Motherwell 3 - 0 Hearts: Well set for separating the big two
Nicky Law leaps over a Ryan McGowan tackle. Picture: SNS
LAST weekend there were 19 points between Motherwell and the prospect of Champions League qualifiers, but by the end of a tumultuous week and a 90 minutes which saw them seize the initiative and the momentum, Stuart McCall’s men sit just six points adrift of Rangers, further buoyed by the knowledge that they also have a game in hand.
Almost as importantly they have also stretched their lead over fourth-placed Hearts to nine points as they reassert their status as best of the rest in this season’s SPL campaign.
“We knew how important this was. Hearts could have reduced it to three points but we have now made it nine,” said the Fir Park manager, who was still not willing to admit they are now genuine contenders to split the Old Firm. “We knew we had two massive games against the Edinburgh teams, with Hibs next up on Wednesday, and if we can now win that one as well then that’s us 12 points clear of Hearts and we know that’s a big gap at this stage of the season.
“But we can’t get carried away. If we can keep playing like that and it brings us the points then we will see where that takes us.”
With all that is going on round about them, the last thing Rangers need is a side like Motherwell breathing down their necks. Especially as this is a team that has no qualms about going in for the kill if they get the slightest whiff of blood.
They have proven that already this term, previously fending off St Johnstone when they threatened their claim to third place, and they underlined it yesterday as they dismantled Hearts. A match that had been finely poised, a whirlwind end to the first half saw them net two goals in three minutes to take control of proceedings. Even after they went down to ten men in the 51st minute and with Hearts aware that a comeback goal could see the pendulum swing in their favour, the home outfit were still able to turn the screw.
The sustained pressure paid off in the 65th minute when they got a killer third goal which, despite Paulo Sergio players’ recent penchant for late fightbacks, effectively ended any hopes of the points being shared.
Motherwell had started with an intensity which threatened to burn their visitors. In the fourth minute Hearts keeper Jamie MacDonald had to make a double save from Henrik Ojamaa, left, and then Steve Jennings. Surviving that scare, Hearts managed to get into the game and aside from the early initiation of the feisty Keith Lasley v Ian Black battle in the middle of the park, which would ultimately prove costly for the home captain, there was a paucity of noteworthy action. Some decent play from the home side, who were aided by a bit of indecision in the Hearts rearguard, gave them a slight territorial advantage, but there was a bit of a stalemate until Motherwell found the breakthrough in the 38th minute. Ironically it came just after Hearts had mustered a decent break, with Ryan McGowan charging past Tim Clacy to drive a low shot across goal and just narrowly past the far post.
The opener came from a Tom Hateley corner in, which rattled around the Hearts penalty box with no-one able to clear and when Lasley fired a pacy ball into the six yard box, Andy Webster couldn’t get out the way and deflected it into his own net.
Three minutes later and Motherwell looked thoroughly at ease as they doubled their tally. This time it was a beautiful wee chipped pass in from Lasley and Jamie Murphy’s header looped up and then ducked just in off the underside of the bar. “I’m disappointed with the result and the performance. We gave ourselves problems,” said the Hearts boss, who said it would be unfair to even expect his side to be finishing third given the loss of what he described as three key players in January. “For the first goal, we could have got the ball away three times but three times we didn’t put it out of our box and it was an own goal. For the second goal, Lasley was all alone with no player near him and it was an easy goal for Motherwell.
“Even when we played against ten men they found the space and did their jobs very well.”
They gained the extra man advantage in the 51st minute when Lasley again tackled Black and, for the second time, referee Alan Muir deemed it a bookable offence.
But even then Motherwell were searching and passing and out-playing their guests in the creative and competitive stakes. Sergio put that down to weariness in the ranks. Bemoaning a small squad, he said that too many players seemed drained of the explosiveness, their pace and their verve and insisted he was looking forward to a full week off between fixtures in the hope it would help recharge batteries.
If Hearts were running on empty, the sight of Ojamaa constantly running at them, beating two, three and four men at a time, must have been the stuff of nightmares, while the movement of the men tucking in behind him in midfield was simply a recipe for greater misery.
It was the Estonian who charged through maroon-bedecked bodies to open things up for the third goal, eventually playing in Murphy, who fed it on to Nicky Law and the midfielder finally got the goal his play had merited. Denied by the post and narrowly sending another effort just over the bar, when the ball came to him in virtually the same position, coming in at an angle from the right, in the 65th minute, he buried it.
He hailed the performance as his team’s best of the season. “We felt this was the biggest game of our season so far and it has been a perfect day for us all round. The way we played made it easier than we would have thought it would be. But no, we’ve not spoken about catching Rangers.”
They might not have spoken about it, but after this performance many others are.
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Comments
There are 78 comments to this article
Page 1 of 6
Hannon
Monday, February 20, 2012 at 09:57 AM#76 Resort to personal insults and inaccuracies again ( part-timer allegation that you can't back up but feel necessary to share with others in relation to me). No change to form there then. A wee reality check over last few league games, as Sergio warned, for some of you which has obviously stung quite a few. I see many starting to question the manager ( in my opinion unfairly given the circumstances he is working under) What a difference a few weeks make. Great how your perception of banter changes when you are dishing it out as opposed to being on receiving end.
First Green
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 11:38 PMSoon be 25 days till next pay day for Hearts players. Sellouts in home matches against DU and St Mirren won`t create enough cash so are 201213 season tickets already on sale?
