10pm

A respectable crowd of 4,091 turned out at Fir Park tonight to watch Motherwell and Chievo battle out an entertaining 1-1 draw.  As friendlies go, this wasn't at all bad and Motherwell more than deserved a draw against their more illustrious opponents.

Terry Butcher sent his side out in a 4-4-2 formation, and while the team virtually picked itself due to a lack of personnel it was good to see Eric Deloumeaux captain the side - let's hope he decides that his immediate future lies at Fir Park.  Partnering Eric at centre-half was Martyn Corrigan, while Dougie Ramsay continued at right-back and Stuart Elliott joined Dirk Lehmann in attack.

The first-half was fairly evenly balanced, with Motherwell probably coming closest to scoring with a header from Deloumeaux (I think) that was cleared off the line.  Things got a little heated at times during the first 45 mins, mainly due to some cynical tackling from the visiting side, and referee Hugh Dallas awarded several yellow cards as he attempted to stop the game getting out of hand.

The second-half was better and Motherwell again went close when Stevie Hammell sent a long-range shot just wide.  However, Chievo took the lead somewhat against the run of play when a free-kick was whipped into the box and headed past Dubourdeau from around 8 yards.  We kept battling away though and deservedly equalised late on when Deloumeaux's excellent ball out to Pearson on the wing was cut-back into the path of James McFadden, and he made no mistake from a few yards out.

Probably one of the highlights of the night was when Stuart Elliot removed his Motherwell shirt as he was being subbed to reveal a 'Well Worth Saving t-shirt, and then Faddy did exactly the same following his goal.  There definitely appears to be a growing bond between the players and the fans, and the team certainly seemed to appreciate the efforts of the supporters at the end of the match.  Great stuff!  As for the match itself, we played some nice stuff at times and our passing was a joy to behold during spells of the second half.  Top performers for the 'Well were McFadden, Pearson, Hammell and Deloumeaux, but my man of the match would probably be "Zinadine" Corrigan who despite playing at centre-half showed some excellent touches.

Come on ye 'Well!

Team (4-4-2): Woods (Dubourdeau 45), Ramsay, Deloumeaux, Corrigan, Hammell, McFadden, Adams, Lasley, Pearson, Elliott, Lehmann.
Subs: Several were made in the 2nd half, but I'm ashamed to admit I didn't recognise any of the youngsters who came on!

Incidentally, 'Well Worth Saving T-shirts (as worn by Stuart Elliott and James McFadden) will be on sale prior to the Dundee game on Sunday at £10 each.

Also, we believe that Martyn Corrigan will be suspended for the Dundee game.

3.30pm

GET TO FIR PARK FOR THE CHIEVO GAME TONIGHT (K.O. 7.45pm)!

ADMISSION IS ONLY A TENNER (£5 FOR CONCESSIONS)

YOU KNOW IT MAKES SENSE!

Today's Evening Times reports that Motherwell could be banned from signing any new players next season unless a deal is reached with the nine players made redundant last week.  Apparently European law states that if you make an employee redundant, you are not allowed to bring in somebody else to do the same job in the next 12 months.  Roberto Martinez is quoted as saying:
"John Boyle has used the law to his advantage, but he has left himself with a real dilemma.  Under European law I think we could block Motherwell from signing any new players next season."

Meanwhile, Terry Butcher says that the club have not received any bids for James McFadden:
"There have been no new developments at all and he (McFadden) is still a very important player for us.  There will always be interest around him because he is a quality player and all he can do is continue to perform to his high standards and then we will wait and see what happens.  There have been no bids at all as far as I am aware, certainly not through me anyway."

2.40pm

I've been asked to publicise the following event.  So here goes (apologies for the poor quality of the image)...

9am

Irish side Bohemians are reported to have offered Mark Brown a two-year contract, and Notts County and Swindon are also believed to be interested.  The goalkeeper, who recently bought a house in Lanarkshire, said:
"I have a contract offer from Bohemians, but my agent is dealing with the matter now.  I don't know what will happen and I'll just see how things go."

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