David

I think if you look at his record to now, the amateur accusation is perfectly valid. He played for a largely terrible Vancouver Whitecaps side that finished 23rd & 17th overall in the two seasons he played double figures for them. He managed three goals in three seasons. He then moved on to HamKam in the Norwegian 2nd tier, where he hit four goals in 17 games. At St Johnstone he scored 1 goal in 33 games. Now, I understand everyone is getting all giddy because he scored two against Livi and got another against Hibs, but as I said, it'll take more than a wee purple patch of a couple of decent games to really change my mind. And again, I hope he does. If he goes on to repeat those performances and manages to grab another two or three goals then I'll be a happy camper. But you're right, we are where we are. And so long as we continue to sign players largely based on "gut instincts" and having a checklist that consists of him being "an honest professional" and "running his socks off" we likely won't see much improvement. Well, I said that his stats and career average suggested anywhere between 3-5 goals for us. So, he's hit that. Hopefully he can do above average numbers for us. He's been a halfway decent player, who has done more than the extremely low bar we all set for him, in a very poor Motherwell team. Credit where it's due I guess?

Okay, a footballer at the level we should be signing and playing. I feel many think he's done relatively well based on the fact that the bar was so low with him to begin with. Basically, he's done okay-ish in possibly the worst Motherwell team I've seen in many a year. If that's good enough for you then that's perfectly fine. I still don't rate him, and definitely not enough to warrant a two-year contract. It'll take more than two or so games where he looks decent to change my mind on that front.

It hasn't changed much really. I said before a ball was kicked that I reckoned he'd get us around 4-5 goals this season. He's played a couple of good games, and hopefully he kicks on from that. I doubt he will, but you never know. From almost the start of the season until the Livi game he looked like someone who tries really hard but doesn't actually accomplish much. And that's in a terrible team. But again, hopefully he confounds all the stats and miraculously becomes a footballer at the age of 24.

Kettlewell is known for his love of Canadian amateur-level players. He hangs his hat on those kinds of signings.

Like Biereth, who had played 13 games and is only 20?

He didn't mention in his statement specifics about the YouTube video either, did he? It will be a multi-faceted approach. I pretty much guarantee this to be the case, because for it not to be would be a complete farce. And as much as our board maybe doesn't have the best track record of late, they're not absolute morons. Yes, but how do you get the word out that the club is seeking additional investment? The Chairman and CEO making a statement isn't going to do anything to get said statement in front of people, is it? As I've said already, it will more than likely be a multi-faceted approach. The social media campaign is designed to get the club and our message in front of people. The video has been seen almost 2.5 million times on Twitter, which is an excellent return considering the club account has 60,000 followers. It has also been retweeted by Tom Green, bizarrely. An actor, director and comedian from Canada with a Twitter reach of around 300,000 of his own. So, despite criticism of the video itself, we cannot deny that it's doing what it was created to do. Draw attention. It's then the job of those who run the club to turn any interested parties drawn from that attention into a potential investor. That's where the written business plan and strategy document you mention would come into play. None of the above can exist on an island. They all have to co-exist for the campaign to be successful.

Or at least sponsor us. Imagine that? Tesla on the shirts, Kettlewell, O'Donnell and Mugabi cutting about North Lan in those horrific Tesla trucks?

It's doing really well on X, but it could also have been doing a lot better on YouTube as well, which would have went on to further boost those numbers. More views on YouTube usually results in more people sharing videos to X. It's all a huge digital circular economy in that regard.

As I said before, look at most smaller company/brand advertising on television during the ad break of any TV show. They usually come off as cringe-worthy. But there's a reason for that. The only mistake I think the club made is in spending time coming up with this really imaginative video, and then using the blandest YouTube video title of all time. "WHY YOU SHOULD INVEST IN THIS FOOTBALL CLUB" That is piss poor. It has zero keyword value. The whole idea of this video is to try to make it go viral and get it out there. That title does absolutely none of that.

I seriously doubt that one single YouTube video is the outcome of the "large amount of work and numerous discussions" that have taken place. It'll be part of it, but it won't be the only thing that's done.

So, the club should just not bother looking to expand the support or attract outside investment? Just say "fuck it, it'll never happen, so who cares?" Honestly, if they did that? I'd consider it negligent.

Again, it's not an either/or situation. I'd hope we're coming at the issue from a number of different angles.

It's supposed to achieve exactly what we're doing here right now. Discussion and attention. I'm sure the club are still going down that route. It's not an either/or situation.

Also, the mention of Taylor Swift was a great touch. She's been all over the media at the moment, both because of her new love interest in the NFL and Jo Koy making a joke about her at the Golden Globes. Even a minuscule percentage of the current Taylor Swift internet traffic mentioning some mid-level "soccer" club from Scotland having a wee boy make a funny remark about her in a video ad will be more interest than we normally see on any other videos we put out there. I just hope the media team have tagged Swift in the video keywords on YouTube. I imagine they will have.

