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We outplayed Hearts in their visit to Fir Park- it was even more impressive when you realize that we went almost entirely with the 2nd line against them. Unfortunately, we couldn't score against Antti Niemi and despite outplaying them all we could manage was a scoreless draw. It wasn't the best result, but it also wasn't the worst. I had gone with the 2nd line because our match with Juventus was on Tuesday and I wanted to give it our best shot with our regulars.

We weren't sharp in the early going against Juventus and they made us pay. We scored first on a nice run by Shaun Maloney, but they took a 3-1 halftime lead as Jamie Langfield could not hold back the barrage of shots they launched at him. They moved ahead 4-1 on Fabrizio Sarti's 2nd goal in the opening moments of the 2nd half and with no other choices we pressed the attack. Kiegan Parker scored and Kenny Miller added a goal in extra time- but we came up short in the 4-3 loss. With Sofia's 1-0 win over Dortmund, we also had no chance of even finishing 3rd in the Group and moving to UEFA- so we were out of Europe early for that season.

Facing Falkirk at Brockville Park, we scored in the first minute of play on an excellent run by Robert McKeown and they scored in the last minute of play when Scott Bannerman headed past Brownie. The 1-1 draw wasn't a very good result as Falkirk appeared to be one of the weaker clubs in the SPL for that season (at that point at least).

Livingston was in last place at the time of their visit to Fir Park and we took advantage of their dispirited play. Shaun Maloney and Paul Rudden scored in the first half and Kiegan Parker added a second half goal to give us a 3-0 lead. Brownie yielded a late, consolation goal by Steven McAdam, but we won out comfortably 3-1.

We finished out our poorest European showing with an embarassing 3-2 loss at Fir Park to Sofia. The match really had no consequence, since we couldn't catch them for third place- but I didn't want to end without a win in Group play- and that was exactly how we ended. We held the lead twice in the match on goals by David Graham and Paul Di Giacomo, but we gave it back to the visitors as Brownie could not come up with a key save when we needed it. Rangers and Celtic both will be in UEFA, as they each finished 3rd in their Group- which made our failure all the more galling.

The National team suffered a big blow as 23 year old Belgian forward Yasin Karaca scored a pair of goals and dominated the backline as Belgium won out 2-0 at Hampden Park. It made matters very tough as they travel to Brussels for the 2nd leg, with a rough home loss already staring them in the face.

They played better in Brussels, but the Belgian backline- headed by Joos Valgearen- stopped the offense cold and the match wound up a scoreless draw- and Scotland on the outside looking in for the European Championships.

Rangers were next on the schedule and after the two home losses we handed them- they were looking to do the same to us. Kenny Miller got us on the board first after Stefan Klos fouled Kiegan Parker in the area and overall we played a very strong match. It wasn't perfect though and Michael Bridges broke through to score on Jamie Langfield to even the match. That is where we ended up as well, with a 1-1 final that left them in 2nd place and us in 3rd, both trailing Hearts.

Dens Park to face Dundee was our destination. Before we left I made the decision to bring Peter Young to the senior squad and give him his first start. Paul Rudden had been magical last season, but couldn't seem to recapture it this season. Young scored on his debut in the first minute of play to quiet the large home crowd. Charlie Miller scored midway through the first half and we held that 2-0 lead at halftime. Dundee tried to rally, but our backline was clamping down and they weren't getting good chances. We clinched the match when Steven Hammell scored his 1st goal of the season later in the half and the 3-0 win allowed us to keep pace with Hearts, who also won.

The day after that match though- Hearts suffered a big blow as Manager Shaun Taylor was selected to take over the English National side (after Eriksson fired for not qualifying for Euro Championships).

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Amazingly enough, Kenny Dalglish continues to lead a charmed life. According to published reports his job is still not in any danger- despite the failure to qualify for the European Championships and never having gotten Scotland qualified for either World Cup or Euros.

Hearts was looking forward to meeting us at Tynecastle Park for the League Cup Quarterfinals. We showed them that meeting us anywhere when we were playing well is hazardous to our opponents. Kiegan Parker scored his 5th goal of the season to give us the lead after Tommy Lovenkrands had a goal waved off on his offside. Lovenkrands proved hard to handle and equalized for them midway through the half. We took the lead to halftime though as Michael Stewart scored his first goal of the season. The second half began with both clubs playing tight defense. We broke the match open when Paul Di Giacomo (subbed on for Paul Rudden) scored to make it 3-1. Lovenkrands again scored to get Hearts back into the match, but Di Giacomo scored his 2nd of the match and we finished things off when Kenny Miller converted a penalty kick after Darren Young was pushed in the area as we finished off a 5-2 win that put us in the Semifinals.

Pittodrie was always a difficult place for us to play and our match there this time was no different. Aberdeen was struggling, 8th at the time, and the fans were really out for blood- as we had two 'traitors' on our squad- Darren Young and Philip McGuire. The fans were certainly vocal when they took the lead in the first half. Aberdeen was doing a good job of frustrating us on offense. We quieted them down a lot when Kenny Miller opened the second half by scoring an easy goal- thanks to a wonderful pass from Peter Young. Both sides struggled for the critical next goal and it was Shaun Maloney that pushed us into the lead when he knocked a rebound past Andreas Isacsson. We held on from there and earned the 2-1 win. Rangers crushed Hearts 4-0 at Ibrox to take over first place from them.

Our trip to Rugby Park turned out to be just as successful. Kenny Miller scored in the opening moments, but we gave that one back when Alan Archibald was called for pushing Craig Dargo in the area and Colin Donnelly fired the penalty kick past Jamie Langfield. David Graham then struck for two quick goals- with his second being his 5th of the season and we led 3-1 at half. We also led 3-1 at the final whistle as Langfield was strong in the second half and we fended off their attempts.

