Kmac

If we want to finish higher in the league than this season, neither Crawford or Lawless can be considered as starters. Both are adequate backup players however we need 6 nailed on starters brought in, those you mentioned, a new Keeper and reaplcements for Lawless and Crawford.

I agree, it does a disservice to dross world-wide

Fair point. The division will be tougher next year. The return of hearts will see them spend big and with County and / or accies likely gone will mean that bottom fodder will be smaller than for the past few years. This build will be crucial. Alexander already pointed to a smaller squad which most will agree on however it is absolutely essential that the board understand that does not equate to a reduction in spend (which I’m highly doubtful will be the attitude adopted). We need to invest hugely in putting in place a squad which has not only the ability to kick us into the top six next season but also one which has transition plans so we’re not left with another massive job the following summer.

I’m also not overly enamoured however the fact that he has managed to pull us to safety with 4 games to go, despite having one of, if not the, worst squads in the past 30 years is quite impressive. Yesterday, we were being dominated down our left - lawless isn’t a midfielder for a 3 and doesn’t complement long at all (or vice versa), but we changed it at half time. the trick now is to finish at high up the league as possible and get more prize money from a decent cup run; were not good enough to win it. This summer is the biggest transfer window I can remember as a Motherwell fan. We’ve got 9/10 players under contract, the majority of whom you would like to see as backup players (Lamie, Crawford, mugabe, lawless) at the most. That means Alexander has effectively got to go out and build a first 11 with a mixture of experienced pros and prospects. I get the feeling, this summer will be defining for the clubs next 10 years.

I never saw it coming, but we seem to be staying up. The chances of accies winning 4 on the trot and killie making up the difference is non existent.

We didn’t learn anything today we didn’t already know. We know that we aren’t good enough defensively. We know we lack quality. We know we’re lightweight in the middle of the park. All of these contributed to our downfall. Not good enough but not surprising. would I rather be in our position than the 3 below us? Yes. Do I think we’ll avoid the bottom spot? almost certainly. Do I think that it’ll be squeaky bum for 11th? Possibly. Do I think that this squad is riddled with players that aren’t good enough and a huge overhaul is required? Absolutely.

Does Eddie Nolan actually exist?

It's a fair point. If your 'hunch' is correct however it leaves me with about 50% fear for the summer. There is a mammoth rebuilding job to be done; not only in re-building a squad with arguably only 7/8 first team players on the books come June. We signed very well in Kelly and have unlocked something in Roberts however Magloire still gives me the fear (despite improved performances). The trick will be replacing our established players whom we all know to be comfortably good enough for this level, whilst not being worldbeaters (Gallagher, Campbell, O'Donnell etc). Hopefully GA will have learned enough and will learn enough between now and the end of the season to know that the squad rebuild has to contain a solid 7/8 stick on first team players that will first and foremost keep us in the division. On a side note, does anyone have some insight on Grimshaw and his illness?

I wonder how much money we are contributing towards the salary of Nolan and Smith? As for Foley, I'm assuming he isn't exactly one of our lower earners on a full time contract. The full thing seems bizarre with the bodies we brought in. I'm assuming most of them were prior arranged to Alexander and we went along with it - the strategy of singing non-fit players in January reeks of Foyle.

Excellent win

Huge win

Dug in well tonight which isn’t necessarily something I was expecting from this group. The return of Campbell in the middle gave us a bit of impetus in the middle of the park and showed (if it needed to be shown) what an absolute jersey robber Polworth is. Roberts contributed more tonight than Hastie has all season or Seedorf has in 2 years. Not great quality and we do look suspect at centre half but we showed a lot of effort. Credit to Watt who ran himself into the ground again. Might not have many lovers on here and didn’t play the best tonight but Maguire plays with heart for Motherwell and sometimes as a fan, it’s all you want to see. Could have performed much better but won’t fault the guy for commitment.

Magloire gees me the fear

I said it earlier and I will say it again. Something is rotten in the state of Motherwell.

This is a cross purposes argument. Are Gallagher, Campbell, O’Donnell et al. Strong enough to play for St Johnstone or most teams in the league, probably. That’s not the issue and isn’t my point. My point is that we have the perfect storm. Players with no affiliation to the club winding down their deals, short term players and loans. Ask yourself how many of those players are committed to Motherwell for the next 2-3 years unless someone comes in with a big bid and bigger salary and the answer is probably fewer than 10% of the squad.