Since the SPL season ended, less than four weeks ago, their has been an exodus from Fir Park. The management duo of McGhee and Leitch headed north and the search for their replacements continues. Spare pegs in the dressing room were created by the departures of Malcolm, McLean, Smith, Hughes and Sheridan. At the best of times our squad size is small, at the moment it's critical.
Motherwell take to the field a week from today with only a dozen first team regulars on the books and with our captain in charge of the pre-season routines. Just to add an extra twist of the knife it seems that predators are lurking and they have eyes for last season's top scorer, Clarkson and our former captain Quinn.
The identification of the best man to fill the managerial position has to remain the top priority and John Boyle should not rush into a premature decision. The thorough procedures he follows to choose a new manager will give no guarantee of future success but at least he'll know that he will have the best chance of making the right decision.
The small playing pool will give the new manager plenty of scope to bring in his own favourites and if Clarkson and Quinn join the list of the departed then his spending power will have increased. All he'll have to remember is the guiding principal that we live within our means.
No matter which eleven turn out against Llanelli next week in the new claret and amber strips, they will have the support of the one element in the club that never changes. Motherwell fans will be there cheering the team on and hoping that the first Scottish team to play in the Europa League makes a successful debut.