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I don't think I'd be looking at isolated transfer fees without looking at the underlying data sets. Kieran Bowie wasn’t bought purely because of goals scored over a few seasons. Clubs don’t price attacking players on raw goal output alone, otherwise half the market would make zero sense. They look at things like age curve, contract position, physical profile, league-adjusted output, projected development trajectory, injury history, resale potential and expected value over the life of the contract. That’s why younger players consistently command premiums over better current players. If you look across Europe over the last 5 years or so, players aged between 18-22 routinely transfer for significantly more than players 25+ with better immediate output. That isn’t my opinion, that’s just how recruitment models work nowadays. Same with the Raskin comparison. He plays for Rangers, is younger, has European exposure almost every season, and is sitting in a completely different transfer ecosystem. The Old Firm market is not the Motherwell market. I know we don't like that, but it's the truth. If we strip emotion out of it and look at Just objectively, here’s the career profile a buying club is probably looking at: 26 years old Spent years moving between Danish first and second division football Spell in Austrian second tier One very strong season in Scotland 3 World Cup goals, which absolutely helps visibility Now compare that to what I believe recruitment departments call “transferable asset value”. At 26, a club buying Elijah probably gets 3–4 peak years. At 18 like Lennon Miller, a club potentially gets 10+ years plus a second sale. That future value gets priced in. I think where I disagree is this idea that “performance merits a £Xm valuation”. Football doesn’t work like that. If it did, loads of players would be worth far more than they eventually end up moving for. Recruitment departments are increasingly data-led these days. They model future value, they don't tend to reward past performance all that much. Personally, I think Just has been phenomenal for us. But if I was sitting in a recruitment department trying to build a valuation model, I’m not getting anywhere near £10m (or even £6 million) based on one excellent Scottish Premiership season and three World Cup goals in a group-stage exit. And that’s not talking him down. That’s just how the market tends to price these things in my opinion.

I can't be the only one checking in here more for incomings.. ?

Exactly I think sometimes people forget we're a football club and a commercial enterprise not a department of North Lanarkshire Social Work. It's all very well harping on about "ethos" and "values" but in the meantime we've got bills to pay.

Great shout. Here’s a photo of Hugh and his wife with the FA Cup in 1927 - he scored the only goal of the game for Cardiff City when they beat Arsenal 1-0.

That's the shortest essay you've ever written. Well done.

Sounds about right to me. Without doing all the sums, I was thinking a ballpark of around 4 million give-or-take, plus add-ons. Unless, as you say, we get lucky with a bidding war. Of course, we all know it's going to be "undisclosed" and we'll still be guessing after the deal is done.

Fair question, and at the risk of writing too many words for some people, I'll give it a go. I’d probably value it by separating the player from the deal structure. As far as the player goes, I think Just is excellent. He’s 26, coming off a very strong Premiership season, has World Cup visibility, plays in a valuable attacking role, and we are not under immediate pressure because he has two years plus the club option. That matters, although we do need to factor in what the player wants as well. On top of that, valuation still has to sit inside the market he’s being sold from. The closest benchmark for us is Lennon Miller at roughly £4.5m-£4.75m, but that was for an 18-year-old midfielder with major resale upside. Hibs getting around £6m upfront for Kieron Bowie is a useful comparison too, but Bowie is 23, a Scotland international, had strong resale value and there was Serie A interest. So for Just, I’d break it down like this: Basic fee: £3.5m-£4m Appearance add-ons: £500k-£750k European/international performance add-ons: £500k-£750k Future sale add-on or profit clause: 15%-20% Total package ceiling: around £5m-£5.5m if everything lands That, to me, is the realistic sweet spot. I don’t think £6m-£8m guaranteed is how buying clubs will price a 26-year-old winger from Motherwell, even after a brilliant World Cup. But I do think Motherwell should be pushing for a deal that lets us benefit if the buyer is right and he kicks on again. The buying club is gambling on that happening, so we should position ourselves to share in that if it does. So my number would be: £4m guaranteed, or as close to it as possible (no less than £3.5m), plus serious add-ons and a proper sell-on. Obviously, the higher our guaranteed ask is, the less we can ask for when it comes to add-ons, usually which is worth keeping in mind. I honestly think that’s recognising his value while structuring the deal properly so Motherwell aren’t left short if he proves he’s worth more. Obviously something mental such as a bidding war between two or more clubs desperate for him could happen, even if the chances are slim, but we can always hope!

Pros an cons for me: PROS. 1. It’s claret and amber. 2 It has a hoop 3. It’s got white shorts. 4. Compared to some clubs it’s seems sensibly priced. CONS 1. Claret socks go better with white shorts. 2. It has way too much advertising - almost as much as a F1 driver’s outfit. 3. What is the tiger for?

Maybe, but he's had one good season with us the year after his was deemed not good enough for his last club and punted out on loan to the Austrian second division. So if you're a buying club looking at his history, that will play into it. Do you get the 2025/26 verision or the 2024/25 version? There's no doubt he has been on fire, and was definitely my player of the season. The next thing he has to do is repeat it, and that's the punt his new club will be taking.

