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The Darren Fletcher Journey

Started on 9 February 2021 by Feliks
Latest Reply on 1 March 2021 by TheLFCFan
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Feliks's avatar Group Feliks
3 years

Motherwell welcomes new academy signings


19 March 2021
Motherwell have announced the promotion of nine promising youngsters from the academy to the Under-18 squad, where they will get their first tastes of professional football.

The nine players, of whom two were born in Motherwell and another four in nearby East Kilbride, will look to carry on a rich tradition of youth development in recent times, with Motherwell FC having produced the likes of Stuart McKinstry, James Scott, David Turnbull and of course current star Allan Campbell.

Attacking midfielder Daniel Rennie looks the best prospect, having dazzled in junior competition for the club for a number of years, whilst the hard-working striker Roddy Currie has been touted as a star and leader of the future.
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Feliks's avatar Group Feliks
3 years • Edited

March Review


We played just four games this month with an international break at the end but they were four extremely important games as we push for continental qualification this season.
Results
Date Opponent Results Goalscorers Competition
05/03 Livingston H 2-1 Campbell, Polworth Premiership
09/03 Hibernian A 1-1 Long Premiership
13/03 Aberdeen H 2-3e Lang (x2) Scottish Cup QF
20/03 Kilmarnock A 2-3 Long (x2), Martin Premiership
We weren't entirely convincing against an overachieving Livingston, relying on a couple of long range efforts from our midfield pairing, but nonetheless secured a vital three points. The trip to the capital to play Hibernian was a danger game, but for half an hour it seemed we had pulled off a plucky win only to have Jamie Gullan score an 85th minute equaliser. Next was Aberdeen, who we had already played a thrilling game against in the league, but this time would be visiting us to knock us out of the club. We led 2-1 at half time but ran out of legs, eventually conceding in the 3rd minute of extra time and bundling out of the cup. We made up for our loss however with an absolutely crucial away win over Kilmarnock, overturning a 2-1 half time deficit.
Player of the Month

Whilst our attackers have good days and bad days, this man very rarely deviates from the norm when it comes to his performance. We have an inexperienced and sometimes exposed backline but Gallagher takes it all in his stride. The fearless captain recently signed a two-year contract extension.
League Table

After a five-game unbeaten run in the league, we're now officially qualified for the 'Champions Stage' of the league, which will split after our next game. Although our goal difference is still shaky, we occupy the last European spot and I fancy our chances against St Johnstone and Hibernian in the upcoming games.
April Schedule

We'll undoubtedly play more games when the second stage fixtures at released but the St Johnstone game is just as important, as a win will see us jump up into 4th.
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Harleygator's avatar Group Harleygator
3 years
I love the formatting on this.
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Feliks's avatar Group Feliks
3 years

Premiership set for final stage


3 April 2021
The Premiership will split into two groups for the final five games of the season as clubs get set to battle for continental qualification and survival from relegation.

Celtic have all but secured their title victory and will get the chance to lift the cup at home against St Johnstone in two weeks time, with Rangers also guaranteed to finish 2nd. However, third to sixth is still anyone's guess with Hibernian (49 points), Motherwell (48), St Johnstone (46) and Aberdeen (43) fighting for the sole Europa League spot and the two Conference League positions.

In the relegation group, Kilmarnock and St Mirren will be confident of their safety at the top of the group and the pressure will be on cellar dwellar Hamilton, who sit 5 points adrift of 11th placed Dundee United and 8 points behind Ross County.

Fixtures are set to commence on the 17th of April.
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ScottT's avatar Group ScottT
3 years
Glad to see that Fletcher was able to guide Motherwell into the top six. An excellent achievement and a real testament to how he steadied the ship here.
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Feliks's avatar Group Feliks
3 years • Edited

April Review


After starting my tenure in 8th, some brilliant form has seen us secure our spot in the Champions stage of the Premiership, and our first two games would be crucial in delivering continental qualification.
Results
Date Opponent Results Goalscorers Competition
03/04 St Johnstone H 1-0 Long Premiership
17/04 Aberdeen H 2-0 Lang (x2) Premiership
24/04 Hibernian H 2-0 Carroll, O'Hara Premiership
After being somewhat of a livewire team that could score goals but also ship them, we completely turned it around in April and became a disciplined defensive unit that rarely conceded a shot on target, let alone a goal. We ground out a result against St Johnstone first, before starting the second stage. Aberdeen have been a great rival so far but we were far too good for them on this occasion and we delivered the same fate to Hibernian, our other main competitor in the Europa League race.
Player of the Month

Our vice captain between the sticks has been an underrated aspect of our success this season and in April he stepped up by not conceding a single goal against some quality opposition. He's shut Jordan Archer out from the side and has even become Northern Ireland's new number 1 on the back of his form for us.
League Table

