Motherwell 3
Dundee 1
League (Premiership)

Match Report

The Dark Blues fell to a disappointing 3-1 defeat at Motherwell this afternoon. A poor first half performance allowed Well to take a two goal lead through Scott McDonald and Louis Moult. That left the Dee with too much to do when they improved after the break. Substitute Gary Harkins pulled a goal back midway through the second half but, as the Dee chased an equaliser, Stephen Pearson clinched the points for Well with the final goal in the 90th minute.

Dundee made two changes following the defeat against Aberdeen. Kevin Thomson and Gary Irvine returned to the starting line-up with Nick Ross and Kevin Holt moving onto the benh. Motherwell made only one change. 18 year old central defender Ben Hall made his debut, replacing Kieran Kennedy.

The Dee defence looked vulnerable right from the start and lost a poor goal after only six minutes. A free kick from Well's left was cleared only as far as the edge of the penalty area where Stephen Pearson played it forward to Scott McDONALD in space eight yards from goal. The veteran striker was onside and had all the time he wanted to pick his spot and score the opener.

The Dundee midfielders managed to play their way into some promising positions, but the final ball was never good enough to trouble Well's defence. The Dee defence, on the other hand, never looked comfortable. They endured a nightmare few minutes before Motherwell extended their lead just after the half hour.

First Scott Bain had to pull off a great save from Stephen Pearson after a fast break down the left by Johnson opened up Dundee's defence. Louis Moult then found himself unmarked in front of goal, but saw his header touched onto the post by Bain. The Dee keeper had to recover quickly to touch McDonald's follow up onto the crossbar. The Dark Blues' defence's luck finally ran out when Law's inswinging corner to the near post was headed powerfully into the net by the unmarked MOULT.

Dundee tried to fight back and Kane Hemmings forced a good save from Connor Ripley in Dundee's most dangerous attack of the first half. Dundee were forced to reorganise their defence shortly before the break when Julen Etxabeguren left the match with what appeared to be a head knock. Thomas Konrad replaced him. Well threatened to score a further goal in injury time when Liam Grimshaw broke into space down the right from a quick free kick, but Bain did well to cut out his dangerous cross.

In the second half the Dundee defence looked more composed, but the midfield struggled to turn ample possession into penetrating moves. Too many attacks broke down without opening up Well's defence and the home side grew in confidence as they dealt effectively with Dundee's attempted comeback.

Gary Harkins replaced Rory Loy to play the last half hour as a striker and the change brought a quick goal for the Dee. Hemmings spun a defender and raced down the right to pull the ball back for HARKINS to score from 12 yards.

In the most open and entertaining spell of the game Dundee pushed hard for an equaliser while Motherwell kept attacking, trying to find a killer third goal. Dundee had a few promising openings but they failed to convert any of them. Greg Stewart shot wide from the edge of the area after a good build up, then headed wide from Paul McGowan's cross. Riccardo Calder replaced Nicky Low and had two openings on the left, but failed to find a team mate the first time, then shot wide from the second opportunity.

Well were still looking dangerous and Scott Bain had to save Josh Law's 20 yard free kick at full stretch. The Dundee defence had to endure a few more scary moments as they chased an equaliser.

James McPake moved into attack late in the game, but in the last minute of normal time Dundee were caught out. Grimshaw found himself in space on the right, and his hard low cross was turned in at the near post by PEARSON.

Dundee were slow out of the blocks today, and didn't start to put their game together until they were chasing the game in the second half. The Dee's slow start allowed Motherwell to score easy goals and build their confidence. Although Dundee improved after half time they can't have any complaints about the outcome. Motherwell worked hard for their points and ultimately deserved their victory.

Match report written by James Christie - Official Dundee website