| 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 |
Stephen Robinson says there’s plenty room for improvement but was satisfied his team ended their losing run against Livingston.
The manager saw his team take the lead through Ryan Bowman’s goal. But Keaghan Jacobs’ wonder goal was followed up by a potentially game-changing red card for Carl McHugh.
“The important thing is we stopped the rot,” he said.
“We showed resilience but we need to be better on the ball.”
Motherwell collected a hard-earned point from a tough, scrappy affair against high-flying Livingston.
However, having taken an early lead through Ryan Bowman, the Fir Parkers were left fighting to take a point after Keaghan Jacobs struck a stunning equaliser and ‘Well were left with 10 men for the final 15 minutes after Carl McHugh received a second yellow card.
After three punishing games on the road, Stephen Robinson made a few changes for their return to Fir Park. Peter Hartley returned from injury to form a back three with Tom Aldred and Liam Donnelly. Allan Campbell resumed his midfield role along with Andy Rose in a five-man midfield.
Third-placed Livi looked intent on extending their super form and pressed the home goal from the start. The under pressure ‘Well defence was happy to see Scott Robinson’s shot deflected wide of Trevor Carson’s goal before Dolly Menga’s header drifted on to the top of the net.
The first save though came at the other end in the 14 minute and although McHugh controlled his 20 yard volley well, Liam Kelly comfortably held his shot.
Two minutes later, the Livingston ‘keeper was beaten. Campbell broke to the edge of the visitor’s box before laying the ball into Bowman’s path. And although his shot was on target as Craig Hackett slid in to block, his deflection carried the ball beyond his ’keeper to put the hosts ahead.
The West Lothian defence then survived a bout of pressure, blocking successive shots from Chris Cadden and McHugh, before Curtis Main nodded the ball wide.
After 23 minutes, Livi fans celebrated what they thought was equaliser when Keaghan Jacobs’ corner into a packed six-yard box ended with the ball rolling over the goal line. But celebrations were cut short, when referee Willie Collum awarded ‘Well a free kick as Carson had been impeded.
Livingston’s direct route from their keeper still kept the ‘Well back three occupied but in truth Carson was never tested.
Despite having the bulk of the play, the visitors were lucky not to concede another goal amidst appeals for penalty six minutes from the break.
Andy Rose had his effort blocked eight yards from goal and as the ball bounced around the box Bowman had two efforts on goal blocked, the second coming off a defender’s arm but claims for a penalty were waved aside by the referee.
The pattern of play continued after the break as ‘Well’s careless use of the ball provided Livingston with plenty of possession and the opportunity to put the home defence under almost constant pressure.
Despite a couple of crosses and corners from Cadden the flow of play was one way and Livi were finally rewarded with an equaliser after 62 minutes.
Hartley tugged Menga’s jersey five yards outside the box. The ‘Well captain was booked but worse was to follow when from the resultant free kick Jacobs superbly curled the ball over the defensive wall and into Carson’s top left hand corner.
There was plenty of time for the Steelmen to regain the lead and with 18 minutes remaining, Robinson made a double substitution in the hope that Gael Bigirimana would bring composure and Danny Johnson a winning goal.
However, before either could make an impact, ‘Well were reduced to 10 men when Carl McHugh was shown his second yellow card inside seven minutes.
Motherwell reverted to a back four but showed some grit and urgency as they chased a winner. A minute from time, some pressure on the visitors gave Bowman possession but his ambitious drive from 30 yards was straight into Kelly’s arms.
Then in injury time, a Steven Lawless corner was directed towards goal but the combined efforts of Carson and Campbell cleared the ball of the line and leave both teams settling for a share of the points.
Andy Rose says Motherwell’s players have spent the week reviewing what’s going well and what needs worked on, as they look to bounce back against Livingston.
After losing from leading at Kilmarnock last weekend, the midfielder says it’s been a case of working hard on the training pitch to rectify things.
Manager Stephen Robinson spoke to the broadcast media ahead of the weekend match with Livingston.
