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Stephen Robinson was pleased to see his side put in a confident performance as they won 2-0 against St Mirren in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

Goals from David Turnbull and Chris Cadden ensured the Steelmen picked up a much needed three points in what is an important week for the club.

Speaking at full time in Paisley, the ‘Well boss said: “The result is important but what pleased me was the confidence the boys played with.”

Motherwell dealt with the pressure of a trip to Paisley to ease themselves to a much-needed victory over St Mirren.

A goal in each half from David Turnbull and Chris Cadden rewarded the Steelmen for maintaining the upper hand throughout a game where they always looked like taking full points.

In this Halloween fixture, there was no disguising the importance of the game, in the first of two matches inside four days which Stephen Robinson described as huge. The Fir Park players, however, responded to their manager and showed great determination as they controlled the entire 90 minutes.

The ‘Well boss made four changes to his side, with Carl McHugh and Richard Tait restored to the starting line-up and Liam Grimshaw and Gaël Bigirimana joining them.

With the latter in charge of set pieces, the first chance came within a minute when Bigirmana’s corner was headed over the crossbar by McHugh.

There was no lack of confidence in ‘Well’s build up play ten minutes in, but the final ball across goal posed little threat to former ‘Well ‘keeper Craig Samson.

Indeed, the first save came at the other end after 24 minutes, when a foul on Tait went unpunished allowing Adam Hammill a shot at goal but straight into Trevor Carson’s arms.

However, five minutes later, Motherwell’s first strike on goal was more productive. Bigirimana kept possession on the touchline before rolling the ball inside to David Turnbull.

With nobody closing him down he took a few strides towards the penalty area before driving a low hard shot which skidded under Samson for the 19-year-old’s first senior goal.

‘Well should have been two up in the 34th minute when Cadden’s cross found Main unmarked eight yards from goal, but he powered his header straight at Samson.

Just before half time, Ryan Bowman outjumped the Saint’s ‘keeper to force the ball over the goal line, but the assistant’s flag indicated that the striker was offside.

Two minutes after the break the Fir Parkers had the ball in the net again and this time it counted.

Cadden found Main at the edge of the box who held the ball up long enough to return the pass, leaving the Scotland Under 21 man free to sweep a lovely left-footed shot beyond Samson to make it 2-0.

The home side struggled to find a foothold in the match as ‘Well pressed to extend their advantage and boost their own confidence ahead of Dundee’s visit on Saturday.

With 20 minutes remaining, Robinson decided to bolster the centre of the park, calling on the more defensive-minded Alan Campbell to replace Bigirimana.

Less than four minutes later, Saints task of making a comeback were made more difficult when Ryan Flynn was shown a straight red card after a high challenge on Tait.

With an extra man ‘Well, made the most of possession and should have added to their lead. Nine minutes from the end Cadden burst towards the Saints box before finding McHugh, but he couldn’t quite cap a fine performance in the middle of the park with his left footed effort, which flashed just outside the post.

Danny Johnson replaced Main just before Cadden powered into the box again and testing Samson with a low drive.

In the closing minutes, all the play was around the home penalty area and a neat exchange between Cadden and Turnbull set up Johnson but, from the corner of the box, his curled shot was easily taken by the Saints stopper.

Barry McGuire made it four academy graduates on the pitch on a cold, wet night in the Ladbrokes Premiership, appearing for a few minutes as ‘Well comfortably remained in control for all three points and a confidence boosting win ahead of Saturday.

Curtis Main has his sights set on an upturn in form as Motherwell prepare for a trip to take on St Mirren.

Dundee then follow on Saturday, as the club head in to an important couple of games.

“The results haven’t gone our way and we need to improve in certain areas,” he said. “Everyone is confident we can turn it around and climb the league.”

After a small break over the weekend, Motherwell return to Premiership action on Wednesday night for a trip to take on St Mirren.

The Steelmen and the Saints are separated by a single point in the league table, only adding to the importance of three points for both sides.

Here, we look at the fixture in numbers.

One

The total number of points separating ‘Well and Saints in the league table.

Three points for either side could see them move to ninth, depending on other results.

Wednesday night’s game has added importance considering the Steelmen take on Dundee on Saturday, before the Buddies face the Dee the following weekend.

10

The number of games since St Mirren last won a competitive match.

Both teams heading in to the game are in difficult spells, with Stephen Robinson’s men failing to record a victory in their last six games.

1,264

The total number of days since the two sides last met, in a clash in Paisley back in May 2015.