Hibs were another struggling club as they came to visit Fir Park. We were glad to be back home after our spate of road matches and it showed in the performance as we rolled over our visitors. Peter Young, Kiegan Parker and Shaun Maloney all scored in the first half and Robert McKeown added a second half goal in our easy 4-0 win.

Against Kilmarnock at Fir Park we wasted another late lead. We had struggled the entire match, but Kenny Miller had finally scored at 77 minutes to give us the lead. We let them even the match and escape with a draw when Jamie Langfield missed Craig Winters' shot in extra time. Midway through the season and though I didn't count the first half as totally successful we were only just barely behind Rangers and Hearts- who were tied at the top of the SPL. Lazio also edged Corinthians to capture the Intercontinental Cup 1-0.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Scottish Premier Division - Wednesday 12th December 2007********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2007/8 Table============================================= ================================================== =Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st Rangers 19 8 0 1 29 4 5 3 2 12 7 42 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2nd Hearts 19 8 1 0 22 6 5 2 3 12 9 42 3rd Motherwell 19 6 3 1 20 7 6 1 2 17 8 40 4th Celtic 17 6 2 1 16 4 4 1 3 19 18 33 5th Dundee Utd 20 5 0 5 12 11 4 2 4 15 19 29 6th Kilmarnock 20 4 2 5 14 20 2 3 4 7 14 23 7th Livingston 19 3 1 5 14 15 2 4 4 8 11 20 8th Aberdeen 18 2 5 3 12 12 3 0 5 13 20 20 9th Dundee 19 4 3 3 10 11 1 2 6 6 16 20 10th Hibs 20 4 3 3 15 14 1 1 8 7 23 19 11th Dunfermline 18 3 1 4 12 12 2 2 6 5 16 18 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------12th Falkirk 20 2 1 6 11 14 2 1 8 9 26 14 </pre>

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We started the second half of the season hosting Celtic. Peter Young continued to show why I wanted him from Middlesbrough as he keyed our offense with a goal and then set up Kenny Miller for a goal as we took a 2-0 halftime lead. The match remained slightly in doubt until Ulrik Laursen fouled Alex Notman in the area and Kenny Miller converted the penalty for his 2nd goal of the match. It was a pleasing 3-0 win, but we again lost Kiegan Parker to injury- he would miss a month with a badly sprained ankle.

Dunfermline were 11th at the time, but they sure didn't play like it as they hosted us. It was a tooth-and-nail match with plenty of physical play and few good chances. We managed to edge them as Alex Notman managed to drill a shot home after subbing on for a tiring Paul Rudden. It was also another troublesome injury as Peter Young injured his knee and would miss three weeks. Young had really sparked our play and I knew we were going to miss him.

We didn't look well at Tannadice Park. Alan Combe had a lot to do with that- as he played a fine match, but our backline wasn't its usual rock-solid self and Jamie Langfield didn't have the magic to make up for their lack. Russell Anderson gave us the early lead in the match, but Iain Murray equalized with his first goal for DundeeU. They did us in with goals from Scott Reid and George O'Callahan in the late stages as they celebrated their 3-1 win over us. Rangers won 2-1 at Falkirk to move farther in front atop the SPL. Following the match I also let Willie Howie go to Dundee for 1.6 Million. He wasn't happy, and it made sense to allow him to move on.

Stephen Pearson came back from injury in time for our match visiting Hearts. I almost wished I hadn't played him though- he lost his temper and earned a redcard that doomed us in a close match. The ensuing penalty kick was the only goal in their 1-0 win over us. Rangers handily won and were zooming far above both Hearts and us at that point of the season.

We celebrated January 1, 2008 by finally putting together a good match as we cruised past visiting Falkirk. Shaun Maloney and Kenny Miller both scored in the first half and David Munro had a good debut pairing with Kenny Miller up front in the 2-0 win.

Our trip to Livingston highlighted our main difficulty this season. We outplayed the opposition, but weren't able to put the ball in the net when we needed to. Graeme Whyte, just back from injury, scored to give us the lead. Our backline has not been playing the level it was the past couple seasons and that was the case again as Stephen Donnachie scored past Michael McDonald in extra time to leave us with another frustrating 1-1 draw.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle was our opponent in the 3rd round of the Scottish Cup. Once again, we couldn't get on track offensively and we were fortunate that Daniel Ogunmade chipped in with his 1st goal of the season to allow us to escape with a 1-0 win. We were playing steady, but some of the flash was missing at this point of the season.

We put forth a good performance against Dunfermline at Fir Park. Charlie Miller scored in the first half and Shaun Maloney scored in the second half as we handily won out 2-0 over our visitors. Peter Young reinjured his groin and this time I was forced to send him for surgery- which meant he was out for the remainder of the season.

