This monster season started way back on 15 July with a 1-0 Europa league win over Breidablik and it will end on 21 May at Hampden. Our small squad will have competed in 53 games (6 EL, 3 LC, 6 SC and 38 SPL). By any standards that’s a long, hard shift.
The team v Breidablik last July
There’s no doubt that McCall’s aim will be to have the squad as well prepared as possible for the final but that should not mean we merely go through the motions in the league games. To arrive in Mount Florida on the back of a five game losing streak would send out the wrong signals.
The job starts on Saturday when we return to Tynecastle, a fortnight since our last visit. We have a win and a draw there already this season and need to take something from the game if we are to make headway up the table. Kilmarnock are the target. They are three points ahead with a game in hand, against Celtic, and we must make the attempt to overtake them. What better preparation could we have than to move up the table before the final?
Meanwhile we have wish McCall good luck as he sets about shaping his team for next season. The windfall that comes following a League Cup semi final, a top six league place and an appearance in the Scottish Cup final is not one that falls to many Motherwell managers. He’ll have an opportunity to build his own team and secure the club’s interests by extending a few contracts. We’ll be watching his progress with interest.