It was the final game between Motherwell and St Mirren in the 2014/15 campaign, with the hosts coming out on top, winning 2-1.

It wasn’t enough to save them from the drop however, in a season where the Steelmen won three of the four fixtures against the Buddies.

Motherwell are back in Ladbrokes Premiership action on Wednesday, with a trip to Paisley to take on St Mirren.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match. Kick off is at 7.45pm.

Setting the scene

The first meeting of the 2018/19 season is also the first encounter between the two clubs since the 2014/15 season.

Motherwell won three out of four matches that campaign, winning home and away 1-0 before a 5-0 victory at Fir Park.

After the split, St Mirren took a 2-1 win in the last fixture between the two.

The form guide

Wednesday’s hosts have drawn one and lost nine of their last 10 matches. Their draw came in manager Oran Kearney’s first game in charge against Celtic, before a run of five straight defeats.

The Steelmen have drawn one and lost four of their last five league games, with the point coming in a home draw with Livingston.

The man in the middle

Kevin Clancy takes charge of his first Motherwell match of the season as he takes up the whistle at St Mirren Park.

The referee has officiated 13 matches in the 2018/19 season, including Europa League matches at Spartak Trnava and Sevilla. He averages 4.15 yellow cards per game and 0.38 reds.

His last match involving Motherwell was the Scottish Cup final with Celtic in May.

Get your tickets

You can buy your tickets online now and pick them up at Fir Park before you travel until 5pm on Wednesday, or buy from the window at the away end of the ground in Paisley between 6.30pm and 7.45pm.

Adult tickets are £22, while kids aged 12 and under go for £6. Students, the unemployed, under 18s and over 65s can get in for £12.

Motherwell return to Ladbrokes Premiership action with a trip to face St Mirren on Wednesday, 31 October.

You can buy your tickets online now and pick them up at Fir Park before you travel, or buy from the ticket window at the away end of the ground in Paisley.

Adult tickets are £22, while kids aged 12 and under go for £6. Students, the unemployed, under 18s and over 65s can get in for £12.

Tickets purchased online can be collected from Fir Park up until 5pm on Wednesday.

He may be just a few months in to his captaincy at Fir Park, but Peter Hartley knows the importance of his leadership in the coming weeks.

In the aftermath of Saturday’s 1-0 defeat against St Johnstone, the message from the manager was simple: it’s time to stand up and be counted.

And for 30-year-old Hartley, it’s something he believes each and every player in the dressing room is capable of doing.

“We know what’s at stake and that we need to be better,” he admitted. “There’s definitely been times when we’ve played well but perhaps not got the results, but now is the time for results to follow.”

St Mirren and Dundee lie in wait for a Motherwell side searching for a much-needed win, and the skipper admits the next two games are crucial for him and his teammates.

He said: “They’re massive, of course they are. To be going up against two sides sitting below us in the table is incentive enough for us to go out there and do what we have to, and that’s get points on the board, it’s as simple as that.

“On top of that I think it’s also safe to say that we’re not a million miles away at the moment. We’ve come through a sticky patch of injuries, we’ve been unlucky at points, and I believe all it takes is a victory to spark us back in to life.”

And while it sounds simple, the captain is well aware that it isn’t.

He said: “After the game on Saturday the atmosphere in the dressing room wasn’t doom and gloom, it was different. There was a real sense of determination but also anger with ourselves, a sense that we all knew we have to find that bit extra to pick up points.

“It’s one thing creating more chances or having more of the ball, but what matters is that for the last few games we haven’t had that extra bit needed to get over the line.”

He added: “Every game in this league is a difficult one, you see examples of it every week and all it takes is a quick glance at the table for you to see how competitive this division is.

“One thing that I always believe in with this group is our mentality. We’ve arrived back in to training this week and haven’t let anything get to us or deter us from the task at hand.”

He added: “Are we in a disappointing position? Absolutely. Do we have the character and desire to turn things around? Of course.

“We’ve shown the supporters that we’ve got it in us before, and we’ll be sure to show it again.”

It was a tale of missed chances and a last minute sting in the tail.

This is the Story of the Match from the weekend visit of St Johnstone.

Motherwell lost a last-minute winner as St Johnstone took all three points in a 1-0 win at Fir Park.

Jason Kerr’s header in injury time consigned the Steelmen to defeat, as the game looked to be heading to a stalemate.

Peter Hartley, Andy Rose and Charles Dunne spoke after the 1-0 defeat to St Johnstone.

The Steelmen lost out in the final minute at the hands of the Saints, with Jason Kerr netting a late, late header.