It was a great start for us at Ibrox as we blitzed 'Gers for two goals in the first five minutes. Kiegan Parker scored his 100th goal for us and Kenny Miller scored his 15th of the season. That was the high tide of our effort though and Rangers quickly rallied. Tore Andre Flo scored to make it 2-1 at halftime and the momentum had clearly swung to them. Barry Ferguson destroyed our midfield and backline in the second half- he scored two goals and they finished out a 3-2 win over us. The win really meant that our chances of winning a fourth consecutive SPL title were very dim.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Scottish Premier Division - Saturday 2nd February 2008********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2007/8 Table============================================= ================================================== =Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st Rangers 27 13 0 1 45 6 7 4 2 16 9 64 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2nd Motherwell 27 9 3 1 27 7 7 2 5 22 16 53 3rd Celtic 27 9 3 1 28 7 7 1 6 28 27 52 4th Hearts 27 9 2 2 29 17 6 4 4 18 15 51 5th Dundee Utd 26 7 0 6 18 14 5 3 5 23 27 39 6th Dundee 26 5 5 3 12 12 4 2 7 12 20 34 7th Aberdeen 26 4 5 4 18 15 5 1 7 21 31 33 8th Hibs 27 5 5 4 20 19 2 2 9 12 29 28 9th Dunfermline 27 4 1 9 20 24 3 3 7 7 19 25 10th Kilmarnock 26 4 3 5 15 21 2 4 8 13 31 25 11th Livingston 27 3 4 7 19 23 2 4 7 8 18 23 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------12th Falkirk 27 4 1 9 19 24 2 2 9 9 28 21 </pre>

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Dundee gave us some help as we hosted them at Fir Park. Fanis Katergiannakis earned a redcard for pulling down Paul Rudden in the area and Kenny Miller converted the penalty to put us up 1-0. Richard Montgomery chipped in with his 1st goal of the season and in the second half Kiegan Parker scored as we coasted to a 3-0 win.

We faced Kilmarnock in the League Cup Semifinal. Kiegan Parker and Paul Rudden struck for goals 5 minutes apart in the first half. That was plenty of goals for us as we overpowered Kilmarnock throughout the match. The 2-0 win put us into the Finals against Celtic, which beat Falkirk 1-0 on a late goal.

It looked like we would have an easy time against Arbroath in the 4th round Scottish Cup match when we went ahead 2-0 in the first half on goals from Darren Young and Graeme Whyte. Unfortunately, we relaxed too much and they struck for two goals early in the second half to make it 2-2. Our superior talent and stamina won out in the late stages- Daniel Ogunmade and Robert McKeown both scored and we moved on with the 4-2 win.

Our televised match against Livingston was typical of how the season was going. We outshot them 14-1, but the only goal we could score against Tony Williams was Kiegan Parker's 10th goal of the season early in the 2nd half. It was a 1-0 win, but the frustration of not scoring on good chances continued.

Oh yes- believe me I was stunned when that happened. I wouldn't have thought in a million years that Arsenal would offer me the job as Manager. I hadn't told them I was interested- they came to me- and I was caught off guard. Imagine a club with their storied tradition- coming to you with pretty much an unlimited budget. It was their turn to be stunned when I turned them down. I guess many forgotten that I had raised up Motherwell with our all-Scot approach. I wasn't interested in moving to England- even for the Arsenal job. It was a fun time- but I was happy to stay at Motherwell at the time.

Our match with Aberdeen was also televised and what they saw was par for the course. We put great pressure on Andreas Isaksson, only to see him make save after save. Kiegan Parker gave us the lead in the first half, but once again we couldn't hold it and Alan Carella scored past Jamie Langfield late in the match to leave us with another 1-1 draw. We also lost Paul Rudden for the season with a knee injury- and I heard rumblings that the Board wasn't happy with our performance, nor our placement behind Rangers. Yes, you're right, I had more than a few thoughts that maybe I should have taken the Arsenal job at that point.

It was a pleasure to finally see all the usual suspects (Charlie Miller, Kiegan Parker and Kenny Miller) score in the same match as we cruised past Falkirk 3-0 in the 5th round of the Scottish Cup. We moved on to face the winner of the Celtic-Livingston replay.

Celtic won the replay, so besides facing them in the League Cup Final we also would battle them in the Scottish Cup Semifinal.

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We faced Celtic for the League Cup. They were trying to salvage another disappointing season, while we were trying to repeat as Cup holders and break our 'every-other-year' cycle of capturing it. They scored first in the match as ex-Motherwell Keith Lasley struck for a goal at 24 minutes on a dazzling half-volley. It didn't take us long to even things though as Stephen Pearson scored when Michael Stewart got him the ball inside the area. It was a closely played match following that as each club sought the important next goal. Kenny Miller was left unmarked early in the 2nd half and took advantage when Charlie Miller zinged him a pass- he snapped a low shot past Douglas before he could react and we finally had the lead. From that point on we played the brand of tough, hard-nosed team defense we were known for and they could not get anything past Jamie Langfield as we finished out as repeat League Cup Champions with the 2-1 win.

Easter Road was our next destination and we met a stubborn Hibs squad. Charlie Miller scored early in the match, but they pressured Jamie Langfield and our backline for the remainder of the first half. We were still clinging to the lead when Kiegan Parker and then Miller with his 2nd scored within 5 minutes of each other late in the half and that propelled us to a 3-0 win.

Because of scheduling quirks and the Cup competitions, our next match was visiting Celtic Park for our 2nd match with them in the last three- and we also faced them again in our Scottish Cup Semifinal in the match that followed. This was a key League match as they were trailing us by 3 points for 2nd place in the SPL. Charlie Miller got us off to an excellent start when he boomed home a 20 yard free kick for the lone goal in the first half. I felt a lot more comfortable when Shaun Maloney (who had subbed on for tiring Charlie Miller) scored to improve the lead to 2-0. Kiegan Parker added a header in the late stages to make it 3-0, before Bosko Balaban scored a consolation goal to make the final margin 3-1.

The third time was almost the charm for Celtic as we faced them in the Scottish Cup Semifinal at Hampden Park. The winner would be a heavy favorite since the other Semifinal was Inverness Caledonian against Airdrie in an all-Division 1 Semifinal. Chris Sutton converted a penalty kick to give them the lead in the first half after Philip McGuire was called for pushing Sutton in the area. Celtic appeared set to hold us off, but we rallied when Charlie Miller scored a goal against the flow of play midway through the 2nd half. We would be forced into a replay when neither of us could score the deciding goal. The Board let me know they were disappointed and had expected us to beat them once more.