Celtic will get a lot more for Arne Engels than we will for Elijah Just. That's just a fact. Same with Raskin and Rangers. But the Miller transfer has set a new bar and I think Just is worth at least £6 million and possibly has high as £8 million. Just has performed at the highest, most elite level of the game, no Motherwell player has ever done that before and I think that should be reflected in the transfer fee. I've said before that the poor standard of Scottish football keeps transfer fees down and that in some cases transfer fees are actually over valued. You don't have to be that good to perform in this league and the step up to higher quality leagues is big. Elijah Just has completely blown that doubt away. His performances at the very top level have shown he can do it on the top tier.

I wonder if the away kit will be in lime.

But some people have an inflated opinion of their own?

As someone who doesn’t mind a centralised badge and prefers white shorts, this strip should be my cup of tea. Sadly, there’s too much going on with it. I’m very surprised we didn’t go with a cleaner looking home kit after last year’s muddle. Talking of surprises, how have we ended up with lucky tiger? Even if due diligence has been upped after recent experiences, surely we have the financial security and morals to limit sponsorship to organisations that are aligned to our community and family values?

It’s got a hoop and white shorts 💝

If I didn't already know I was too old to be wearing the new shirt, the music on the release video would have reminded me. I'm off to have a lie down and listen to some Jesus and Mary Chain.

Some folk will hate the shorts while others will think they are grrrrrrrrreeeeaaaaaatttttttttt! 🤪

I'm in favour of white shorts, they are our traditional short colour. Also the best strip design we've had in my lifetime had white shorts. However the overall design looks way too busy. Sponsors and logos plastered everywhere and just way too much going on. It's kinda like they said 'How can we make a 'tradition Motherwell kit' and give it loads of design features to make it modern and unique and then just kept sticking them on long past the point that it made sense. It's still better than two seasons ago but that's about the most positive thing I can say.

Well, I've finally finished my personal 100. A very hard and subjective task. Everyone will have different views but I took into account the number of appearances; number of goals scored (where applicable); international recognition; and trophy winners. It was especially hard to rate players I'd never seen in the flesh and those of bygone times, some of whom I hadn't heard of. I had to rely written accounts of our early players. The chances are, if I started again I'd come up with something slightly different. How do you rate someone who made many appearances for our club i.e. a stalwart such as Willie MacCallum against a brief but brilliant "shooting star" like Lennon Miller? Personal bias also came into it. Incidentally, Louis Moult came in at 101. 1 Hughie Ferguson 2 Bobby Ferrier 3 George Stevenson 4 Alan McClory 5 Willie McFadyen 6 Hugh Wales 7 Alan Craig 8 Ben Ellis 9 Willie Telfer 10 Johnny McMenemy 11 Johnny Johnman 12 Johnny Murdoch 13 John Blair 14 Andy Paton 15 Willie Redpath 16 Willie Kilmarnock 17 Archie Shaw 18 Johnny Johnston 19 Jimmy Watson 20 Archie Kelly 21 Johnny Aitkenhead 22 Joe Wark 23 Steve Kirk 24 Davie Cooper 25 Willie Rankin 26 Ian St John 27 Willie Hunter 28 Bert McCann 29 Wilson Humphries 30 Willie Pettigrew 31 Chris McCart 32 Jim Forrest 33 Bobby Graham 34 Dougie Arnott 35 Phil O'Donnell 36 Tom Boyd 37 Charlie Aitken 38 Pat Quinn 39 Andy Weir 40 Tommy Sloan 41 Ally Maxwell 42 Charlie Cox 43 Eli Just 44 Lennon Miller 45 Paul Lambert 46 Craig Paterson 47 Luc Nijholt 48 John Martis 49 James McFadden 50 Scott MacDonald 51 Tom Forsyth 52 David Turnbull 53 Steve Hammell 54 Keith Lasley 55 Stephen Craigan 56 Rab MacKinnon 57 Keith McRae 58 Darren Randolph 59 Joe McBride 60 Brian Martin 61 Martyn Corrigan 62 Colin Hampton 63 Donald Mcleod 64 John Gahagan 65 Duncan Ogilvie 66 Gary MacAllister 67 Stephen O'Donnell 68 Bobby Watson 69 Dixie Deans 70 Iain Gardiner 71 Tommy Coyne 72 KVV 73 Hugh McNeil 74 Craig Brown 75 Willie MacCallum 76 George Nicol 77 David Clarkson 78 Robert Stewart 79 Peter Millar 80 Bobby Russell 81 Willie McSeveney 82 Davie Whiteford 83 Bobby MacCallum 84 Pat Delaney 85 Stephen Pearson 86 Peter McCloy 87 Mio Krivocapic 88 Gregor Stevens 89 Graham Forbes 90 Francis McStay 91 George Robertson 92 Hutton Bremner 93 Bobby Roberts 94 Vic Davidson 95 Gordon Bremner 96 Tommy Mackenzie 97 Dick Little 98 Duncan Finlayson 99 Jackie Hunter 100 Walter Cowan

No 1 for me is a no brainer. Hughie Ferguson.

Fingers crossed it's not white shorts. I detest Motherwell strips with white shorts.