Motherwell FC - A Thread For All Seasons

[Phillips455]

 

[redstarcvedza]

Sean Goss was outstanding

[ropy]

Spittal was dragging his leg when the team came down to clap the fans.  Looked a sair wan.

[gavin_3110]

15 minutes ago, ropy said:

Spittal was dragging his leg when the team came down to clap the fans.  Looked a sair wan.

Looked like he was holding his hip, hopefully just a dead leg. Took quite a thump. 

['WellDel]

Was working today, so my assessment after watching the Alba rerun is :

Big Kev's combination of play, finishing and shithousing will be hard to replace if a bid comes in.

Sean Goss was outstanding. Almost everything he tried came off.

There really were no failures in the side, everyone played their part and some of it was a joy to watch.

Hibs were fairly pish, but a massive part of that was how Kettlewell set us up to counter them on their own patch and he deserves a lot of credit for that. 

David Marshall, having already made a cnut of himself in the skirmish with Van Veen on the touchline, then somehow diving over the top of his poor penalty, thoroughly deserved the goading the big man gave him when his free kick went in. Delicious.

[Handsome_Devil]

3 minutes ago, gavin_3110 said:

Looked like he was holding his hip, hopefully just a dead leg. Took quite a thump. 

How goalies can challenge is one of my pet peeves and - given the obsession in modern football with safety - things I find utterly bizarre.

Goalies were basically given impunity to raise their knee collecting crosses because they were skinny twats and Nat Lofthouse was about to barrel them through the back of the net. Since then they have become almighty physical specimens that command the full box and beyond yet do so while receiving protection from the ref unheard of when the rules were written or for any other player.

Accordingly they behave like complete liabilities - at times to themselves, look at Gordon - and it barely gets a glance.

Marshall's tackle today was ridiculous - any outfield player doing that would have been down the tunnel before the ref even went to his pocket.

Of all the things FIFA like fucking around with needlessly, reining in keepers is long overdue.

[CoF]

As enjoyable a performance as I’ve seen in ages. Aside from that wee 15 minute spell after they scored and had their tails up, we won almost every battle. With some of the passing it’s kinda mental that we didn’t score from open play. Special mention to Goss. 

[YassinMoutaouakil]

Genuinely wtf was Hammell doing in training?

[capt_oats]

46 minutes ago, YassinMoutaouakil said:

Genuinely wtf was Hammell doing in training?

Honestly, I can't be alone in wondering what @wellboy1991's dog walking neighbour is saying to it these days...

In all seriousness, this was the league form for Hammell's last 6 games before he was emptied:

The fixtures were:

02/01/23 - Livingston (a) 1-1
08/01/23 - Hibs (h) 2-3
14/01/23 - Ross County (h) 1-1
28/01/23 - St Mirren (a) 1-0
01/02/23 - St Johnstone (h) 0-2
03/02/23 - Aberdeen (a) 3-1

There's an argument that Hammell didn't get much of a chance to use the January 9, albeit the the chance he did get we were bounced out the SC when he tried to shoehorn them into his 4231.

In that respect something that has maybe flown under the radar in that respect is that while Kettlewell's clearly using players that Hammell didn't get an opportunity to utilise he's also managed to get a bunch of (new) players to integrate into a shape/system we hadn't been playing is a pretty short period of time.

In doing so he's made a decent fist of fixing an aspect of our game that Hammell spent months (literally) scratching his head trying to address.

Which is a point that again, you'd think comes back to coaching.

I posted the video of SK's pre-match in here yesterday (then deleted as I wasn't really offering any comment on it other than it existing) but the one part that got my attention was him reiterating that he's trying to get players to play to their strengths.

Quote

"I think everything that you do has to be relevant to the players you have at your disposal and I don't think that that's to demean them in any way shape or form. I actually look at it the other way. You want to try and maximise your strengths and what they are best at and I think that's your job as a coach and a manager to find that."

I mean...aye.