Our last regular match before the Playoff Group was hosting Dundee United. It looked like we were in bad straights when Kevin Morrison was redcarded for a two footed tackle on ex-teammate Willie Howie at 23 minutes. We managed to survive the first half still clinging to a scoreless draw thanks to superb work in net from Brownie. In the second half Shaun Maloney managed to thread a through ball that went to David Graham and he made the most of the chance, beating Alan Combe cleanly for what would be the only goal in the match. We played much stronger and more confident with the lead and held the 1-0 scoreline at the end of the match.

We opened the Playoff Group with another trip to Ibrox (we received the short end of the draw with this being the 4th time we had to play them at Ibrox out of 5 matches- including one Cup match in those). It was a must-win for us if we wanted to overtake them for the SPL title- even with a win, our chances were slim since they had only lost 3 matches all season. Michael Carrick hit a terrific volley that sailed past Jamie Langfield to give them the lead at 10 minutes, but Kiegan Parker got us back to even three minutes later with a scorching shot past Stefan Klos. Our downfall was only a few minutes later though as Stephen Pearson earned a redcard for pushing Barry Ferguson at 17 minutes. We gamely tried to fend off the incessant 'Gers attack, but Michael Bridges headed past Langfield at 41 minutes and we went to halftime down 2-1. There wasn't much to say at half, we would have to rally despite being short a man. We couldn't get anything going right away and out of desperation I brought in Daniel Ogunmade for Darren Young. The move paid off when Ogunmade split the defense on a full-speed dribble and evened the match at 57 minutes. That was our last hurrah though- as Rangers controlled the rest of the match and we finished with a 2-2 draw that almost certainly ensured them winning the title- as they held a 9 point margin with 4 matches to play.

Celtic thought they had us in that replay, and I have to admit- it certainly looked like they did. We had taken the lead when Darren Young scored right away and we held a 1-0 lead at halftime. Celtic rallied as Stephen Simmons scored right away in the second half to equalize. When Bosko Balaban scored off the post past Jamie Langfield at 75 minutes- the sellout crowd at Hampden Park smelled blood and thought they were finally going to see us go down to defeat. It really looked that way when Kenny Miller broke in alone on Robert Douglas and Douglas stopped him cold at 87 minutes. But Daniel Ogunmade had a statement to make after subbing on for knackered Kiegan Parker. Stephen Pearson sent a superb cross in and Ogunmade dove and headed it past Douglas for a dramatic tying goal in injury time and we went to extra time even at 2-2. Ogunmade stunned Celtic when he scored again in the opening moments of extra time on a nice pass from Kenny Miller for his 5th goal of the season. You could almost sense their dispair set in when Darren Young scored his 2nd of the match on an Ogunmade pass to send us ahead 4-2. We capped off a superb win when Steven Thomson scored his 1st goal of the season and we finished off the dispirted Celtic squad 5-2 to advance to face Airdrie in the Scottish Cup Finals.

Though we had to play mostly 2nd line as we hosted Hearts at Fir Park, we outplayed them the entire match. We limited them to two shots for the match as we played stellar defense. We had plenty of pressure on Antti Niemi, but once again it ended up all for naught as we couldn't score and were forced to settle for a scoreless draw. Rangers won on the road at Aberdeen and they clinched the SPL title with that win.

Pittodrie looked splendid on that late April day- breezy but sunny. Aberdeen was featuring several youngsters as they faced us and after Charlie Miller had given us the lead one of the youngsters, David Miller, scored his first ever goal against us to make it 1-1. It was a closely played much and though I really wanted the win, it appeared we might have to settle for the draw. Michael Stewart stepped in and deflected a Charlie Miller corner past Andreas Isaksson and we managed to grab all three points with our 2-1 win. Rangers did us a favor as they defeated Celtic 3-2 at Ibrox and ensured we would finish 2nd to them in the SPL.

Neil Scally scored in the opening moments to give visiting Dundee United the lead against us at Fir Park. We struggled and finally evened things at 1-1 with Alan Archibald's first goal of the season. Both clubs had chances to score the crucial next goal, but at the final whistle neither had budged the scoreboard and it still read a 1-1 draw.

There was a little drama for our last match of the season. You can imagine how badly Celtic wanted to beat us- after all we had knocked them out of both Cups and had finished beating them out for 2nd place in the SPL- they wanted us bad. Our boys knew they wanted us and instead of saying anything (they said enough in the press for both clubs) we just trained hard and got ready. When the opening whistle sounded- we were all over them. Before they knew what hit them we had goals from Richard Montgomery, Steven Hammell, Stephen Pearson and Kenny Miller and were up 4-0 at 28 minutes. They were completely stunned and we finished out the remainder of the match mostly playing ball control. The 4-0 wins sent our fans home happy, but I heard the grumblings from the Board.

The Board felt my 'Scots-only' policy had cost us both success in Europe and the title at home. They were tired of it- no matter that we were now as rich as either Old Firm club due to the same policy.

Valencia edged Liverpool 3-2 on a goal from Pablo Aimar in extra time to capture the UEFA Cup. Roma had an easy time as they thumped Barca 4-1 to win the Champions Cup Final.

