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Young Steelmen striker Craig Moore has joined Scottish League One side Ayr United on loan.

20-year old Moore made his debut for the Steelmen back in August 2013 in the UEFA Europa League match against Kuban Krasnodar in Russia.

He made his SPFL Premiership bow two months later, against Hearts, and scored with his first touch, a stinging 25-yard drive into the top corner.

Since then he has found regular first-team football hard to come by, particularly after a cruciate ligament injury at the tail end of the 2013/14 season kept him sidelined for several months.

He has spent time on loan before though, a successful period at then Championship side Cowdenbeath where he hit seven goals in 12 games for the Blue Brazil.

With competition for a starting slot intense following the arrivals of David Clarkson, Wes Fletcher, Louis Moult and the return of Scott McDonald, Moore’s loan will run until 4th January 2016 as he aims to push Ian McCall’s side towards promotion.

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Young Motherwell u15s attacking midfielder, Alise Stewart has been attracting attention from international scouts 2 years above her age category.

Alise has been an outstanding team player for her club and has the attitude and work ethic to go with it.

Now, thorough hard work and determination, Alise has been rewarded with the opportunity to represent her country, a life’s dream come to fruition!

I had the privilege of catching up with our young superstar who tells us more…

Full name: Alise Stewart

Age: 15

Nickname: Lisey

Team: Motherwell u15’s

Favourite Football team: (Other than Motherwell of course…) Celtic

Playing Position: Midfield/Striker

Favourite Female player: Alex Morgan

Favourite Male Player: Lionel Messi

Favourite Song: Ohh, that’s too hard, I have far too many!

Favourite Food: That one’s easy! Mash potatoes and broccoli with gravy.

What are your favourite things to do in your spare time: I love playing football or going out with my friends.

What/who inspires you to play football?

My team and coaches are my inspiration. I love it so much because my team are like a family to me, they support me the whole way, it’s such a good feeling #wellfamily

How long have you played for Motherwell for?

2 years now, I love it.

What days do you train for Motherwell?

I train twice a week on a Tuesday and Thursday. Training is intense, but it’s brilliant! You don’t have time to get distracted, only time to work hard which I love.

What do you like most about being part of the Well family?

I love how close my team are and how well we all get on together, not only as a club but outside of football as friends too.

Do you hope to play for the ladies team in a couple of year?

Hopefully, that’s what my aim is.

Alise, thank you for letting us meet and get to know you a little better. Now A little birdie has told me about your recent achievement. Can I just say a huge congratulations from myself and all at the ladies senior team, we are so proud to hear you have been selected to represent your country at under 17s, you must be so proud.

How did you feel when you first found out you had been scouted for the u17 age group? I was so Shocked and actually, I was nervous too! Mostly, I was just really really excited though.

It’s a really fantastic achievement to represent your country Alise especially at such a young age! Everyone at the club is so proud of you! So tell us a little about what happens next and who you will be playing against?

Well, we have a training camp from the 4th to 6th of August at Toryglen in Glasgow. It’s going to be intense I’m sure but I can’t wait! At the camp we will do lots of training sessions and maybe some team building activities. We will be staying at a hotel and playing games against other players at the camp. There are a lot of other talented girls who have been selected, so it will just be a great experience, I’m really looking forward to showing what I’m made of.

What are your aspirations in football and internationally?

I want to play as long as I can! I really hope to represent my county more and more than I already have and travel around the world doing what I love.

You say you would love to travel and play, if you could pick any country and any team in the world to play for, who would it be?

In terms of who I would want to play for, that’s easy… It would have to be my home country, Scotland! There is no better feeling than putting on your home shirt and representing where you come from. In terms of travel though, I would just love to see lots of different parts of the world whilst doing what I love, playing football, that would be my ultimate dream.

Alise, it has been an absolute pleasure to get to know you a little better and thank you for taking the time to share this amazing achievement with us all. We are very proud of your achievement and wish you all the best at the International camp in August. You are a fantastic player and a wee star. I am confident we will see you not only in a ladies Motherwell shirt in a couple of years, but in many many different Scotland shirts in the years to come!

To keep up to speed with Alise’s international duty and under 15s team news, follow the team on Twitter @MwellGirls15s

For all the latest info and live match tweets follow the ladies on twitter @MotherwellLFC

Follow me on twitter @dibsy_

‘Well skipper Keith Lasley hopes the ‘Well squad can pick up where they left off the previous ahead of Saturday’s SPFL opener.

The Fir Parkers faced the unenviable task of trying to circumnavigate the Premiership play-off double header against Rangers in late May.

However, Ian Baraclough’s men turned in two terrific performances to win the match 6-1 on aggregate and send fans into the summer in a positive mood after what had been disappointing campaign.

Now, with the season opener against Inverness at the Caledonian Stadium just a few days away, Lasley hopes to continue that sort of form into the new campaign.

