Hibs away. Easter Road is always a hard place to go for us and we will definitely start this one as second favourites. In around fifteen years of supporting Motherwell, I have seen us win twice in Leith and there is little indication to suggest that appalling record will improve. Leitch is still suspended and it looks highly unlikely either Lasley or McFadden will be back. However, Hibs stole a win from us at Fir Park to turn around their season. Perhaps it is our turn to do the same to them and I can see a surprise result on the cards. 1-1 with a late equaliser from the Dossers.
Celtic away. Oh dear, we really do seem to be up against it in this one. Celtic will have received a massive boost from beating Blackburn Rovers and then returning to the top of the league. The one plus point is that we will have players returning for the match and Celtic might be caught with their minds elsewhere. The game will be on the Sunday because of Celtic’s UEFA cup tie with Celta Vigo and they will be looking ahead a couple of weekends to the Rangers game. This will not be enough to give us a point but it may spare us a thrashing. Celtic 2-0 Motherwell.
Hearts home. This is a crunch game. A mid-week night at Fir Park is where many vital results have been scraped out and while Hearts are a decent side, it is likely that the football on show will not be great. We have already shown that we can give Hearts a run (in the first half at least!) for their money and if we can regain the passion we showed at the beginning of the season, we might pull one out the bag. We are in an optimistic mood but Hearts’ quality will ensure they emerge with a point from a 2-2 draw.
Aberdeen away. This is a match that looks tough on paper but we definitely have a chance in this one. Dirk Lehmann came within feet of winning us the league game at Fir Park and despite what the press said, we performed reasonably well at Pittodrie in the cup tie. Aberdeen, like us, have a lot of young players and are prone to inconsistency. While the small band of fans who travel from the north will not expect victory, another point should be the minimum target. Sadly, this will be another game that we contribute to but take nothing. Aberdeen will edge another close match 2-1.
So, the crystal ball suggests two points from the next four games. Not ideal and not enough to get us off the bottom of the league. However, it will stop the run of losses and will gradually begin to restore confidence. The main thing is that we keep in touch with the teams above us – as long as we are within striking distance in April, we have a chance.