The first thing I'd say is that it would be worth looking at what kind of advertising we all see daily. Think about the amount of stuff on television during the ad breaks that we think "bloody hell, that's ridiculous" only to then be humming the daft tune from it while messing about the house, or mentioning it in conversation later. Unless you're a top-level brand like Nike, Adidas or Apple you really can't take yourself too seriously in any ad campaigns. That's the first thing I'd be telling the club if I was working on that project. The kind of ad we put out has a good chance of working on a few levels: Relatability: We're using a self-deprecating type of humour to acknowledge the challenges or stereotypes associated with mid-sized clubs in the football world. By doing so, we hope to become more relatable to potential small investors who appreciate the club's humility and authenticity. Memorability: Using humour in advertisements can make campaigns more memorable. Creating funny and memorable content, especially if it involves self-deprecating elements, could increase the likelihood of the target audience remembering and sharing the content. Differentiation: Acknowledging the limitations or common perceptions of mid-sized clubs like ours can help Motherwell stand out. By humorously addressing these aspects, the club can demonstrate a unique and self-aware identity, setting itself apart from larger or more prestigious football clubs. Basically, we know what we are and what we are not. Audience Engagement: Like it or not, humorous and silly content tends to generate higher engagement on social media platforms. The club is likely looking to leverage an ad like this to create engaging content that resonates with fans (not just Motherwell fans, I may add), encouraging them to share, comment, and actively participate in the online community. Now, I know there'll be people who disagree, but that's basically how it works. And it's an approach that has been successful for many companies, which is why they use it. it's not an exact science, of course, and the ad itself will only work if the club get it right with distribution channels and then manage to provide a serious front when someone gets in touch, by way of a pitch deck or business and investment plan. The ad is only the gateway. A way to get eyeballs and attention, however that comes about doesn't really matter.

Again, if you think a club like Motherwell, where our starting eleven quality isn't all that great due to finances, can afford better than Maguire as a backup, then I'm not really sure what to tell you.

Completely discounting the second part of the statement, I agree with the first. What Kettlewell did last season doesn't really come into how we should act this season. He has a 19% win rate in the league, which isn't great, but more important for me is that we're currently on course to finish the league campaign in 9th or 10th if we continue as we are. And that's if we don't really improve at all, and finish the season with around 7 wins and 14 draws. Going by the points tallies in the past five seasons (discounting the Covid season) that should be enough to see us finish 9th or 10th. 11th spot would be outside the average, but of course is still possible if unlikely. But bear in mind, the above is based on us continuing this season as we have been. I don't know if we could get worse. I do think we could see an uptick in form, even if it's slight. A win or two above the averages mentioned will be enough to see us finish the season safe.

Exactly. When I see people saying Maguire isn't the level we want from someone coming off the bench to help us see out games, I wonder exactly what kind of player those people think is willing to come to Motherwell to play that role. Not every squad member can be or has to be, an up-and-coming player pushing for the first team. If I was Kettlewell I'd sit down with the player and make it clear to him what his role at the club will be. A bench player who starts games when we're short of first-choice midfielders, but mainly someone who can come on with 20 minutes or so to go and help us see out a game. If he's happy with that role, I'd keep him around unless he's on first 11 wages. Again, we need guys like that. He's of the standard that a player fulfilling that role at a club like ours should be. Also, if the worst happens and we end up going down he's already got a Championship winners medal in his pocket, so he'll come in handy.

Oh, we will be looking. But that doesn't mean we're getting. I'd rather have a nobody from down south that knows the club, knows the players, can fit right in and we kind of know what we're getting, than someone brand new who we'd need to hand another contract to.

Depending on who's available on the market I wouldn't be against holding onto Maguire as an option. He's not perfect by any stretch, but I'd rather have him than another nobody from down south on a six-month deal.

Anything but a defeat would be nice, continue the momentum we started this weekend hopefully.

No point in quoting him, he doesn't post when we win. He'll be back in full force if we lose to Hibs though.

Imagine if it was Moult and KvV scoring against us to get us relegated while they played for Hearts? Now, that would be something to behold, eh? Especially when the Hearts fans start singing. Hair on the back of the neck and all that. Maybe Morton fans?

This is my worry. I think the circumstances at the club in general are all wrong. In the past we've been bad, managers haven't worked out and I've always had faith we could bounce back. The club, in general, was well-run and I had faith in those who were tasked with turning things around. We don't have a full-time CEO, and there are important members of the team that run the club stepping down. Any potential manager is going to be taking the above into account. They have to.

I guess it depends if a potential candidate is desperate enough for work that he's happy to come in and basically get one transfer window to get a low-budget squad into 7th or better because that seems to be the criteria from what I've seen from our fans. Keeping us up, and even getting us into Europe isn't enough to guarantee some time in the job these days. Personally, I worry about who would follow Kettlewell. I would not be surprised at all if Frail is the next man in line.