In the Scottish Cup Final Airdrie was heavy underdogs, but in the first half they gave us a quite a tussle. They managed a couple chances that Jamie Langfield was sharp on early, but when Michael Stewart scored at 15 minutes most of the press thought they would fold their tents. It didn't happen as they staged a very good display against us the rest of the half and we still held only a 1-0 lead. We finally put them away when Kiegan Parker scored two goals in a three minute span- heading both of them past Kenny Young. We finished out the 3-0 win and it was another Cup for us.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Scottish Premier Division - Saturday 24th May 2008********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2007/8 Table============================================= ================================================== =Pos Team Pld Won Drn Lst For Ag Won Drn Lst For Ag Pts--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1st C Rangers 38 18 1 1 64 10 9 7 2 23 14 89 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2nd Motherwell 38 13 6 1 38 9 10 3 5 32 20 78 3rd Celtic 38 12 4 2 40 13 9 2 9 37 38 69 4th Hearts 38 10 6 2 35 20 7 6 7 20 21 63 5th Dundee Utd 38 12 0 6 27 15 5 4 11 27 44 55 6th Aberdeen 38 7 5 8 26 23 6 2 10 25 38 46 7th Dundee 38 8 6 6 21 21 6 2 10 21 30 50 8th Kilmarnock 38 9 3 7 24 27 5 4 10 19 35 49 9th Hibs 38 8 6 5 28 26 2 3 14 13 41 39 10th Dunfermline 38 6 3 10 26 30 3 4 12 9 27 34 11th Livingston 38 5 4 10 24 29 3 5 11 12 28 33 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------12th R Falkirk 38 5 2 11 23 30 4 4 12 15 40 33 </pre>

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Motherwell - Saturday 24th May 2008********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2007/8 Senior Club Stats============================================= ================================================== =No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------24 Anderson, Russell 15 (4) 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 7.05 3 Archibald, Alan 43 1 0 0 3 1 0 3 7.51 13 Brown, Mark 12 0 10 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 40 Cargill, Craig 11 (3) 3 0 0 3 0 0 2 7.57 - Clarke, John 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 34 Cringean, Stuart 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 20 Dailly, Christian 4 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.40 11 Di Giacomo, Paul 12 (5) 3 0 0 2 0 0 0 7.24 32 Forsyth, Ross 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.50 27 Fowler, James 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 8.00 22 Graham, David 13 6 0 0 1 0 0 0 7.69 36 Hamill, Joe 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 18 Hammell, Steven 37 2 0 0 0 3 0 1 7.00 42 Johnston, Mark - - - - - - - - ---- 1 Langfield, Jamie 40 0 38 0 0 0 0 0 7.20 7 Lauchlan, Martin 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00 28 Malcolm, Robert 15 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.67 12 Maloney, Shaun 21 (15) 9 0 0 7 0 0 3 7.31 44 McBride, Jamie 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 35 McDonald, Michael 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 7.50 6 McGuire, Philip 23 (1) 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 7.63 38 McKeown, Robert 5 (9) 4 0 0 2 0 0 0 7.36 8 Miller, Charlie 42 10 0 0 14 1 0 5 7.62 9 Miller, Kenny 43 20 0 7 (6) 4 1 0 1 7.58 14 Montgomery, Richard 40 (1) 2 0 0 0 2 0 1 7.68 43 Morrison, Kevin 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 6.00 15 Munro, David 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8.00 39 Munro, David 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 26 Notman, Alex 4 (8) 2 0 0 2 0 0 1 6.75 37 Ogunmade, Daniel 1 (29) 5 0 0 3 0 0 1 7.10 10 Parker, Kiegan 31 16 0 0 4 2 0 6 7.87 17 Pearson, Stephen 36 4 0 0 11 1 2 5 7.69 2 Rollo, Andrew 30 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 7.37 5 Rudden, Paul 17 (3) 3 0 0 4 0 0 0 7.20 4 Stewart, Michael 40 (1) 3 0 0 9 8 0 2 7.73 21 Thomson, Steve 5 (7) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.92 33 Whyte, Graeme 9 (1) 5 0 0 1 0 0 2 7.70 19 Wood, Martin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 23 Young, Darren 21 (3) 3 0 0 7 1 0 0 7.17 41 Young, Peter 8 3 0 0 3 0 0 2 7.75 </pre>

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What did I do? Come on, you already know the answer to that- I resigned from managing Motherwell. How did I feel about that? I was frustrated and disappointed mostly. We had finished 1st or 2nd (with the exception of our 2nd season when we finished 3rd) every season in the SPL. We had won 3 SPL titles in a row and the only reason we hadn't won that season was because the 'Gers had played very well. All the innuendo and crap they were spewing in the press just made me mad.

So I quit- it was enough at that time that I had proven that an all-Scots club could compete with the best clubs out there. Now the Board was using that against me- saying the reason we hadn't won the SPL was because of my 'rigid' stance.

I was pleased when they appointed Tommy Svensson to replace me. He had been managing Celtic, and I had a lot of respect for him. Shortly after they appointed him- we actually talked. You didn't know that? Not too surprising actually, since Tommy came out to visit me at my place in the country. I explained my thoughts, but I also told him I knew he would tackle managing his own way. Tommy surprised me by letting me know he wasn't going to stray too much from the current club- he thought they meshed together very well. He was planning on bringing a few non-Scots aboard to help 'boost' the club (least that is how he explained it).

You know very well what I did- I took over the management of that castle. It was an interesting offer and the number of staff was pretty comparable to what I had been managing at Motherwell, so it seemed a nice change. The job was good- little pressure and lots of good moments. The staff was very fun to work with- a real joy. The castle sold itself as a place to visit, so there wasn't much pressure to go out do PR for it- which left only the actual running of it- and the staff was so good, it seemed to run itself. Did I miss managing football? Yes, but not nearly as much as I thought I might. Of course, I followed Motherwell closely- Tommy did a great job with them.

