Leaderboard

Just read through the thread and by God we have some funny folk on here. If that yesterday wasnt entertainment at football what is? The celebrations from all at end was brilliant. Livi were miles better 1st half but start of 2nd ohara won a couple of balls shields couple of runs and some chances and I thought we are back in this then their 2nd killed us. Well done young team keeping their singing going after 2 down as I've no doubt this encouragement was a factor in what was a great exciting last 20 from us. As you can guess I really enjoyed yesterday . 5 big games ahead and a wee mini league of 3 with united and County where top 2 can get europe likely is certainly more exciting than boring nothing games in bottom 6.

Aberdeen and Hibs have fired relatively successful managers for not playing 'attractive' football and paid the consequences. I think fans need to be careful about what they wish for. Shaun Maloney is playing a different kind of football to Alexander and they are worse than us and have hardly had a shot at goal the whole time he's been there. Alexander is undoubtedly a football pragmatist but I think given the quality of the squad, which is poor, I think he's done a decent job. I think a lot of our fans are a bit parochial. They are blaming Alexander for issues that are endemic to the whole of Scottish game and that are the result of unhalted regression over decades. No one is saying we are a great team or great to watch but I think that's more than a bit unfair and some cases completely delusional.

Here's the thing, you know what's entertaining getting top 6 with an injury time equaliser. One of the best games at Fir Park was pumping new rangers 3-0 in the play off. Were we good that season? No. Did we produce a moment that made it all worthwhile? I'd say so. If you're not enjoying the games anymore it may be more to do with you than what's on the park because the overall quality is much the same as it has been over the past 15 years.

Alexander took over - saved us from probably relegation then finishes Top 6 this season beating out teams like Aberdeen and Hibs with massive budget advantages. Yet we get absolutely roasters on here going on about protests, sacking the manager etc. It's embarrassing. You guys know people read this? A bunch of people on here need to have a long hard look at themselves. I'm happy as a fan, I'm happy for the team and manager and I'm happy that a lot of so called supporters are actually bealing that the team got the result today.

My point is you can usually make stats say whatever you want them to say. Im not arguing that GA should be sacked . I was very supportive of his appointment and although I have been teetering on the edge for quite some time, he got us over the line and met the target he was set by the club. For that he deserves the opportunity to build on and improve our current position. But lets not paper over the cracks. Balance works both ways.

It's the points gained from those " without a win" games that ensured we stayed in 4th place for so long despite being brutal and ensured a top 6 finish, Tierney's goal at St Mirren, woolery at Ibrox . The league table does not lie after 33 games the best 6 teams in the country are there on merit and we are one of them.

Many posters on this forum have been groaning about our style of play - eye-bleeding is one that comes to mind. Now that we’ve scrambled into the top 6 many of those same posters are now trotting out the “ends justify the means” argument. Sorry but that’s hypocrisy. You can’t have it both ways. Eye-bleeding football and a top 6 finish or attractive football and no top 6 finish. Football is supposed to be in the entertainment business and in the current difficult economic climate fans may need to start rationing their attendance at matches. However I would argue that this may be less likely to occur if clubs were more consistent, entertaining and attractive to watch. Quite honestly, Scottish football is as poor as it’s ever been as witness by the number of teams from Hearts down who have unable to show any level of consistency and are producing shitfest football every week and the powers that be are happy enough with this as long as it keeps the big two happy and on side.

Absolutely delighted that we’ve managed to get a top six finish . That was a brutal watch today but the important thing for me was we kept going . As a Well fan I’m delighted as it keeps the season from dying and still got something to play for . Also I’m sure the board will be happy with the money so a win win However this has been a difficult watch this season and for me not enough football being played ironically onthe best surface we’ve ever had at FP . For me looking ahead to next season we need to play more football on the deck and need better crosses /delivery from the wings . Also need to address the defence as it looks leaky .Anyway that’s not for tonight . Im of to celebrate with a wee drink and toast to my team . The Well . We did it ,not sure how ,but right now I don’t give a feck .

I would expect Tuesday or Wednesday

Bevis isn't good, but I can't help but like him. The big awkward bastard exorcised the demons of the last time he played up front at livi by making two goals happen by sheer presence. He gets the nod from me because Lamie is a quitter. Kelly in second for his platoon celebration. Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk

Im no fan of GA or the dross we watch but football is a results business, nothing else matters. Therefore he will have probably over delivered on the remit the club will have given him. For that he deserves credit.

I played at left back too. I'd have pointed out that Goss and Lamie should both have won their tackles before letting Forrest play the through ball for the first goal.

Overall, he got us top six with a genuine chance of 4th, while also sucking the joy out of the game. I doubt that the latter will be remembered when tickets go on sale for our euro home clash against Albania's (4th) finest. I wonder if he'll chuck on the reserves for the early European games if we get in, since he won't have the league cup to mess around with. Fair play to GA for sticking to his methods, which ultimately worked. Who knows if it's just pure luck or moneyball data driven magic. It's also clear that the players are sticking to what they're told, we don't panic and we have shown great resolve to push through this shite run and get ourselves back into games where previous teams would have chucked it. It doesn't feel like there's still five games left. Even though there's some interest left, with Europe, finishing above T.Watt, and maybe screwing up a title challenge for someone, I'm already in close season mode. Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk

I’d be very surprised if the defence next season is anything like this one. We need to start with a genuine leader at the back ( god I would have a Hartley back). Left back needs sorting and even at right back we don’t seem that strong although SOD should be more than enough on paper.

there must be someone else who can play left back, as you say cost us again yesterday with yet another half hearted attempt at a tackle.

