responded well as Martin Rennie got on the end of a low cross but Liam Gordon was on hand to clear the danger.
Motherwell had the lead after 12 minutes after some good play by Harry Paton set up Ewan Wilson whose cross was converted by Moses Ebiye.
Krisztian Hegyi was a spectator for the rest of the half, with the Motherwell defence looking comfortable.
The Steelmen were forced into a change as Harry Paton, who played a vital part in the goal, had to limp off after going down in the box, with Andy Halliday being brought into the action.
Lennon Miller was controlling the midfield and he produced a great ball threaded though the defence to find Ebiye but with a shot looking a good option, he opted to find his strike partner Zach Robinson but the ball in wasn’t accurate enough and the chance was gone.
Motherwell came back out after the break and within seconds Ebiye almost had his second. O’Donnell clipped a fine ball over the top but the Nigerian snatched at his attempt to lob the goalkeeper.
The chances were beginning to stack up and Ebiye passed up another opportunity when Robinson pulled the ball back across goal but Houston recovered well and cleared off the line.
Chances then came for Halliday who clipped his shot just wide, Ebiye again who hit high and wide and Miller whose neat control and shot was well saved by Kinnear.
The Steelmen were made to pay for all those missed chances as indecision in the defence left plenty of space for Hamilton to take a shot and see it deflect into the net.
A more clinical edge was needed and that came just a minute later through 17-year-old Miller. The youngster jinked into the box and was brought down by the Clyde goalkeeper with Craig Napier wasting no time in pointing to the spot. The academy graduate dusted himself down and found the top corner from 12 yards. 1-2.
Clyde looked to have gained confidence from their goal but the goal from the spot appeared to have lifted the mood of the Steelmen. Zdravkovski took a free kick quickly, Miller drove forward before feeding Ebiye who blazed over the bar.
Miller went close next, this time from a dead ball from 25 yards. The 17-year-old got the ball up and over the wall but just missed the target.
The young starlet continued to be at the heart of everything going forward. Halliday plucked a long, high ball out the sky, laid back to skipper O’Donnell who found Miller. His first time effort was saved by the keeper.
The host’s best chance since finding the back of the net came 10 minutes later, when former Motherwell Academy man Logan Dunachie got on the end of a ball into the box and forced Hegyi into a smart stop.
Andy Halliday almost responded perfectly to that chance. The midfielder drove forward into the space, Clyde continued to back off and as he entered the box, Halliday got a shot away that skimmed just wide of the mark.
As the game went into the final 10 minutes, it would be substitute Filip Stuparevic who made sure of the points. The Serbian cut inside from the right flank and curled a fine effort past the keeper to make it 3-1 and end any anxiety in the stands.
Motherwell finish the week top of the group with one game left to play, against Partick Thistle next Sunday.