Was he more successful than I was? Hmm, an argument could be made- but he was reaping the fruition of a young squad developing into more established players. All those young players that had more or less grown up together in the crucible of both SPL title chases and in Europe really started shining. He was true to his word, he only made a few non-Scot additions to the club. Here are stats from three of the seasons- I saved them.

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Motherwell - Saturday 12th June 2010********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2009/0 Senior Club Stats============================================= ================================================== =No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alexander, Jim - - - - - - - - ---- 24 Anderson, Russell 13 (5) 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 6.83 3 Archibald, Alan 37 (6) 0 0 0 0 4 0 1 6.98 31 Bruce, Martin 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 25 Cargill, Craig 12 (19) 3 0 0 4 1 0 2 7.03 32 Chalmers, Alan - - - - - - - - ---- 27 Clarke, John 6 (1) 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 6.86 - Craig, Mark 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Cringean, Stuart 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 33 Dargo, Craig 3 (7) 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 6.80 - Duff, Alan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Easton, Craig 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 20 Forsyth, Ross 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 22 Graham, David 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00 - Hamill, Joe 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Hay, Garry 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Hughes, Stephen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Johnston, Mark - - - - - - - - ---- 1 Langfield, Jamie 52 0 44 0 0 0 0 1 7.17 - MacDonald, Andy - - - - - - - - ---- 12 Maloney, Shaun 13 (13) 5 0 2 (1) 3 1 0 0 7.08 23 Martin, John 3 (2) 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 6.80 - McCabe, Grant - - - - - - - - ---- 34 McCall, Mark 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 29 McCracken, David 21 3 0 0 0 5 1 0 6.81 - McGowan, Kenny - - - - - - - - ---- 6 McGuire, Philip 42 (2) 0 0 0 2 7 1 0 7.25 41 McIntyre, Alex - - - - - - - - ---- - McKeown, Robert 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 9 Miller, Kenny 50 (2) 10 0 0 2 2 0 2 7.19 28 Morrison, Kevin 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00 26 Munro, David 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 8.00 - Munro, David 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 30 Nolan, Kevin 17 (1) 1 0 0 4 2 0 0 6.83 - O'Neil, Mark 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 10 Parker, Kiegan 51 24 0 2 (1) 1 3 1 6 7.49 17 Pearson, Stephen 48 10 0 0 6 10 0 6 7.40 - Peat, Mark 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Rae, David - - - - - - - - ---- 19 Richards, Dean 28 (5) 1 0 0 1 2 0 1 6.88 2 Rollo, Andrew 40 (5) 0 0 0 1 3 1 1 7.16 5 Rudden, Paul 6 (23) 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 6.72 7 Svensson, Anders 45 (1) 5 0 0 12 4 0 2 7.07 21 Thomson, Steve 2 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.67 - Whyte, Graeme 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Williamson, Gordon - - - - - - - - ---- - Young, Derek 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 14 Young, Peter 6 (1) 1 0 0 3 1 0 1 6.57 </pre>

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Motherwell - Wednesday 18th May 2011********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2010/1 Senior Club Stats============================================= ================================================== =No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------37 Alexander, Jim 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.25 24 Anderson, Russell 19 (4) 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 6.91 3 Archibald, Alan 39 0 0 0 7 4 1 1 7.18 35 Bruce, Martin 1 (2) 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 7.67 11 Buchan, Jamie 52 1 0 0 3 9 1 1 7.17 38 Caldwell, Derek 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 27 Cargill, Craig 8 (14) 2 0 0 2 1 0 1 7.18 40 Clarke, John 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 8.00 41 Craig, Mark 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Cringean, Stuart 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 18 Cummings, Warren 28 (5) 1 0 0 2 1 0 0 6.85 33 Dargo, Craig 10 (11) 3 0 0 1 1 0 0 6.81 39 Duff, Alan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 7 Easton, Craig 7 (6) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.08 19 Forsyth, Ross 3 (4) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.86 22 Graham, David 0 (1) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 8.00 - Hamill, Joe 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 42 Hannah, Neil 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 20 Hay, Garry 17 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.72 26 Hughes, Stephen 40 13 0 0 5 4 0 2 7.38 45 Johnston, James - - - - - - - - ---- - Johnston, Mark - - - - - - - - ---- 1 Langfield, Jamie 57 0 47 0 0 0 1 0 7.00 - MacDonald, Andy - - - - - - - - ---- 14 Malcolm, Robert 5 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.50 8 Maloney, Shaun 21 (13) 2 0 0 5 2 0 2 7.32 32 Martin, John 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 36 McCall, Mark 9 (2) 0 0 0 3 2 0 0 7.27 29 McCracken, David 33 (2) 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 7.17 - McGowan, Kenny - - - - - - - - ---- 6 McGuire, Philip 20 (5) 2 0 1 (1) 1 2 0 0 6.92 12 McKeown, Robert 49 (1) 10 0 0 11 5 1 5 7.20 9 Miller, Kenny 47 (5) 13 0 0 7 0 0 4 7.29 28 Morrison, Kevin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 34 Munro, David 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Munro, David 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 13 O'Neil, Mark 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 6.00 10 Parker, Kiegan 48 (3) 16 0 1 (1) 4 7 0 5 7.12 17 Pearson, Stephen 52 16 0 0 4 4 1 5 7.37 25 Peat, Mark 0 (2) 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 - Rae, David - - - - - - - - ---- 2 Rollo, Andrew 48 4 0 2 (2) 2 1 0 1 7.25 5 Rudden, Paul 14 (14) 1 0 0 3 2 0 0 7.32 30 Sinclair, Peter 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 15 Soutar, Derek 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 21 Thomson, Steve 3 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6.33 23 Waddell, Richard 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Williamson, Gordon - - - - - - - - ---- 16 Young, Derek 10 (26) 2 0 0 2 2 0 2 6.83 31 Young, Peter 2 (7) 2 0 0 5 1 0 1 7.89 </pre>