Edited April 1, 2023 by capt_oats

[Handsome_Devil]

15 minutes ago, capt_oats said:

I posted the video of SK's pre-match in here yesterday (then deleted as I wasn't really offering any comment on it other than it existing) but the one part that got my attention was him reiterating that he's trying to get players to play to their strengths.

I mean...aye.

Teams are often damned by faint praise when folk say they do the simple things well - yes, but if it were that simple every bugger would do them well.

SK has us not only doing that but combined with whatever man management gets Goss, KVV etc playing like today rather than November makes the difference.

There's caveats all over the place of course - short run, new manager impact, no pressure as club legend in first managerial role etc - but I think it's safe to say Hammell's gaze over his evening scotch will be in the 1,000-yard range...

I'm not yet convinced Goss has earned a new deal mind but if we're keeping KVV then I think either/both of the big lads are worth a year-long deal to play alongside him. I could well imagine we'll be found out eventually and a switch to a variation of the standard 4-3-3 is needed again but in the meantime volunteering to change away from our current KISS system would be insane.

Edited April 1, 2023 by Handsome_Devil

[Londonwell]

1 hour ago, gavin_3110 said:

Looked like he was holding his hip, hopefully just a dead leg. Took quite a thump. 

Aye watching by totally legal means when he went down he clearly had severe pain in the hip area. Just an impact issue though hopefully. 

Edited April 1, 2023 by Londonwell

[Londonwell]

1 hour ago, YassinMoutaouakil said:

Genuinely wtf was Hammell doing in training?

The thing is, it’s really not rocket science either. We have better defenders, playing in a more suitable shape. Basic stuff. The level of the league the last wee while, that makes a big difference. 

To credit Hammy he signed the players but by a combination of bad luck and ineptitude he never changed the ideas he came into the job with. Ketts is clearly a manager with more experience and able to adapt.

[ropy]

There were many on here at the start of the season pointing out we had the players for a back 3 and wing backs.  My gripe was always that KVV needed someone closer to him to make him effective.  That left a gap for three guys in the middle.  There is room for the manager to decide if they are attacking, defending or ball playing in that middle 3.  Horses for courses.

Does it have to be harder than that?

 

[wellboy1991]

3 hours ago, capt_oats said:

Honestly, I can't be alone in wondering what @wellboy1991's dog walking neighbour is saying to it these days...

In all seriousness, this was the league form for Hammell's last 6 games before he was emptied:

The fixtures were:

02/01/23 - Livingston (a) 1-1
08/01/23 - Hibs (h) 2-3
14/01/23 - Ross County (h) 1-1
28/01/23 - St Mirren (a) 1-0
01/02/23 - St Johnstone (h) 0-2
03/02/23 - Aberdeen (a) 3-1

There's an argument that Hammell didn't get much of a chance to use the January 9, albeit the the chance he did get we were bounced out the SC when he tried to shoehorn them into his 4231.

In that respect something that has maybe flown under the radar in that respect is that while Kettlewell's clearly using players that Hammell didn't get an opportunity to utilise he's also managed to get a bunch of (new) players to integrate into a shape/system we hadn't been playing is a pretty short period of time.

In doing so he's made a decent fist of fixing an aspect of our game that Hammell spent months (literally) scratching his head trying to address.

Which is a point that again, you'd think comes back to coaching.

I posted the video of SK's pre-match in here yesterday (then deleted as I wasn't really offering any comment on it other than it existing) but the one part that got my attention was him reiterating that he's trying to get players to play to their strengths.

I mean...aye.

I would tell you as had a few convos with him recently however after the shit last time I’ve decided not to bother posting it…. 

In all seriousness the phrase night and day has been used recently. Back to basics and building on that is the overall themes. I think Hammell  completely over thought his managerial ability and also the ability of the players to understand what he was trying to do.

Ketts however and from what I have gathered Clarkson followed by Frail has been, defenders defend, midfielders create and strikers score… simple. 

[AnderooMFC]

4 hours ago, YassinMoutaouakil said:

Genuinely wtf was Hammell doing in training?