2 games

Well I absolutely think you should always be pushing to improve, but despite the naysayers, we have improved. We've gone from relegation certainties to safety to Top 6. I will be looking for improvement next season. We need better players and better technical ability on the pitch and better performances. But given the improvement we have shown I think the manager should get the opportunity to do so.

Its been a strange season and even with 5 games to go I don't know what to make of it. A poor (but maybe experimental) league cup campaign; a great first half to the league season; a terrible second half to it so far; a quarter final exit in the Scottish Cup; a top 6 finish; and not playing attractive football. A real mixed bag. Statistically, a successful season in my book and the club will benefit financially. All this set in the context of a Covid pandemic and all the consequences that has brought for football. GA was on the point of losing my support but he has redeeemed things somewhat in the last fortnight. His team seelction and tactics have been unfathomable at times and style of play unattractive. However I remember Tommy MacLean's early teams and those of Jim MacLean at Tannadice so they set things in context. My expectations for entertainment are fairly modest compared to many I suppose. We have some contunuity now and that will help going forward. My hope is that GA works in the coming months to fine tune the squad - get rid of non performers and stiffen the defence (a priority in my view). We have the basis of a good midfield but the attack needs some work. I also hope that he brings a slightly more attractive style of play to the club. His relationship and communication with the fans needs a bit of work. All told though, he's done the business on the field.

Delighted to be in the top six and what a moment to make it. I would not have left the game happy if we had ended up top 6 by losing but other results going our way, so glad it played out the way it did. Didn't think I'd say this a year ago but lamie is by far our best defender, sad to see him leaving and he has proven to be very professional since signing PCA with Dundee. But it does concern me to watch the third first team regular sign for a rival in 1 season. Can't lie it has been a frustrating half season. The sale of watt for a few quid could have ended up costing us a hell of a lot more. The omission of slattery was baffling, his return is the reason we are where we are now. The repeatedly flat midfield. The dropping of woolery as soon as he hits some form. The defensive errors have been comical. Saving subs till 80+ minutes. I could point to many other frustrations which make it easy to see why so many are calling for the manager to go. Had we not been in this position, I would be too. This buys him some time for me, but mistakes need to be learned from. For his flaws GA does have other good management qualities which kept us up last season and got us into a great position up until the last few months and let's not forget managers can learn and improve too, we need to see this though. How we perform the end of this season and start next will be critical in that sense. We got away with it this season but we can't go a full round of league fixtures picking up 5 points and expect to remain in the league. As it happens we are where we are. Weird that we're there but hey ho, let's see what we can make of it. Hopefully now the pressure of a poor league placing is off we can try a few things, set up and play a bit more freely. 4th is very achievable.

I really don't think it's a matter of fans (and I include myself in this) being unhappy that we made top six. What I can't get my head around is that people seem to think there is a choice to be mde between playing decent fitba' and losing and playing shite fitba' and winning. Do you seriously think that over the course of a season, playing five defenders, two midfielders and three up front, pumping the ball back to front and trying to defend on the odd occasion we score would win us games ? In the first half of the season, at times we may not have looked great (or even good) but we won games and got the bulk of our points with a midfield on the park that sometimes saw the ball. What does everyone consider our best performance of the season ? For me, it was against Hearts, where we pressed high and passed the ball. If we can do that against the 3rd best team in the league, we can do it against Ross County and Livingston. After Watt left, Alexander went into this spiral of stupid formations (especially in the cup against Hibs), chopping and changing defenders etc. The way some people are describing our 'top six success' you would think that not winning for three months and playing hoofball was a necessary component of that success. If we played our best players in their best positions, against the majority of the SPL, we'd be better than them. Not making stupid formation changes and using the ball properly would have got us top six a lot sooner. Box to box punts for 90 mins died along with Airdrie.

In normal circumstances, a goal with the last act of the game to take us into the top six would have been met with utter delight and delight alone however I, like many others, believe it may just have prolonged a problem. There is no escaping the fact that we are AWFUL to watch. In a season littered with poor performances, yesterday was approaching top 3 greatest hits material. Again, time and again, I come back to the board. Record earnings last year, no debt, budgeting for 10th and now finishing minimum 6th (an extra 300/400k) - extra post split gate money from at least one of the uglies. How do we plan to use it? For me, giving Alexander another summer to rebuild the squad shouldn’t be on the cards as it will simply alienate the support base even further given his style of football and THAT is what we cannot afford. We’re going to need virtually an entire new back line and midfield next season and a starting center forward - he isn’t the man I’d trust to do that in a way that will A) ensure we stay in the league B) Be open to change enough to refocus the style of play to something that doesn’t boil the blood

