Technically Well
How a series of technicalities helped Motherwell escape death and become a regular fixture in European football.
During the 1990s, Scottish football was enjoying a prosperous period as the Old Firm teams of Celtic and Rangers had accumulated enough prestige to attract some of the world’s best footballing talent. The Heysel ban of English football clubs from European competitions had led to a talent drain that Scottish football clubs could exploit, as alternative destinations for top footballers who still wished to play in front of a passionate British crowd and have the opportunity to play in Europe at the highest level. Players such as Brian Laudrup, Paul Gascoigne and Henrik Larsson would join a now strengthened Scottish league and raise the level of commercial interest from fans and television. A new generation of local talent playing alongside these top players would also contribute to the upturn of Scottish football fortunes. A deeper domestic talent pool would lead to a rare period of consistency from the Scotland national football team as they qualified for all but one major international tournament in the 1990s.
With renewed investment and respect in Scottish football, the Old Firm would consolidate their power and prestige. However, smaller sides, such as Motherwell, would also benefit from the rising economic tide and deeper talent pool. The Steelmen would assemble a side capable of winning the 1991 Scottish Cup and finish as runners up in the then-Scottish Premier Division. Motherwell would also benefit from the increase in spending between clubs for their domestic talent as they received a club record £1.75 million from Celtic for their midfielder, Phil O’Donnell. Another Motherwell midfielder, Paul Lambert, would raise the profile of the club and Scottish football even further as he moved to German side Borussia Dortmund and became a key part of their Champions League winning side in 1997.
The 90s economic boom in Scottish football gave clubs, such as Motherwell, the optimism to breakaway from the traditional Scottish football pyramid and form the Scottish Premier League (SPL) in 1998. However, this proved to be a hubristic move as English football quickly began to outperform Scotland commercially and Scottish football began to decline. By the early 2000s, Scottish football was in dire straits with many clubs, such as Hearts, near insolvency. For Motherwell, money was too tight to mention and, after a brief period in administration, the club found itself flirting with relegation from the new SPL.
In 2002/03, the Steelmen should have gone down. Under Terry Butcher, a former England captain who had joined Rangers as part of the talent drain, Motherwell finished bottom of the table in the SPL relegation zone. However, the Steelmen would benefit from the first of many technicalities in their recent history as newly promoted Falkirk failed to meet SPL stadium regulations. Granted a reprieve from certain death, Butcher would turn to the Well academy for younger and more hungry players who could drag them back up to safety. Young players such as Stephen Pearson, David Clarkson and James McFadden would flourish with their first-team opportunities and go on to be Scotland internationals.
McFadden and Clarkson would finish as top scorers for the club in 2003 and 2004 with 13 and 12 goals respectively. Joining them in the transfer window would be future Australian international, Scott McDonald, and future Northern Ireland international and club captain, Stephen Craigan. With this corps of young talent, Butcher turned the club’s fortunes around as they finished back-to-back seasons in the top half of the table which allowed them to generate enough revenue to come out of administration and secure the club’s future financial safety. The renewed confidence from the Steelmen was demonstrated as they played spoiler during the 2004/05 season when their top scorer, Scott McDonald, scored two late goals against Celtic on the final day of the season to deprive them of the league title as a helicopter famously diverted it’s flight path midway and took the league trophy to Rangers instead.
Butcher and his young prodigies would also lead Motherwell to the 2005 Scottish League Cup Final, their first cup final since the famous win in 1991. The Steelmen would knock out Hearts and Livingston on their way to the final at Hampden against Rangers. Phil O’Donnell would return to Motherwell in time to play a cup final alongside his nephew, David Clarkson, but the Gers would win comfortably 5–1. Still, Butcher had guided Motherwell out of financial difficulty and renewed a sense of optimism in the club by reaching the final with a group of talented young players.
Unfortunately, the Butcher era would come to an end shortly after a disappointing 8th place in the 2005/06 season. The young talents who had saved Motherwell also quickly attracted the attention of bigger clubs. Pearson and McDonald left for Celtic and McFadden left for English side Everton. A new personality with a fresh set of players was required to stop the Steelmen from falling back into difficulty.
Mark McGhee, a former Celtic player and Aberdeen legend, had been seen as a promising manager in English football and had previously received career advice from his own former manager and Manchester United legend, Sir Alex Ferguson. Fergie’s advice clearly didn’t work out as McGhee was out of work when Motherwell offered him the opportunity to come back across the border. McGhee would seize the opportunity and led the Well to 3rd place and European qualification in his first season in 2007/08. Front-line production from David Clarkson, Rangers cast-off Ross McCormack and new signing Chris Porter, who was top-scorer with 18 goals, would combine effectively with the defensive rigidity provided by centre-backs, Stephen Craigan and Mark Reynolds, as Motherwell finished the season with 10 clean sheets and the fourth fewest goals conceded. Sadly, tragic circumstances would dampen the sense of achievement that season and prove a man like McGhee was needed both on and off the field.
Phil O’Donnell, described as “brave as a lion”, had returned to the local club where he started his career for a second spell and McGhee had named him as club captain that season. On the 29th of December 2007, during a game against Dundee United, O’Donnell collapsed on the pitch and died of heart failure. Tributes to O’Donnell came from across the football world and flowers were laid in remembrance outside the gates at Fir Park. His nephew and teammate, David Clarkson would wear his old number 10 jersey to honour him.
