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Carl McHugh has been rewarded for his sensational strike against Hearts with the William Hill Scottish Cup Goal of the Round trophy.

The captain’s winner in the quarter final was picked out as the best of the last eight, and for obvious reasons.

Curtis Main is determined to make Saturday’s trip to Hampden a memorable one for Motherwell Football Club.

The striker, who scored the opening goal in the Steelmen’s quarter final win over Hearts, is hopeful of more than just one trip to the national stadium after arriving in January.

Speaking to the broadcast press, the Englishman said: “I obviously knew that we would be involved in the Scottish Cup before I came up here, but that wasn’t my main focus, it was about playing football for me.

“We’ve played well in the competition though and find ourselves in this position, so everybody is looking forward to it now.”

He added: “The semi final of any cup is a big deal. Hopefully we can make it to the final and make it even bigger.”

Victory in Saturday’s semi final could be the start of transforming Motherwell’s good season in to an incredible one, according to Stephen Robinson. 

The ‘Well boss is relishing a third trip to Hampden in the clubs second last four cup clash of the season.

But with Aberdeen standing in the way of a second final in six months, the Northern Irishman knows that his side face a difficult challenge.

“It would be a massive achievement for us if we were able to overcome Aberdeen and reach another final,” he said.

“We’re well aware it’s going to be a tough game. Aberdeen will be thinking the same as us, but it gives us massive incentive.”

He added: “As I’ve said numerous times, my objective was to stay in the league and everything else is a massive bonus.

“We’ve been lucky enough that we’ve had one cup run that we were unfortunate in the final, now we have given ourselves another massive opportunity to reach a final.

“So what has been a relatively good season could turn out to be an incredible season. We have an opportunity to do that by reaching the final.”

Richard Tait has been one of the most consistent performers in claret and amber this season. 

But the defender believes no one is guaranteed a spot in Stephen Robinson’s starting 11 for the trip to Hampden on Saturday.

With the Scottish Cup semi final on the horizon, the 28-year-old shed some light on the hard work going on around Fir Park.

“Everyones raring to go,” he said. “We came in to train on Tuesday and everyone was firing and fighting for their place in the team.”

Having failed to make it to Hampden Park in over six years, Saturday’s last four clash with Aberdeen comes just five months after November’s Betfred Cup final.

Falling short on that occasion against Celtic has only added fuel to the fire for the Steelmen.

“We’re motivated to go one step further. The last time we were at Hampden will help us this time around.

“We know what is expected of us and we know what we need to do to try and progress to the final.”

“It is easy to get motivated. We know what’s at stake and we know what could happen if we were to get to the final and then possibly go on to win it.

“Your name would be immortalised and the fans would speak your name for the rest of your career and past that.”

Motherwell will play Ross County in the first post-split match in the 2017/18 Ladbrokes Premiership.

The Staggies will be the first opponents for the Steelmen as they look to secure a seventh place finish.

Stephen Robinson’s side will then finish the league season against Hamilton Academical at Fir Park on Saturday, May 12.

No Motherwell fixtures have been chosen for live television broadcast.

MOTHERWELL FIXTURES IN FULL

Saturday, 21 April, 3pm

Ross County v Motherwell

Saturday, 28 April, 3pm

Motherwell v Dundee

Saturday, 5 May, 3pm

Motherwell v St Johnstone

Tuesday, 8 May, 7.45pm

Partick Thistle v Motherwell

Saturday, 12 May, 3pm

Motherwell v Hamilton Academical

Watch the highlights as Motherwell take a point from a difficult encounter at St Johnstone.

Gaël Bigirimana, Ryan Bowman and debutant Barry Maguire speak after the stalemate at St Johnstone.

Stephen Robinson felt there was nothing to separate Motherwell and St Johnstone during their 0-0 draw.

And ahead of a big semi final against Aberdeen, the Northern Irishman was pleased to see his players come through the match unscathed.

“There was nothing between the sides as the league table suggests,” Robinson said.

“It was a tough game and a tough afternoon. The playing surface meant it was hard for either side to play any sort of quality football.”

He added: “We had a couple of chances near the end and they had a chance which Trevor produced a fine save for. Overall I think a draw was a fair result.