Our perfect month has culminated in a 4 point lead over St Johnstone and Hibernian going into the final three games, and the poor form of Aberdeen has guaranteed us a spot in Europe next season.
May Schedule

Our season comes down to just three games in the month of May. We've given ourselves a handy buffer over our opponents but if we can manage a point against Celtic and/or Rangers it would go a long way. A win against St Johnstone is a must to guarantee Europa League qualification.
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Feliks's avatar Group Feliks
3 years

The Race for the Europa League


With Celtic crowned champions and Rangers guaranteed to finish in second, the intrigue for the final month will lie from 3rd to 5th, as three teams battle for the sole Europa League spot. In-form Motherwell, surprise packets St Johnstone and Hibernian will be pushing for an impressive third place finish. In the case of Motherwell, it will be back-to-back finishes in third after looking shaky earlier in the season. For St Johnstone, it will be a massive overachievement considering their pre-season prediction of 9th and will be their first top 3 finish since 2013. For Hibernian, it will be a culmination of the solid progress they have continued to make since their promotion in 2017.
Current League Table

Motherwell

St Johnstone

Hibernian
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ScottT's avatar Group ScottT
3 years
Great work. Now hopefully the boys can finish strongly to cement themselves as the best of the rest.
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Feliks's avatar Group Feliks
3 years

Fletcher named Manager of the Month for April


1 May 2021
Motherwell manager Darren Fletcher has been awarded the Premiership Manager of the Month award after leading his team to a perfect record in April.

Fletcher's side recorded wins against St Johnstone, Aberdeen and Hibernian without conceding and have now risen to 3rd place with just three matches remaining.

The 37 year old was appointed Motherwell's manager in January, his first role in management, and he has exceeded expectations in lifting them from 8th to a guaranteed spot in Europe for next season.
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ScottT's avatar Group ScottT
3 years
Thoroughly deserved.
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ManCityFan's avatar Group ManCityFan
3 years
Just caught up on this from the beginning. Great read mate, love the formatting!!! Seems you've really turned around their form as well and ended the season well
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Feliks's avatar Group Feliks
3 years

May Review


May was crunchtime for Motherwell, with just three games remaining in the league and two massive hurdles to overcome in Celtic and Rangers. Although we had given ourselves a strong position and could rely on other results going our way, it was still important that we got the most out of this month.
Results
Date Opponent Results Goalscorers Competition
01/05 Rangers A 4-0 Premiership
11/05 St Johnstone A 2-3 Hastie, Long (x2) Premiership
16/05 Celtic H 2-3 Hastie, Long Premiership
Rangers have been incredible tough to deal with this save and we were humbled 4-0 by them at Ibrox, ending a lengthy unbeaten run. We needed to bounce back immediately on the trip to St Johnstone, and in the end we made the result more nervous than it should have been. A goal from Jake Hastie and a brace from Chris Long had put us 3-0 up with 20 minutes to go but we got complacent and conceded twice before holding on in the last five minutes. Celtic at home seemed a daunting task and they dominated from the first whistle. Hastie scored a wonderous goal to see us edge in front but Celtic pegged us back immediately and led 2-1 at half time. A late equaliser from Long looked to have nabbed us a point but it was Hatem Abd Elhamed who had the last laugh, scoring from range to seal Celtic the win.
Player of the Month

Chris Long, wearing the distinctive number 99, has been a revelation under my charge and has really turned his early-season form around. Long scored three times this month including a winning brace against St Johnstone and what seemed like the late equaliser against Celtic. Long earned a contract extension this season and finished as the fourth highest goalscorer in the Premiership, behind just Odsonne Edouard, Eamonn Brophy and Alfredo Morales.
League Table

We managed to hold onto 3rd on the final day, securing our place in the Europa League for next season. Hibernian had looked like coming home strong but were unable to beat St Johnstone at home to capitalise on us trailing to Celtic. It's been a brilliant six months, we've come from 8th to 3rd and we're looking like owning the mantle 'best of the rest.'
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Jack's avatar Group Jack
3 years
Great to see you back and already firing the updates out. A great first season with Fletcher cementing himself and his ambitions within the first year at the club!
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ScottT's avatar Group ScottT
3 years
Fletcher can be very pleased with what he has achieved this season. It'll be a challenge to improve from here with Rangers and Celtic being some way ahead of the chasing pack though. Looking forward to what he has up his sleeve.
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jahendricksi's avatar Group jahendricksi
3 years
There is a sizeable gap in players, resources, and possible income between the Glaswegian clubs and everyone else. Congratulations on the 3rd place finish and hopefully some of the Academy prospects pan out to allow you to replenish people you will have to sell on. Or even a deeper run in the Europa League with some canny signings could help.
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