St Johnstone - 24h on

Last updated : 01 December 2019 By John Wilson

It speaks volumes for the progress Motherwell have made in recent months that a 4-0 win can be followed by the manager suggesting that his team can "play a lot better than that".

In his post match interview on MFC TV Stephen Robinson agreed that it was a fantastic result but "we can certainly play better than that".   He heaped praise on the team's defending and was pleased that we were ruthless in taking opportunities in attack.

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Winter sunshine at Fir Park

Over the years 'Well fans have seen their favourites deliver performances both good and bad but rarely have we seen a win of such a margin delivered by a team that the manager suggested was "poor and flat at times".

The spectacle was determined to a large extent by the nature of the opposition.  They were content to push up the park on the break but on the loss off the ball they immediately retreated into an eleven man defensive shell.  They conceded ground to the halfway line before offering any resistance and we were posed a problem.

It took the fleet of foot of Jermaine Hylton to find a way though.  His work along the byline, with a helpful break of the ball, afforded the opportunity of a chip to Devante Cole at the far post.  The tall striker converted.  Cole is nearing the end of his six month loan spell and it must be a priority for the manager that an extension can be negotiated with Wigan.

There was an improvement in entertainment in the second half, possibly due to the visitors taking a more positive view of the game.  Peter Hartley and Jake Carroll made the best of the chances that came from corners to end the contest before Christy Manzinga calmly dispatched the best goal of the game in the last minute.

With a packed December calendar ahead this result gives us a good boost.  The six game run starts with at trip to Paisley on Wednesday before Hearts come to Fir Park on Saturday. 

Motherwell Score Four Against Poor St Johnstone