[pullquote]We’re looking of for a continuation of how we finished last season, particularly in the Rangers game.[/pullquote]

Speaking at the launch of Motherwell’s partnership with back of shirt sponsor Castle Water, the veteran midfielder said: “We’re looking of for a continuation of how we finished last season, particularly in the Rangers game.

“We want to be a team that is hard to beat but we also have some good threats in our team as well and we can play expansive football. We know we can counter attack with pace and that is vital, especially away from home. It’s a real key component of the modern game and we have that here.

“We still believe we have really good footballers in this team and we need to go and show that to the fans because although on the whole, last season was poor, there was some good football played at times and it up to us to go and enhance that even more.

“Hopefully we can get off to a positive start on Saturday and take it from there.”

Motherwell Football Club is today delighted to announce Castle Water will be the new back-of-shirt sponsor for the 2015/16 season.

Castle Water is a Licensed Provider of water and waste services throughout Scotland, and from 2017 will also supply business customers in England & Wales.

They are able to serve the requirements of the largest multi-site customers, right through to small family businesses.

Speaking about the new partnership, which will see the Castle Water logo adorn both Motherwell home and away strips, Motherwell General Manager Alan Burrows commented: “We are absolutely delighted to be partnering with Castle Water for the new season and look forward to what we hope will be a long and healthy relationship.

[pullquote]As a new and fast growing company, Castle Water is proud to work with Motherwell FC, and we all look forwarding to supporting the Club both on the pitch and in the community.”[/pullquote]

“From the outset we were incredibly impressed by the vision and desire the company has for the future as well as the Castle Water ethos of offering customers a service based on trust, dedication and accountability, as part of their ethical practice policy.

“That mirrors the philanthropic, community-based project currently underway at Motherwell with Les Hutchison’s involvement and the ultimate transition to full fan ownership.”

Castle Water Chief Executive John Reynolds added: “As a new and fast growing company, Castle Water is proud to work with Motherwell FC, and we all look forwarding to supporting the Club both on the pitch and in the community.”

For more information on how your business can get a quote and save money on your water bill, call 01250 833 101, email info@castlewater.co.uk or visit www.castlewater.co.uk.

Referee for Saturday’s SPFL opener against Inverness in the Highlands will be the experienced Crawford Allan.

With the season just getting underway, it’s obviously Crawford’s first ‘Well match of the campaign.

However, he is a familiar face to ‘Well fans having been a top flight official for over a decade.

He handled four matches during the 2014/15 season, including two Friday night defeats at Pittodrie, ‘Well losing 2-1 and 1-0 respectively, the instantly forgettable New Years defeat at New Douglas Park and, most recently, the 1-1 draw with Ross County at Fir Park last season.

A vastly experienced, Crawford handled two games the previous seasons (2013/14).

The first was a narrow 1-0 win over Hibs in November 2013 when a Stephen McManus header gave the 10-man Steelmen all three points.

The other, five weeks later, was the important 1-2 victory at Ross County, which kicked off an incredible six game winning run. A brace from John Sutton was enough to edge out the Staggies and got ‘Well back to winning ways after the disappointment of an early Scottish Cup exit and a thumping from Celtic.

Tragically, Allan took charge of the ‘Well game on the 29th December 2007, forever etched in history as the date when Phil O’Donnell tragically passed away in the 5-3 victory over Dundee United.

Speaking publically, Allan admitted Phil’s death had a profound effect on the whistler but won heartfelt praise for the way he handled what was an extremely difficult situation and his sensitive approach will be forever appreciated by everyone at Motherwell Football Club and is recognised each time he returns to Fir Park.

In another twist of fate, Crawford is only one of two referees to have ever taken charge of a Motherwell away game at Fir Park as the Steelmen faced hosts Gretna during the 2007/2008 campaign.

His record in charge of the ‘Well is a fairly mixed, with the Fir Parkers winning eight, drawing seven and losing seven of the twenty two games in total. In those games, 63 players have seen yellow, 38 in Claret and Amber, whilst four have been sent for an early bath, the most recent being Shaun Hutchinson in that match against Hibs two seasons ago.

Allan will be ably assisted by Alastair Mather and Stuart Hodge with Mat Northcroft on fourth official duties. Referee observer is Kevin Toner, SPFL Delegate is David Patience.

Motherwell FC can today confirm the ticket prices to Saturday’s Ladbrokes Premiership opener against Inverness CT

Ian Baraclough’s men kick-off the new season with a tough trip to the Highlands this Saturday, 1st of August, with a 3pm kick-off.

The ticket prices are as follows:

Fans should also note a supporters bus (subject to numbers) will leave from Wishaw at 9.10am and Motherwell at 9.30am.

Anyone wishing seats should call Anne on 01698384050 or Jim on 01698299650, as soon as possible.

Extended highlights from the Energy Assets Arena as ‘Well go down 1-2 to English Championship side Preston North End.

‘Well boss Ian Baraclough was pleased with his side despite losing 1-2 to Preston North End this evening.

