| 3 | Rangers | 12 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 23 |
| 4 | Dundee United | 13 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 20 |
| 5 | Motherwell | 12 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 19 |
| 6 | St Mirren | 14 | 5 | 3 | 6 | -4 | 18 |
| 7 | Dundee | 13 | 4 | 3 | 6 | -3 | 15 |
Richard Tait, Liam Grimshaw and Charles Dunne reflect on a spirited performance at Tynecastle.
The Steelmen fell narrowly short against the side from the capital, despite controlling large parts of the game.
Richard Tait said: “I think we could have got something today and it would have been the least we deserved.”
Stephen Robinson was left disappointed after his side fell to a 1-0 defeat against Hearts.
But it was due to the fact he believed his side were more than deserving of more against the Tynecastle outfit.
Speaking at full time, the ‘Well boss said: “It’s frustrating because we played well. I got the consistency from my team I was looking for in terms of performance, but we were unlucky today.”
Motherwell put in a strong display but fell just short in the capital as Hearts won 1-0 at Tynecastle.
Stephen Robinson made four changes from the side who drew 1-1 with Celtic, with Peter Hartley and Liam Donnelly missing out through injury, Allan Campbell dropping to the bench, and Connor Sammon ineligible to face his parent club.
In came Andy Rose and Alex Rodriguez-Gorrin to the midfield, whilst Curtis Main returned to the starting eleven and Charles Dunne made his return from a lengthy injury lay-off.
And, in truth, it was a terrific showing from Robinson’s men, who were extremely unlucky to find themselves a goal down after 14 minutes.
They were even unluckier not to be a goal up after just eight minutes when Main curled a terrific finish in to the top corner from the edge of the box. However, celebrations were cut short when Willie Collum ruled the goal out for a foul in the build up to what was a terrific finish.
Jusy minutes later, the hosts took the lead.
From a cross in to the box, Peter Haring’s wayward header ricocheted off Dunne’s shoulder and beyond Mark Gillespie to gift the hosts a fortuitous lead.
But from that point onwards, the Steelmen looked on top in the capital.
Dunne nearly made amends when his header from a David Turnbull corner flashed narrowly wide of the mark.
Mans towards the end of the encounter, Danny Johnson nearly kept his strong goal scoring form up when he fired goalwards from inside the box, but it clipped the heel of Rodriguez-Gorrin as the hosts held on for all three points.
Mark Gillespie is positive Motherwell can stand up to the test Hearts will present on Saturday.
The goalkeeper will be back between the sticks after a big performance against Celtic in midweek, saving a penalty from Leigh Griffiths.
Motherwell travel to the capital on Saturday to face Hearts in the Ladbrokes Premiership.
After an impressive performance against Celtic on Wednesday night, the Steelmen take on the Jambos looking to find some domestic consistency.
Here’s what you need to know about Saturday’s opponents.
Craig Levein’s side enjoyed a stunning start to the Premiership campaign, remaining undefeated until suffering a 3-1 loss against Rangers at Ibrox.
Since that day in October, the side from the capital have lost five games, four consecutively and now find themselves fourth in the table.
Much of the downturn in form at Hearts can be put down to crucial players picking up injuries.
Christophe Berra is back to fitness, but the Jambo’s are still without Steven Naismith, John Souttar, Jimmy Dunne and Uche Ikpeazu.
The four of them were instrumental to the club’s early season form and understandably they have suffered without them.
Craig Levein’s men have a terrific record on their home turf this term, going the first eight games at Tynecastle without suffering defeat.
However, since then they haven’t won in their last three, but faced some tricky opposition in those matches.
First up was Hibs, who they drew 0-0 with, before losing against Kilmarnock and Rangers.
Motherwell and Hearts meet for the third time in 2018/19 on Saturday, as the Steelmen make the trip to Gorgie.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.
Motherwell have won three of their last six games, defeating Aberdeen, Dundee and St Mirren, drawing with Celtic and losing to Livingston and Rangers.
Hearts have lost five and drawn two of their last seven fixtures, with their last win coming at Dundee on 23 October.
Charles Dunne and Peter Hartley will have fitness tests. Liam Donnelly is likely to miss out. Craig Tanner, Trevor Carson and Chris Cadden remain on the sidelines.
Hearts are without Uche Ikpeazu, John Souttar, Jimmy Dunne and Steven Naismith, while Jamie Brandon is a doubt.
Tickets are available online now or you can buy from the Fir Park ticket office. The ticket office is open from 10am until 1pm on Saturday.
Please note there will be no cash turnstiles at Tynecastle on the day.
| Upper | Lower | |
| Adult | £28 | £20 |
| Over 65s and full-time students | £20 | £15 |
| Under 18 | £16 | £12 |
| Under 16 | £8 | £8 |
| Under 13 | £5 | £5 |
Fans who require ambulant or wheelchair access should contact Andy Sim on 07428 225254 or email tickets@mfcdsa.com.
Stephen Robinson says Motherwell have to first and foremost be patient and disciplined to get a result at Tynecastle.
The Steelmen travel to face Hearts on Saturday and the manager says that with the fundamentals done right, the team can they try and find the moment of quality required.
Champions Celtic came to town with their seventh straight trophy in the bag. But Motherwell showed their steel to stand up to the challenge.
This is the Story of the Match.
It’s a quick turnaround for Motherwell this week, as they travel to face Hearts on Saturday, straight off the back of a 1-1 home draw with Celtic.
Here’s the game previewed in numbers.
This will be the third meeting between the two sides in the 2018/19 campaign.
Hearts have had the upper hand on both occasions, but both have been close affairs. A 1-0 win for Hearts in the league at Fir Park was mildly controversial, with the goal coming following a robust tackle which left Trevor Carson out of action out of his box.
A meeting in the Betfred Cup quarter-final followed with Hearts running out 4-2 winners, despite Motherwell taking the lead and then pegging the game back at 2-2.
Twelve points separate the two sides in the Ladbrokes Premiership table after 15 games for Motherwell, and 16 for Hearts.
High flyers at the start of the season, Saturday’s hosts have had an indifferent run of form and haven’t won in their last seven games, losing five and drawing two.
Motherwell meanwhile have won three of their last six, beating Aberdeen, Dundee and St Mirren, drawing with Celtic and losing to Livingston and Rangers.
The number of league goals racked up in matches involving the two teams so far in the 2018/19 Ladbrokes Premierships season.
Hearts have scored 22 and conceded 19, while Motherwell have scored 16 and let in 25.
Motherwell are straight back into action on Saturday, as they travel to face Hearts in the Ladbrokes Premiership.
Fresh from taking a point from champions Celtic on Wednesday night, Stephen Robinson’s men return to Tynecastle, the scene of a pulsating Betfred Cup quarter-final earlier this season.
Tickets are available online now or you can buy from the Fir Park ticket office before 4pm on Friday, and between 10am and 1pm on Saturday.
Please note there will be no cash turnstiles on the day. Pre-purchase is required.
| Upper | Lower | |
| Adult | £28 | £20 |
| Over 65s and full-time students | £20 | £15 |
| Under 18 | £16 | £12 |
| Under 16 | £8 | £8 |
| Under 13 | £5 | £5 |
Fans who require ambulant or wheelchair access should contact Andy Sim on 07428 225254 or email tickets@mfcdsa.com.
