6.10pm

Just when you thought things couldn't get any worse...

We were gubbed 3-1 at Easter Road this afternoon despite leading 1-0 at one point, and had THREE players sent off in the process.  This was our SEVENTH successive SPL defeat and we now find ourselves four points adrift of Dundee Utd at the bottom of the league.  If anyone can remember a more depressing time to be a 'Well fan then please let me know.

I wasn't at today's game, but received frequent updates from Ricky as to how we were doing.  It sounds as though the first half was a bit of a non-event, but we took the lead only two minutes after the interval when Steve Ferguson headed into an empty net following a mix-up in the Hibs defence.  Of course, our good fortune was never going to last and soon afterwards Daniel Sengewald was sent off for his second bookable offence.  The home side drew level after 59 mins when Paatelainen headed home a Townsley (spit!) cross, and then in 64 mins it was 2-1 when Dubourdeau was unable to keep out a close range McManus header.  Then in the closing stages all hell broke loose.  Firstly, Pearson was dismissed for a wild lunge on substitute Brebner, with the Hibs player also seeing red for retaliation.  For some reason, Partridge decided to get involved in the incident and was subsequently sent off himself.  Finally, in the dying seconds Dubourdeau conceded a needless penalty when he hauled down O'Neill in the box, and the Hibs midfielder stepped up to make it 3-1 from the spot.  'Well sub McFadden had also lost the rag by this point, and having already been booked for dissent (surprise surprise) he had to be hauled down the tunnel by Terry Butcher to prevent another red card.

So there you have it!  To make matters worse, Partick Thistle picked up 3 points to leave us cast adrift at the bottom of the league, but perhaps more importantly St Johnstone could only draw with Ross County to fall even further behind in the Division One title race...

Any idea what the line-up will be at Celtic Park next week? 

Team (4-4-2): Dubourdeau, Corrigan, Sengewald, Partridge, Hammell, Cowan, Fagan (McFadden 66), Adams, Pearson, Ferguson, Lehmann.
Subs not used: Woods, Kinniburgh, McDonald.

After the match, 'Well boss Terry Butcher said he could not blame the referee for any of the red cards shown to his players:
"We have really shot ourselves in the foot today.  The referee was right with all three Motherwell sending-offs and I know that the players are anxious to do well for the club.  But, sometimes, energy can be channelled in the wrong way and that's what happened today.  It's certainly another eventful Motherwell game but I'm very unhappy not to have taken anything from this match because we made life difficult for Hibs.  When it was 11 against 11 - and even 10 against 11 - I strongly fancied our chances.

"There was a touch of déjà vu today because I can remember the incident at Easter Road in 1986 when Graeme Souness was sent off in a similar incident with virtually all the players on the pitch involved.  Sengewald had handled Paatelainen well but it was a moment of madness which saw him get sent off and it allowed Hibs to get back into the game.  All three players who were sent off, Pearson, Partridge and Sengewald will be missing against Celtic next week and they are no use to Motherwell sitting in the stand.  That's a lot of height that we are going to miss - I wonder if Chris McCart or myself are available.

"I just felt we played a decent game of football and it's very important we learn from the indiscipline which has cost us valuable points today.  I felt a great injustice about the outcome of this game, not about the sending offs because they were deserved but about the result because we deserved better."

Time for a new opinion poll!

Who do you blame for the club's current predicament?