<pre class="ip-ubbcode-code-pre">********************************************* ************************************************** * Motherwell - Wednesday 16th May 2012********************************************** ************************************************** ================================================== ============================================== 2011/2 Senior Club Stats============================================= ================================================== =No Name Apps Gls Con Pens Asts Yel Red MoM Av R--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Alexander, Jim 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 24 Anderson, Russell 12 (6) 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 7.06 3 Archibald, Alan 45 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6.98 35 Bruce, Martin 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 7.00 11 Buchan, Jamie 13 (7) 0 0 0 2 2 0 1 7.10 38 Caldwell, Derek 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 27 Cargill, Craig 3 (6) 3 0 0 0 0 0 1 7.22 - Clarke, John 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 41 Craig, Mark 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 - Cringean, Stuart 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 18 Cummings, Warren 7 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 7.00 33 Dargo, Craig 4 (2) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.50 - Doyle, Mike 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 39 Duff, Alan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 7 Easton, Craig 3 (2) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.80 34 Elliot, Kevin 11 (9) 1 0 0 2 1 0 0 6.70 19 Forsyth, Ross 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.00 42 Hannah, Neil 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.00 26 Hughes, Stephen 41 14 0 0 10 2 0 8 7.63 45 Johnston, James - - - - - - - - ---- - Johnston, Mark - - - - - - - - ---- 1 Langfield, Jamie 50 0 33 0 0 0 0 0 6.94 43 MacDonald, Andy 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 8 Maloney, Shaun 22 (15) 9 0 3 (3) 7 2 1 3 7.41 32 Martin, John 3 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 7.33 36 McCall, Mark 4 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.25 29 McCracken, David 39 (2) 1 0 0 4 5 0 2 7.41 - McGowan, Kenny - - - - - - - - ---- 6 McGuire, Philip 50 4 0 0 1 7 1 4 7.54 20 McKeown, Robert 44 (4) 9 0 0 10 0 0 3 7.21 9 Miller, Kenny 46 (1) 8 0 0 4 0 0 1 7.32 28 Morrison, Kevin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- - Munro, David 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 13 O'Neil, Mark 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 10 Parker, Kiegan 50 (1) 26 0 5 (5) 9 3 0 6 7.61 17 Pearson, Stephen 43 9 0 0 9 0 0 3 7.44 25 Peat, Mark 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 40 Rae, David - - - - - - - - ---- 21 Ramsay, Douglas 2 (2) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 2 Rollo, Andrew 46 1 0 0 6 1 0 5 7.74 14 Ross, Maurice 7 (7) 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 6.71 5 Rudden, Paul 4 (10) 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 6.86 12 Rusk, Simon 27 (1) 1 0 0 2 9 1 0 7.32 31 Scally, Neil 18 (1) 0 0 0 4 5 0 0 7.26 30 Sinclair, Peter 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 4 Slater, Mark 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7.00 15 Soutar, Derek 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 23 Waddell, Richard 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---- 37 Williamson, Gordon 0 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6.33 16 Young, Derek 5 (30) 8 0 0 2 2 0 2 7.06 </pre>


Tommy won 3 Championships in his 4 years there- the 'Gers beat him out on the other one. It was an excellent run and I was saddened when he left for Sheffield Wednesday.

The National side? Don't get me going on those years. I still don't know how Kenny Dalglish kept the position so long- he went over 10 seasons without qualifying for either Europe or the World Cup. Simply amazing that they put up with those results for so long. That is why it was so ironic that it turned out that way.

When he managed to beat Romania on aggregate to make the World Cup- well, the acclimation wasn't long in coming- they certainly managed to skip over his past failings in the press. Then the squad goes to the World Cup and is soundly beaten three times. The collective light bulb was something to behold as they realized the National side just wasn't designed to succeed against that level of competition. Why was that? Simple- Dalglish wanted a more flashy offensive club and he didn't have the players to make it work. How have we succeeded in the past? Through strong defense, solid keepers and the occasional flash of offense- either that or relentless work.

They finally made the decision to let him go after the World Cup. I cheered like every one else and was looking forward to a new Manager. Did I have any inkling? Well, to be truthful- I had a couple hints, but it wasn't like I knew it was coming. I had a few people talking to me while I was out of football- even lots of offers to get back into it. Did you know that Arsenal came back to me again with their offer as Manager- it was about a year after they had initially offered it. I was having so much fun managing the castle that I turned them down flat- again.

No, obviously I couldn't turn down the chance to manage the National club when they offered it. It was just a month before World Cup Qualifying began again- so it was good timing too. The only thing I was sad about was that some of the players that had deserved better and been ignored by Dalglish were just about done- I am thinking particularly of Charlie Miller here- he was ready to retire and if I could have been there a few seasons earlier...

retired_destiny1124

1.9.12
Scotland (1) Malta (0)
Scotland- B.Ferguson 49
Malta- None
MOM- Barry Ferguson, Scotland

Scotland- Jamie Langfield- 8, Stephen Crainey-8, Alan Archibald-7, Jim Reid-7, Andrew Rollo-8, Michael Stewart-8, Stephen Pearson-8, Barry Ferguson-9, Darren Fletcher-8 (1st Cap), Kenny Miller-8, Graeme Anderson-8 (1st Cap), Steven Nicholas-7 (on 67 for Anderson), Shaun Maloney-6 (on 67 for Fletcher)