Here’s the headlines from what he had to say.
We’ve played seven games and of course it has not been the start we wanted. There are fine lines in football and obviously goals change football matches.
For example, we’re 1-0 up last Saturday at Killie and miss a penalty and when things aren’t going for you, that’s what happens.
Over and above that, we’ve had four or five decisions in the last lot of games that have affected the results. That said, there are a lot of things we can do better.
There’s a positivity around the place because we know we are not far away. We’ve had to change, what with injuries we’ve had to play players out of position and perhaps taken that solidity out our team. We’ve spoke this week about getting that back, the team and the personnel that won a lot of games last season and took us to two cup finals.
Of course it’s frustrating, because I know how close we are, and of course everything is dictated by results. Emotions around the club, the mood of the fans are all dictated by results, but I believe there are positives and we need to ensure we use that to turn in results sooner rather than later.
We pulled everyone together at the start of the week to make sure we didn’t have a situation where people are walking about feeling sorry for themselves. We also have to give the players a plan on how we turn those little percentages in our favour and into wins.
The biggest thing for me is to get back to keeping clean sheets. Circumstances with the personnel may have impacted that but I feel we are getting closer to putting a team that I think is more recognisable from last season and straight away, that gives everyone a lift.
We’ve also got a bunch of boys who are very conscientious. They know when they’ve played well but they also know when they can do better. What I can never question is their work rate or their commitment to this football club and with that mindset our luck will change.
We need to keep working hard and that was reiterated to everyone, including the staff.
We’ve got strong characters. People were constantly saying last season that we had a good dressing room.
It’s this season where that will be tested as it’s easy when you’re winning football matches and getting to cup finals. Now you see who the characters are, you see who the strong boys are and I think the vast majority of them in that dressing room are.
We expect criticism but and can deal with it, we batten down the hatches and make sure you stick together and that’s very much been the talk around the place.
From the 11 on the pitch, the subs and the boys not involved, there’s never a complaint from them, the train hard and we prepare meticulously for every match.
If I am honest, due to injuries and available personnel, we probably did try and change it up. Because we didn’t have that electric pace of either Kipré or Dunne, we perhaps had to take that extra pass which maybe slowed our tempo down a little bit, which for the vast majority of our players, it doesn’t suit.
I feel the Hearts game and 35 or 40 minutes of the Kilmarnock match that we got back to that level of intensity, back to being in people’s faces and back to putting balls into an area of the pitch that can hurt people. I know what works for the vast majority of our squad, but we have had to try and change things slightly.
As I said earlier, I think we’re close to getting the personnel back into the right positions that will hopefully start affecting results.
I think many may have been surprised, but they’re not embarrassed about their style and why should they be? They’re getting results. I hear everyone say that you’ve got to play a certain way.
You play to the strengths of your squad and the level your budget allows you to do. Livingston have done that and credit to them.
After we beat them in the Betfred Cup, our boys came off and said it was one of the hardest games they had played in, because they have a never-say-die attitude which they’ve carried on from last season. We have to match that and we will match that and it’s very much a game I am looking forward to.
We obviously played them and won, but I am not sure how relevant that will be. It’s a cup competition, a one-off game whereas they’ll probably go into this game as favourites given where they sit in the table and their start.
It’ll be tough, but first and foremost, we have to match their desire and their energy, then we can get the ball down in play, in that order.
Perhaps we’ve tried to do that slightly different because of the injuries and who we’ve had available to us. Now people are returning, now we can get players back into their strong position, I want us to get back to that.
We’re hopeful both Andy Rose and Peter Hartley will be available for selection. Charles Dunne has started light jogging in training, that’s a huge boost for everyone around the place.
Craig Tanner had a setback, but he’s on the road to recovery, so we’re getting people back and hopefully we can start turning the corner.
Ryan Bowman has been named as the Tullibardine player of the month for September.
The striker won the public vote after returning to the team after injury, marking his starting return with a sensational goal against Hearts in the quarter-final of the Betfred Cup.