“I earmarked Barry Maguire as a player that I thought could come in to the first team, it was just about picking the time to do so with our young players.

“But he came out here and we’ve gained a player today.”

Grant Russell at McDiarmid Park

Motherwell held on to seventh spot in the Ladbrokes Premiership after playing out a tame 0-0 draw with St Johnstone.

The visitors made three changes from the team which lost to Aberdeen at home in midweek.

Allan Campbell dropped out through injury, while Chris Cadden and Stephen Hendrie took up places on the bench. In came Gael Bigirimana and Liam Grimshaw, along with a debut for young defender Barry Maguire.

The first half failed to catch fire. Both teams were reduced to half chances, with Curtis Main firing wide at one end and then Murray Davidson sending Trevor Carson scrambling at the other, before his shot also went past the post.

The Motherwell ‘keeper had to be alert though immediately in the second half. A cross from the left found Scott Tanser in acres of space to sweep a shot towards goal, but the Northern Irishman reacted superbly to claw the ball away from goal.

The visitors immediately tried to respond. Curtis Main found himself with room to drive at the St Johnstone defence down the left channel, before cutting onto his right boot as he burst into the box. His curling attempt, however, was wide of the far post.

Motherwell introduced Cadden and George Newell for Elliott Frear and Main to try and force the issue as the game started to open up.

Maguire was impressive on his debut, looking composed on the left of the back three, and also set up an opportunity for his fellow defender Tom Aldred as the game wore on.

His in-swinging cross from the left was met by the head of Aldred but, with the centre back under pressure, he nodded wide of the target.

Manager Stephen Robinson’s final change was to remove Maguire to allow Andy Rose to make his return from a fractured kneecap.

Motherwell started to carve out half chances. Bigirimana’s free kick from the edge of the area caused Alan Mannus brief trouble before he turned the ball round for a corner, and substitute Newell was pushing to get himself into creative positions.

As the clock fast approached the 90th minute, Motherwell had their best chance. Bigirimana tied up Foster in knots on the left side before delivering deep to the back post.

Grimshaw was on hand to fire in a half volley but the ball was turned away by a desperate home defence.

Motherwell head to St Johnstone on Saturday looking to take a step towards securing their status in seventh spot in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

There’s also the matter of places being up for grabs for the forthcoming William Hill Scottish Cup semi final with Aberdeen a week later.

Opponents St Johnstone sit level on points with the Steelmen, albeit with an inferior goal difference, making it a huge game for both sides.

Assistant boss Keith Lasley says there’s no chance of the team letting up in the final weeks of the season, despite missing out on a top six berth.

“We know there’s a big game around the corner but this one is important to us,” he said.

[pullquote]We want to finish well in the league. Saturday will give us another opportunity to do that.[/pullquote]

“We want to finish as high as we can. We put demands on the players every single day they come in here and it will be same on every match day from now until the end of the season.

“We try and win every game we go into and that will be no different on Saturday.”

George Newell is hopeful the run-in to the end of the 2017/18 season can present him with the chance to stake a claim for a permanent striking berth next campaign.

The forward has been in and out of the first team picture in his debut year with Motherwell, having struggled with injuries since his arrival in the summer.

Newell has been on the bench in recent weeks and will be hoping for minutes away to St Johnstone at the weekend in a game where players will be looking to force their way into Stephen Robinson’s plans for the forthcoming William Hill Scottish Cup semi final.

“It’s been a frustrating season,” he said. “With the strikers doing so well, I’ve had to be patient. And that’s fair enough, they are doing well and scoring goals.

[pullquote]The injuries came at a bad time. I managed to get back in the team quite quick but then another injury came.[/pullquote]

“If I can stay injury free, I feel I can force my way into the team. I’ve just got to get my confidence going. When I get my first goal, I feel I can grow from there.”

	St Johnstone v Motherwell
	Saturday, 7 April 2018
	3pm
	McDiarmid Park
	Pay at the gate

Admission prices are as follows:

A special family deal is also in operation at turnstile five only. An adult can take up to two children, aged 12 and under, for £16.

If you can’t make it along, you can follow the match on Twitter @MotherwellFC. Live audio commentary will be available on mixlr.com/motherwellfc

You can see the match highlights on MFC TV’s YouTube channel, as well as full reaction and a match report right here on the official website.