Perhaps understandably given the circumstances, the club’s performances declined in the following 2008/09 season and they finished in the bottom half of the table. David Clarkson was then sold to English side Bristol City in a move to possibly prevent any further trauma for himself or the dressing room. McGhee would require the use of all his leadership ability to rally the morale of his Motherwell squad and get the progress of the team back on track. Stephen Craigan, a longtime servant of the club, was appointed captain in O’Donnell’s place to help maintain stability. Thankfully for Motherwell, another technicality arrived to bail them out of a tricky situation. UEFA awarded a now-UEFA Europa League spot to the Steelman via their Fair Play initiative which meant Motherwell had now achieved European qualification in back-to-back seasons. McGhee’s European achievements and efforts off the pitch handling the O’Donnell tragedy hadn’t gone unnoticed by other clubs. An approach by Hearts was rebuffed but the following year McGhee returned to one of his former clubs, Aberdeen.
Craig Brown had previously been hired to be an assistant coach at Fir Park but would find himself taking over for the 2009/10 campaign. Brown, like Butcher, played an important role in the 90s Scottish football boom as he was the manager of the Scotland national football team that qualified for multiple major international tournaments. Motherwell would be his first manager role in five years but Brown would prove he hadn’t lost a step.
With goals from Jamie Murphy and new signing John Sutton showing Motherwell could survive Clarkson and McCormack’s departures, Brown guided the Steelmen back into the top half of the SPL table. The most notable result being the highest scoring match in SPL history, a 6–6 draw with Hibernian. After Dundee United won the 2010 Scottish Cup, Motherwell were technically awarded their Europa League place as they had already qualified through their league position. Under Brown, Motherwell qualified for European football for the third consecutive season which they had never done before. Yet again, European qualification would draw the attention of the vultures and, after nearly a calendar year, Aberdeen would hire Brown to replace McGhee.
Stuart McCall would be presented with a claret and amber gold opportunity when he took over midway through the 2010/11 season. McCall, like Butcher and Brown, had made his name during the 90s boom as a former Rangers player. Now, he was taking over a competitive Motherwell side with European pedigree. With new goalkeeper, and future Republic of Ireland international, Darren Randolph keeping 19 clean sheets and defender Shaun Hutchinson, effectively replacing Mark Reynolds, next to club captain Stephen Craigan, Motherwell had one of the most solid defensive units in Scotland. John Sutton and Jamie Murphy continued to be an effective strike partnership and their goals would see the Well through to the League Cup semi-finals and the 2011 Scottish Cup Final.
Motherwell’s run to the final had been convincing as a 4–0 win over Dundee was followed up by a pair of 3–0 wins over Dundee United and St Johnstone in the quarter and semi finals respectively. Sadly, Celtic would beat the Steelmen 3–0 themselves in the final to prevent a 20 year anniversary victory for Motherwell’s last Scottish Cup win.
After finishing as top scorer in the Scottish Cup, striker John Sutton had earned himself a move to Hearts. McCall, a former Bradford City manager, looked to replenish his squad from the English lower leagues he was familiar with. Midfielder Nicky Law, who had played previously for McCall, arrived from Rotherham United. Strikers Michael Higdon and, future Estonia international, Henrik Ojamaa would be asked to replicate Sutton’s goals.
Motherwell didn’t experience the same cup success as the previous season but McCall’s first full season would match McGhee’s as the Steelmen finished 3rd in 2012. However, McCall’s achievement would soon become even greater than McGhee’s due to yet another technicality as league runners up, Rangers, went into administration at the end of the 2011/2012 season. McCall’s former club were banned from participating in European competition and, as a result, Motherwell qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in their history.
McCall would firmly establish Motherwell as the best of the rest in Scottish football during the final 2012/13 SPL season. Michael Higdon would finish as the league’s top scorer with 26 goals and Ojamaa led the league in assists with 16. Higdon, Randolph, Hutchinson and Law would all be named in the PFA Scotland Team of the Year awards as Motherwell finished league runners-up, their highest finish ever in the then-Scottish Premier League.
Despite finishing bottom of the league ten years earlier, Motherwell had survived the SPL era without being relegated and finished with their best season. Just like in 1998, Motherwell were now riding high going into the foundation of a new league, the Scottish Premiership. Their future looked ominously similar to the early 2000s once Higdon, Randolph, Ojamaa and Law all forced their way out. However, Motherwell and McCall had a habit of being able to bring the old band back together to play their greatest hits. John Sutton and James McFadden would both return to Fir Park alongside, Ojamaa’s Estonian recommendation, Henri Anier. 22 goals from Sutton and a dramatic 93rd minute winner against Aberdeen would see the Steelmen leapfrog over that same Aberdeen side, who poached two of their managers, into 2nd place and their second consecutive finish as league runners-up. Motherwell finished with a record points total of 70, despite conceding 60 goals.
Motherwell had cheated death but lost one of their own. Players and coaches came and went yet somehow they kept moving forward. Technicalities played a part in their redemption, but the Steelmen were technically a Well-run side.
