The Ed relives Kid Kirk's slammer past Theo.
0.K.- so where were you at 4.28 on that memorable day when Kid Kirk ignored the wishes of his superiors and planted that 20? 25? 30? 35? yarder into Theo's onion bag? Although this must rank as one of our best cup performances over the years, on a par with our cup wins over Celtic and the Dons in the seventies we must admit it didn't come as too much of a surprise. The last few encounters against Aberdeen have shown that we had nothing to fear.
Special praise must go to both Craig Paterson and John Philliben for their faultless performances: for too long big Craig has not received the plaudits his consistency has deserved and at last the management seem to have realised that central defence is Philliben's natural position.
Now that the buzz from Pittodrie carries over to the greetin' Bairns from Brock- ville and the G.L.F. team count their winnings from Ladbrokes for predicting the 0-1 scoreline up North, let's hope that re-investing that lolly on a cup success proves worthwhile.
Thank you, Well fans, for all your letters of praise about G.L.F. For a variety of reasons we've been out of circulation so can we apologise profusely for the delay. We do need to involve more people in the fanzine so please make your letters constructive. This fanzine exists to provide a space for your views, ideas and criticisms as well as our own. Our heads are swollen enough with all the complimen- tary notes and we thank you for them but we want to know what you think!
Back to the Tom-Tom club; Pittodrie definitely has been the ray of sunshine in what has been a disappointing season in a whole manner of ways. A mixture of bad tactics, serious injuries to key players and poor away results leave us with the Cup as the only means of rescuing the season from a dead end, especially after the lunacy of the league reconstruction debacle. The whole situation has been an embarrassment to the Scottish game. We are at a stage now where what was needed was a long hard look at the Scottish game on a whole series of issues and all we end up with is a proposal decided by a group of club chairmen who put prestige and profit before the good of the game.
Why wasn't any account taken of subjects such as a winter break? Any of you who attended the St. Johnstone game will know what I'm talking about. How can we expect to be 'entertained' in 'comfort' when there is a gale blowing down the pitch and one of the floodlight pylons is, apparently, declared unsafe?
Rather than voting to conduct an in-depth study and perhaps even consulting a few fans(?) we now have a set-up which means the 90,-'gI season is as good as dead,(hands up all those who wasted money going to Easter Road), and that for the most cowardly reasons we have decided to save ourselves now, lacking the confidence that we have a team strong enough to survive and prosper in the Premier league. This debate is continued inside but what was wrong with Ian Munro's proposal of a mid-season split? Those who are squealing that the decision is is bad,'The Big Four',are equally, if not more to blame. Why didn't they put up counter proposals or do they already have their sights on bigger. prizes; the crocodile tears they shed would make you sick.
We can't let George's departure to Ayr United go without a mention. Both on the park and behind the scenes he was a great asset to Motherwell. His last appearance was typical of 'Old Hurly' when at half-time he moved to sweeper and used all his nous and experience to hold us together. The applause he received from you was heart-warming and affectionate- a sign of respect for a talented player, and coach.
One of our bug-bears has always been some of our players mouthing off to refs and as a result only doing the team damage through their suspensions. .BUT. . some of the refereeing standards this season must rank as the lowest ever. Not only should this issue have been taken into consideration as part of a general review of the Scottish game but we are at the stage now where respect for referees is almost invisible and most games are being spoiled by one cont roversy or another- poor interpretation of the laws of the game, poor consultation with linesmen, etc. Before the 91/92 season begins something has to be done to ensure quality and consistency.
Rumour also has it that we're about to invest in a hot-air balloon- no, not Archie McPherson. It seems that £120,000 would secure a system that would ensure the pitch was permanently playable, about the price of Boydy's left shin? While this is obviously a forward step it still doesn't help your ordinary terracite who still pays £5 to stand in the freezing cold/wet for over an how and a half.
We also deliver a belated welcome to Iain Ferguson (see inside). We must womder how little Brycie feels seeing £160,OOO of new blood coming to the forward line, £60,000 of it destined to play forever in the reserves, when he still hasn't been given the run he deserves. If Fergie adjusts quickly from the sloth of Tynecastle reserve team football he will be an asset. At least he's now with a team that believes in playing football rather than one that believes in playing anything but football.
Finally to the Celtic game. A point lost after we'd exerted so much pressure against probably the poorest Celtic team in recent years. Yet again we're embarrassed by all the sectarian songs from our own support and only a few shouted them down: dent give in to this, Well fans. There is only one 'cause' at Fir Park and that is to support your team. There is only one religion at Fir Park and that is to support your team. The next time it happens, and it will, let's hear you shout the sectarianism down'.
FOOTNOTE: To Kenny McDowal1 for your repeated assaults on young Phil 0'Domell, we hope the rest of your shites until the day you die are hedgehogs :
To Bob Scholey, Chairman of British Steel, we hope one day your conscience appears and you experience some of the suffering you are deliberately inflicting on the people of Lanarkshire. That's all.
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