Motherwell were impressive throughout, moving the ball well and creating numerous chances only to be denied by an inspired Jamie Jones in the Lillywhite’s goal.

Louis Moult did grab a goal near the end but it wasn’t enough to get level but even although his team lost on the night, Baraclough was satisfied with what he watched.

[pullquote]That was as good we’ve been pre-season; we’re getting better, we’re getting stronger and sharper and some of our play was a delight to watch at times.[/pullquote]

Speaking to MFC TV, he said: “That was as good we’ve been pre-season; we’re getting better, we’re getting stronger and sharper and some of our play was a delight to watch at times.

“I’m really pleased we ended up with a goal and something to show for our efforts by the way of a goal. We created several chances on goal and their keeper made a few decent saves and in all areas we looked competitive.

“Our shape was excellent, we broke at pace and caused them problems and for me, from where we were at the start of pre-season, we’ve been improving. It was a positive evening.”

Despite an impressive performance, ‘Well went down 1-2 to Preston in their last game before the SPFL Premiership kick-off.

After being the better team for the opening twenty-five, Preston hit a quick-fire double against the run of play through Joe Garner and Neil Kilkenny.

Preston stopper Jamie Jones pulled off numerous impressive saves before summer recruit Louis Moult scored his first for the Steelmen with a neat finish with 90 seconds left on the clock.

Although the match ended in defeat, Ian Baraclough would head back along the M8 Motorway to Motherwell with plenty of positives from the sixth and final pre-season fixture of the summer.

The ‘Well boss named Dan Twardzik in goal with the recognised back four of Josh Law, Louis Laing, Stephen McManus and Stevie Hammell. A midfield five of Marvin Johnson, Keith Lasley, Stephen Pearson, Joe Chalmers and Scott McDonald supported Wes Fletcher in attack.

The Fir Parkers started the match in positive fashion and Johnson fired an early shot over the crossbar.

The former Kidderminster man was causing the Lillywhites all sorts of problems and a marauding run and shot forced Jones into the first save of the evening.

It was Johnson again on sixteen minutes, bursting at pace from deep, but his low shot hit a deflection and spun wide of target for a corner.

Preston managed to settle it and skipper Tom Clarke almost got his side in front with a back post header that the home defence had to scramble clear. Two minutes later, Jermaine Beckford had the ball in the net but the assistant’s flag was up for offside.

Forty seconds later Motherwell burst clear and almost got ahead when Law’s tantalising near post cross fell for Fletcher but it was scrambled behind at the expense of a corner.

For all Motherwell looked the more threatening, it was Simon Grayson’s side that took the lead with their first shot on target. And it was Scotsman Paul Gallagher who was the creator, sending over a teasing cross from the right that allowed Joe Garner to get across his man to head home from close range

Just over two minutes later, Preston extended their lead further. A long diagonal ball allowed left fullback Calum Woods to collect in an advanced position. His squad pass inside was perfect for Neil Kilkenny who unleashed a devastating 25-yard dart into the top corner.

‘Well lost their way for five minutes but a low stinging drive from Chalmers brought about the first of numerous excellent saves from Jones, who tipped the effort around the post.

The second half kicked off with both teams flashing shots off target, Chalmers for the Steelmen and Garner for the Lancashire side.

On loan Man Utd striker Will Keane came close with a header after a good cross from the right before Jones again denied Motherwell with a super stop to deny Johnson, who had found himself in acres of space after a nice Chalmers pass.

Then, four minutes later, Jones was at it again, making another superb stop to deny Scott McDonald from close range, pushing the Aussie striker’s shot onto the frame of the goal.

To be fair, down the other end, Dan Twardzik was keen not to be outdone and despite having little to do, he was sharp off his line to deny Beckford who had spring the ‘Well offside trap.

However, it wasn’t long before Jones was again in the spotlight, denying sub Lionel Ainsworth’s stinging drive at full stretch as the ball was heading for the top corner.

Motherwell continued to push, showed some excellent passing movement and attacking presence and finally got the goal their play deserved on the 89th minute. Jack Leitch’s clever ball over the top picked out Moult’s intelligent run, allowing the former Wrexham man to take and touch and finish beyond the seemingly unbeaten Jones.

It was the very least ‘Well deserved, but sadly there wasn’t enough time to get level as John Beaton soon brought the game to an end.

Motherwell: Twardzik, Hammell, Laing, McManus (Watt – 64mins), Pearson, Fletcher (Moult – 73mins), Johnson (Ainsworth – 68mins), Lasley (Clarkson – 73mins), Chalmers (Moore – 78mins), Law, McDonald (Leitch – 60mins)

Ticket prices and information for Friday’s pre-season friendly match against Preston can be confirmed.

Motherwell vs Preston North End
Friday 24th July 2015
The Energy Asset Arena, Livingston
Kick-off: 7pm

Tickets are priced at £10 for adults and £5 for concessions and juveniles, available on the gate at the stadium on the day of the match. ‘Well fans will be housed in the Main Stand at Livi.