Not for long mate

The last few months of Robinson were "eye bleeding". I've posted many times about how, like most clubs our size, the only reason we watch is to be entertained. Our chances of winning anything are slim to none, so enjoyment is key. Football being football, however, you can't guarantee that at Fir Park (or at, for example, Old Trafford). That's part of the fun. Entertainment, for me, isn't just about seeing fast flowing attractive football every week - although that would be ideal. It's also about watching managers develop players, watching new players evolve, watching youngsters come through, watching players adapt etc. Then there is bringing in a new manager that has never managed in Scotland before. If you remember, early on he tried to play out from the back before discovering that Scottish players and Scottish football struggled with that. So had to change tactics. Then with Covid and major injury and fitness issues, we've struggled to field consistent starting line-ups. Again, for me, that is part of the interest of watching a team like ours. It's been a struggle in 2022. but somehow we've managed to get top 6 with just one win. You can argue with the quality of play today, but you can't complain about the character and commitment to get that equaliser. If you can combine that mentality with better players then there should be improvement. Now that GA is completing his first full season I'd expect him to apply his lessons learned to recruitment, training and tactics for next season. If he doesn't, then we need to have the conversation about replacing him. If he does, then it was well worth keeping him around. I assume, since we extended his contract, there are no plans to ditch him. As I said earlier in the thread, there were many people on here wanting Tommy Wright to take over last time around. If you want eye-bleeding football he's certainly your man, but he proved pretty quickly at Killie he would have been the wrong man. Likewise, if fans had had their way, Wee Tommy would have been sent packing in his first couple of season and we'd never have had that success. I remember people complaining about McCall's style of play when we were finishing 2nd and 3rd in the league. I pointed out then you should enjoy it and remember it because we tend to be a 7th or 8th best kinda team and that level of success wouldn't last. This has been a weird Covid season. Not as weird as last season, but it's still had an impact on training, on match days and on killing off the reserve/youth teams which has hampered development. It's certainly not been a classic, but if we finish above 6th, it's been OK. Especially given all the chat pre-season that there would only be one top six spot up for grabs after Aberdeen and Hibs took 4th and 5th. In fact, based on my last 50+ years of watching, it's probably slightly above average. But that doesn't mean I don't want it to improve on the run-in and next season. First things first, though - let's get 2 or 3 wins post-split and see where that takes us.

I also think Callum Slattery is an amazing footballer and I am really happy that he got the first goal.

Great goal by Slattery

I don’t go to away games these days, I’m maybe in the minority but I hope Alexander stays. As someone else said we were in free fall before he took over. It would be ridiculous to sack him just now. Top six even if it’s by the skin of our teeth. I was watching the scores online and when county scored I thought that was it but even if we did play rubbish football today in previous seasons if we had gone 2-1 down I think we would have struggled to get the equaliser . Of course people want to watch entertaining football but it’s results that matter and hopefully next season we will be playing like Brazil , (joking, hopefully next season things will gel a lot better). We never do things the easy way but that’s Motherwell (and we also lost Watt although he hasn’t exactly been banging the goals in for Utd). Sorry that Lamie is leaving.

I believe that pretty much everyone on here is happy that the team did enough to achieve a top 6 finish. I can see exactly why so many are dissatisfied with the way the team play though. There is no entertainment on offer. There is no structure to the team, there is no movement, there is very little interplay and defensively the team is very soft. The results in the first half of the season made the excruciating brand of football bearable and covered up many of the flaws, but it was never entertaining. I am thoroughly fed-up watching the way we play. It would cost too much for Motherwell to change the manager. We all need to accept that he'll be here for a while yet, but as supporters that pay good money to keep the club afloat, entertainment must come higher up the list of priorities. So, while he isn't going anywhere soon, he needs to be told to find another way to play the game. Just as Motherwell cannot afford to get rid of any manager while on a long contract, losing core support is equally as possibly more economically harmful to the club. I for one am hoping for more entertainment in the final 5 games. Over to GA and the team to deliver.

For the first time in 40 years I reckon I’ll be picking and choosing my games if that the case.

Those players will move on and Alexander will be gone soon enough, but we'll remember the wee victories like today. You might as well enjoy them, cos the big victories don't come around too often.

90mins shitfest. Livi should have been out of sight not long into the 2nd half but all credit to the players for fighting to the end and getting the result we needed. Scenes at the end will stay with me a long, long time. What supporting the 'Well is all about.

100% this. How we got there was not pretty and perhaps even lucky. But we are top 6 and Aberdeen and Hibs are not despite their bigger budgets. So if we have had a shite season what have they had. I am away to enjoy my evening unlike some miserable sods on here.

Monday: "It's all about the result" Tuesday: "It's all about the result" Wednesday: "It's all about the result" Thursday: "It's all about the result" Friday: "It's all about the result" Saturday Morning: "It's all about the result" Saturday Afternon: "We got the result" Saturday Evening: BOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

First of all who the fuck are you ? Second, get it right up you.

Happy clappy club back. Changes fuck all or the valid points that have been made.