When he was gone, I watched the BBC docu (posted here previously) about Kerr's previous experience. I confess I'm tipsy beyond double checking, but apart from the meme-able "LAZY LEG IS F**KING LAZY", there are comparisons. That quote came about because, *drum roll please* ; the team of adults were making schoolboy errors and giving away cheap-ass goals.  Kerr then is our Numero Dos and oversee's a Motherwell FC XI who are 'adults making schoolboy errors and giving away cheap-ass goals.'

This ain't a Hammy excuse post btw. He was the Man-In-Charge / Head Honcho / Club-legend-at-the-reins/ Big Kahuna. He should've reigned in Kerr, or told him to STFU and made his own stamp on the team, or envisioned a new strategy based on MOTD viewings of Jurgen Klopp / Pep Guardiola / his wildest dreams as a kid / every thought he had as an adult / patterns in the sea.
IDK.
All I mean is BBC-Docu-Kerr's-team has distressing defending mishaps that Assistant-Kerr's-MFC copied.
&& Thank-F***- Ketts is more level-headed and able to work positivity into the abilities of those on the books.

[rowsdower]

Came back home yesterday for a week. The strikes at Heathrow meant I couldn't get into Edinburgh in time for the hibs game, which we would have lost if I was there. You can thank me for that, but unfortunately that means next week Martindale is going to get his first ever win against us. Going to watch the replay now. 

A tornado also hit the ground a couple of miles from my house while i was on the plane, so it's been an up and down sort of weekend. Thank God for irn bru too.

[capt_oats]

7 hours ago, wellboy1991 said:

I would tell you as had a few convos with him recently however after the shit last time I’ve decided not to bother posting it…. 

In all seriousness the phrase night and day has been used recently. Back to basics and building on that is the overall themes. I think Hammell  completely over thought his managerial ability and also the ability of the players to understand what he was trying to do.

Ketts however and from what I have gathered Clarkson followed by Frail has been, defenders defend, midfielders create and strikers score… simple. 

To be clear, I wasn't asking, precisely because of the shitstorm that post blew up into but I had wondered.

I mean, at this point, it's hard not to ask the same question as @YassinMoutaouakil.

[Busta Nut]

Also @thisGRAEME if you want a team handed specky motherwell crew to storm the BBC next wed when they mugs are recording just give us a shout.

[Casagolda]

14 hours ago, redstarcvedza said:

Sean Goss was outstanding

He was.

Funny cause he’s out of contract and Slattery isn’t but based on current form, Goss is absolutely the one you’d be keeping. However as yesterday showed again, they’re much better apart than they are together and if it’s one or the other, do we have to just move Goss on in the summer?  

Someone who also hasn’t had a lot praise who I also thought had a good game was Furlong. Thought he was in for a tough afternoon as he struggled a bit early door with Cadden’s physicality but stuck at it and ended up making numerous important interventions and blocks in the 2nd half. Don’t know what his situation is at Brighton but might be worth keeping an eye on. 

By my count only 4 of the 14 players we used yesterday are under contract for next season. Which isn’t necessarily a problem in itself but it does point towards yet another huge rebuild in the summer. 

Johnston will go. I’d like Casey and Cornelius to stay. Everything else is pretty much up in the air. You wonder if/when we get safe if Kettlewell will use the squad and tinker a bit more in the remaining games to make some decisions for next season. 

Edited April 2, 2023 by Casagolda

['WellDel]

50 minutes ago, Casagolda said:

You wonder if/when we get safe if Kettlewell will use the squad and tinker a bit more in the remaining games to make some decisions for next season. 

I think he absolutely will. He's currently stripped things back to basics and found a style that works best with the resources at his disposal. This has limited a fair few to being bit part players, or not involved at all. Pretty harsh on the likes of McKinstry, Tierney etc, and I think he'll want to maybe tinker with formations to get from our current 'best fit to do a job' position to shaping a team to his own ideals.

What do I know though? Maybe the current setup is his ideal (which I'd be totally on board with as we're raking in the points and actually decent to watch for the first time in god knows how long), in which case a few of those currently sidelined might end up moved on through no fault of their own or lack of ability, just that they won't fit the style of play.