I was nervous as we hosted Malta for my first match as Manager. We had practiced well, but I decided this home match was a good chance to offer their first Caps to Darren Fletcher and Graeme Anderson. We started the match well and it was surprisingly easy to get back into the flow of the match after having been away for several years. We had plenty of pressure on our visitors, especially when I changed to a more attacking approach after seeing they were content to sit back in their zone and try and play ball control. Though it was scoreless at half, I was pleased with our play. Barry Ferguson made the pressure pay off when he took the ball away from Joe Zammit and then made a nice run before slipping the ball past a diving Justin Haber. We continued to pound away at Malta's defense and Haber the rest of the second half, but had to settle for the 1-0 final score. A measure of our dominance was the fact we outshot them 18-3 for the match. Jamie Langfield made the few saves he had to and the clean sheet was a good start for him- his first International match in many years. This World Cup Qualifying run could very well be the swan song for both Barry Ferguson and Alan Archibald and I was pleased to see them both perform well in our initial match.

In other group results- France edged Estonia 2-1 in Paris, while Slovenia and Romania settled for a 1-1 draw.

retired_destiny1124

4.9.12
Estonia Under-21 (0) Scotland Under-21 (5)
Estonia- None
Scotland- P.Elliott 16,31,61 M.Bruce 34 G.Shearer 52
MOM- Paul Elliott, Scotland

Scotland- John Martin (Motherwell)-7, Andrew Gibson (Chelsea)-7, Robert Lamont-7 (Livingston), Mark McCall-8 (Motherwell), Kevin Henderson-8 (Rangers), Alan O'Neill-7 (Rotherham), Garry Shearer-9 (Crystal Palace), Paul Elliott-10 (Ipswich), Scott Thomson-8 (Kilmarnock), Steve Duncan-9 (Everton), Martin Bruce-10 (Motherwell), John Ritchie-6 (Kilmarnock, on 81 for Bruce), Neil Alexander-6 (Chesterfield, on 81 for Thompson), Graham Gallacher-7 (Charlton, on 81 for Shearer)

A lot of people didn't agree with my approach when I also assumed control of both the Under-21 side and the B side- but it made perfect sense to me. I wanted a unity of approach that would support the National side- and that meant the Under-21 and B sides needed to be using the same tactics and mindset. I wanted to instill both of them with the same outlook, so that we could slot them into the National side with no problems and that would hopefully ensure some continued success. The Under-21 side really responded to our approach and tactics. Paul Elliott demonstrated he is capable of controlling matches when playing well and he certainly keyed our win in Tallinn against Estonia. His first goal was off a nice run that split the Estonia backline. He scored his 2nd on a nice pass from Scott Thomson. Steve Duncan crossed for Martin Bruce to head past Dmitri Rajala for our 3rd goal and a 3-0 halftime lead. We didn't stop the pressure in the second half and Garry Shearer was unmarked when he headed a Kevin Henderson cross home. Elliott capped the scoring in the match when he finished his hat-trick as he played a nice 1-2 passing sequence with Martin Bruce. I was pleased with both our performance and their aggressiveness- especially in the hostile Viimsi Stadium.

retired_destiny1124

5.9.12
Estonia (0) Scotland (4)
Estonia- None
Scotland- K.Miller 2 A.Rollo 18-P K.Parker 23 J.Reid 45
MOM- Kiegan Parker, Scotland

Scotland- Jamie Langfield- 7, Stephen Crainey- 7, Alan Archibald- 7, Jim Reid- 7, Andrew Rollo- 7, Michael Stewart- 7, Stephen Pearson- 9, Barry Ferguson- 9, Mark Kerr- 8, Kenny Miller- 8, Kiegan Parker- 10, Mark McNeil- 7 (on 62 for Stewart), Darren Fletcher- 7 (on 62 for Ferguson)

Estonia had a pretty good idea of the kind of pressure we were going to bring- after seeing the Under-21 match. Still, it is all about execution and we really did a very good job against them- especially in the first half. Kenny Miller gave us a quick lead and helped take the crowd out of the match when he took a nice pass from Barry Ferguson and fired past Martin Kaalma. Kaalma made the only play he could when he earned a redcard for tripping Kiegan Parker in the area. Andrew Rollo converted the penalty for his first International goal. Parker got his goal when he deflected a cross from Stephen Pearson just inside the far post. Jim Reid then finished off the half in extra time when he headed in a Ferguson corner for his first International goal. We came close to adding to the margin in the second half, but Estonia managed to keep the score at 4-0, where it was when the final whistle blew.

In other Group action- France edged a tough Romania at Bucharest by a 1-0 margin. Slovenia scored two late goals in the 2nd half to rally for a 3-2 win over Malta on the island.

retired_destiny1124

5.10.12
France Under-21 (1) Scotland Under-21 (0)
France- Cyrille Pacios 90-P
Scotland- None
MOM- John Martin, Scotland

Scotland- John Martin- 8, Andrew Gibson- 7, Robert Lamont- 8 , Mark McCall- 7, Kevin Henderson- 6, Alan O'Neill- 8, Garry Shearer- 7, Paul Elliott- 6, Scott Thomson- 7, Steve Duncan- 7, Martin Bruce- 7, Mark Craig- 7 (on 65 for Shearer, Motherwell), Graham Gallacher- 7 (on 65 for Thompson)

We offered a good effort as we faced France's Under-21 side on a windy, wet day in Metz. We had more good chances than them over the course of the match, but weren't able to solve keeper Bertand Dellatre. Pascal Gauthier was a force at forward for them, but John Martin earned his MOM honors with three good saves on Gauthier. Martin couldn't save the penalty kick awarded France in the waning moments of extra time though and Pacios goal was the only one of the match in their close 1-0 win over us.