He received his award on Friday from Well Society members John and James McLellan.
Livingston are the visitors to Fir Park on Saturday, as Motherwell play host to the Lions for the first time since 2006.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.
Motherwell have faced Livingston 20 times on competitive business since their first encounter in 2001.
Since the first meeting between the two sides ended goalless at Fir Park, 58 goals have been shared between the two, with the Steelmen edging things 33 to 27.
Motherwell fans can get their tickets before turning up at the Fir Park through our ticketing website.
Adult tickets start at just £20, concessions £16 and kids aged under 15 get into all stands for £3.
Livingston supporters will be situated in the Phil O’Donnell main stand and can pay at the gate.
If you’re based outside of the UK/Ireland, the game is available via our streaming subscribers at tv.motherwellfc.co.uk.
Our Cooper Bar is open from 11am in the Davie Cooper stand, offering food and drinks to supporters of both teams.
Peter Hartley and Andy Rose should be fit to feature. Craig Tanner and Charles Dunne remain on the sidelines.
It’s back to Fir Park on league business on Saturday as Motherwell host Livingston.
Here’s the game previewed in numbers.
The number of games Livingston are currently unbeaten, having won four and drawn one of their last five fixtures.
Home wins over Hamilton, Hibernian and Rangers were accompanied by an away win at St Mirren and a goalless draw at Hearts.
Gary Holt’s side also posted four clean sheets in those games, conceding only once against Hibs.
Livingston exited Scottish football’s top flight in 2006, after a five-year stint in which they finished third in the SPL, reached the UEFA Cup and won the League Cup.
Since then they’ve endured administrations, relegations and the odd success along the way. Their play-off win over Partick Thistle in May ended their exile, having had to work their way back up from the bottom tier.
The year 2004 was the last time Livi earned a win over the Steelmen with a 3-1 victory in West Lothian.
Since then, the two sides have met 10 times competitively. Motherwell have won nine, with one draw at Almondvale.
In the 20 matches played between the two teams, Motherwell have netted on 33 occasions.
Fourteen of those goals have come at Fir Park, while 19 came away. Livingston, meanwhile, have scored 27, with 16 coming at home and 11 away.
Motherwell’s Ladbrokes Premiership match with Livingston on Saturday, 6 October is available to stream live online.
Fans who live outside the UK and Ireland can subscribe to see the game at Fir Park, which kicks off at 3pm BST.
To watch, just head to tv.motherwellfc.co.uk, scroll down and choose from our monthly or annual pass.
Monthly subscriptions cost £12 and get you access to see the majority of home and away league games.
If you’re going on holiday, you can also subscribe to watch the stream. Just wait until you are abroad, then sign up for a monthly subscription to see the games.
Stephen Robinson speaks as Motherwell prepare to face Livingston in the Ladbrokes Premiership.
And following a tough run of games, the manager is keen to shift momentum at Fir Park.
“We’re well aware that we need to turn things around,” he said. “I’m very confident that this group of players will.”
Motherwell host Livingston in the Ladbrokes Premiership for the first league meeting between the two sides since May 2006.
And after making a strong start to the campaign, Saturday’s opponents arrive at Fir Park brimming with confidence.
Since the Betfred Cup clash between ‘Well and Livi back in August, the newly promoted side have gone unbeaten.
In the five matches that followed their 1-0 defeat at the hands of Stephen Robinson’s men, Livingston have defeated Hibernian, Rangers, St Mirren and Hamilton, as well as drawing with table toppers Hearts.
In their 12 games this term, Livingston have only conceded in four games, keeping an impressive eight clean sheets.
Equally impressive is the fact that their heaviest defeat this season came against last seasons champions Celtic, who won 3-1 in Parkhead.
Saturday’s opposition have scored seven goals in the top flight this term, the same total as Stephen Robinson’s side.
However, their top scorer this season is a share of seven players, with the likes of Steven Lawless, Jack Hamilton and Alan Lithgow all bagging important goals for Gary Holt’s side.