Hen Broon
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 09:14 PMHANNON.......along with the other lessons that I would have thought a man of your age should have learned by now is that what goes around comes around! Hence why no it was not an informative or objective post it was me poking a bit of light hearted fun at the muppets who posted on here post Hearts defeats to Celtic & Well . You being one of the muppets.Unlike you (with Hearts dfeats) I was not delighted......apart from anything else I had a wee bet on Hibs.....so thats a double for me this weekend......what i thought would be an EDINA double ended up as a double humiliation!
what a chancer
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 08:55 PMdoes the s.f.a not need a stronger league or just a back to same old one where the same two get the big slice of pie as always,its a shame that we are going the same route as spain,even the district councils there get involved promoting the clubs barca and real.sad is it not,but who cares if your not one of the bullies.
what a chancer
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 08:48 PMso this is how its done.........company called A is in a spot of bother how can we sort this out.....why dont we sell all assests on for a value x.....to major shareholder.and we rent all assests back on a yearly £ ok now if anything goes wrong we fold always pay bills apart from tax man seeing he is one of the biggest bills we have to face up.so if we go to admim or closure it will be points loss, this is a fantastic idea. can the same people run the club again oh yes no probs do we keep all titles and cups and monies ,yes the whole lot even a cut to the share holders aye.well what are we waiting for .
jambo2006
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 08:42 PM#71 ouch...your pain is evident ! they do say when your hurting you lash out at those closest to you, but for god sake man were 8 places and 17pts above you...do you blame Hearts when your late for work ffs ?
disenchanted
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 08:40 PM#71 Is domination by one team any worse than domination by two ? Picture a football world without Rangers over the last 20 years - an opportunity for the likes of Hearts, Dundee Utd, Motherwell etc to share in the potential riches of Champions League football - who's to say one of these teams could not have competed with Celtic, and who's to say fans, TV, sponsors etc. wouldn't have been excited by these events and ploughed even more money into the game without the religous bigotry and hatred that stains our game today ! Better still - picture Scottish Football without the bigotry and hatred of two old firm teams. I apologise in advance to the good supporters of both teams.
Hannon
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 08:19 PM#66 Is that another informative and objective post for which you are applauded? As posted on another (Hibs) article Hibs were a complete disgrace today and yes as I stated in more detail Celtic could well have added double their tally. We are deep in it and any optimism from last two displays was well and truely blown away. Some promising displays from new players gave us hope lately but that will evaporate quickly if today's "efforts" are repeated against those around us in the league. For an objective and lauded poster you seem to be highly delighted in events at ER today. Is that some consolation for the Hearts display yesterday? I agree that Celtic took their foot off the gas after game was won, but I see little difference today from their performance at Tynie the other week. With Hearts being the real challengers to the OF do you not find that concerning? Scottish Football has been in decline for some years now but with the demise of Rangers do you really want a 1 horse race year on year. From my viewpoint most teams cannot afford the investment to challenge Celtic and unless Vlad sees an opportunity Hearts will be in the same situation as others - net result domination for the foreseeable future for Celtic. Is that good for Scottish Football? Bear in mind we won't always have 2 champions league places so that won't be an incentive.
disenchanted
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 08:05 PM#60 - I don't know if there were hate filled songs yesterday, but I wouldn't be surprised. What really concerns me is the politicians and media who bang on about the importance of Rangers and their place as a key component in the fabric of Scottish society. Really !!! Well if that is true then god help us all and what a sad statement on the condition of our society if that is true - sadly I think it is. Tax evasion, tax avoidance, bigotry etc. Get rid of them - end of !
jambo64
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 07:51 PMwhat in the hell is going on at Tynecastle? we cannot beat a 10 man Motherwell side its not the first time this season we have failed to beat a ten man side either, alright, motherwell has proven to be a good side this season, but having the advantage of having the extra man should have given us some sort of hope, as usual, we struggled, has rominov been doing the team selections again? my weekend was made worse when Torquay united lost home to Bradford city 2-1, still, all was not lost however HIBS 0 CELTIC 5 YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
ferguson's rocket
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 07:45 PM#66 i hear moira's going for 'effervescent hibs bubble to the bottom'.... a potential winner there i think - at last moira's getting the attention she deserves... agree with #65 - seems to me we started with the team we should have finished with. motherwell romped it - i think they'll be racking up some goals in their next few games...
jambo2006
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 07:33 PM#66 Hen Broon...i'm finding it difficult to see in footballing terms what they can cling on to this week...maybe if Beattie doesnt sign for us that'll kick start their season v Well on weds lmao 2 away matches....M-well are flying and killie on a high after beating the gers....the hibs are doombed i tell ye dooooombed
Hen Broon
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 06:53 PMJambo 2006...i can have a wee laugh because its a jambo thread frequented by Jambos & tormented muppets......BATHGATES headline .......RESURGENT HIBS HOLD CELTIC TO 5 & HOLD ONTO 11th SPOT IN THE SPL......just as well Celtic played at half pace.......mind you WELL might take another 5 of Hibs midweek & resurg Hibs to rock bottom. Sorry genuine Hibbies thats for the muppets !!!!!
StockportJambo
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 06:08 PMMotherwell were well organised, ruthless, and deserved the win. Hearts were jaded, toothless and apathetic... and I don't buy the Sergio excuse that we were tired. If we're tired (and Paulo knew we were long before the game) - use the squad! We're supposed to be blooding youngsters as they are the future of our cash-strapped club, but where were they?
busbyfth
Sunday, February 19, 2012 at 05:56 PMFunniest thing on tv the afternoon - Gary O'Connor's tan - makes Jimmy Calderwood's look realistic !!!!!!!!!!!
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