Motherwell made it through in the SESL Cup this midweek with a 4-3 win over Brechin City that felt fairly comfortable - until it wasn't. Motherwell went ahead early through recent signing Al Bondigas, the 5th minute goal giving the Well faithful hope that this one would be one long celebration in the stands. However, Brechin City had something to say about that, equalizing in the 20th minute through Scott McTominay. Motherwell would take a commanding lead into half, however, with striker pair Ray Wylie Hubbard and Guy Clark each scoring one before the whistle: 3-1 at the break. Midfielder Van Zandt would make it 4-1 after the restart, and from there Motherwell began to get a bit too comfortable. Lewis Raeside raised some alarm bells with BRE's 2nd at the 76th minute mark, and it would become a real tight finish with Bosman bringing it to within 1 goal with 2 minutes left. However, Motherwell would hold on in the dying seconds. The final on this one 4-3, with Motherwell advancing to face Fraserburgh after nearly throwing away a very comfortable advantage.

The league on the weekend was a bit of a bore for neutral fans, though I'm sure the Motherwell support didn't mind. Away to Stenhousemuir, STE put out a real dud of a lineup and Motherwell were able to very comfortably run out 5-0 winners. STE should thank their GK for making two big saves that saved them 120k in blowout fines, but otherwise not much intrigue in this one. The biggest effect of this match came from the two bookings Motherwell received: one each for John Lee Hooker and Al Bondigas. Each were one yellow away from suspension, and each will miss Motherwell's cup quarterfinal against Fraserburgh.

Next up was a visit from Livingston, and LIV came out with a much better lineup than Motherwell had seen lately in the league. Motherwell were able to take a 2-0 lead into halftime courtesy of another Al Bondigas goal and another league goal for youngster Billy Bland. However, right after the break LIV were able to make it 2-1, which forced MOT to take things a bit more seriously. Reinforcements were brought on, and an onslaught of attacks led to 3 goals in 5 minutes. Guy Clark, Billy Bland, and Steve Earle each got one between the 62nd and 67th minutes, putting this match out of sight. 5-1 the final, as MOT keep their 12 point lead at the top with just 6 matches to go.

All goes to plan for MOT this week, but next week might be another thing altogether. The two suspensions to 2 of MOT's top 10 players will make the cup tie that much harder. Fraserburgh will certainly score some goals - can Motherwell do them at least one better? Will Motherwell be able to finish off the league with a trip to Elgin City and a visit from Clyde, or will they let FRA or DEE back into the title race with another late collapse? Let's hope things go Motherwell's way for a little while longer.

Motherwell started the week with a big 4-1 win over Ross County in the last 32 of the SESL Cup. It took until the 41st minute for Motherwell to take the lead, but they would not give it up from there. After a quick goal in the second half, Ross County did pull one back to make it 2-1 after MOT had switched out keepers, but that would be their only shot of the match. Motherwell put in a couple late ones, with both Guy Clark and Ray Wylie Hubbard getting braces. Motherwell will advance to take on Brechin City after they won a tight one over East Fife.

Next up was the big league showdown between #1 and #2, with Motherwell hosting Fraserburgh. The lead at the top was 9 points, so with only 10 matches to go in the season you kind of imagine this match would be an inflection point. Should Motherwell win, they would be heavy, heavy favorites to take home the title. However, a FRA win would narrow the gap to 6 and certainly leave the door open for Motherwell throwing away another title-winning position. However, as soon as FRA lined up it was clear that they did not see the title as possible any longer. A fairly weak stall meant that Motherwell only needed to score one and this would be wrapped up. Billy Bland was the hero on the day, scoring once in the 33rd minute and once right after half time to put this match to bed. The only real excitement in this one came from FRA GK McIntyre racking up 6 saves, but otherwise it was a 2-0 that only had one-way traffic. A match that will appear on the Junk tables later this week. The gap grows to 12 points with 9 matches remaining.

Finally, the visit from ALB was another that could have some spice, should ALB decide to show up. However, the visitors were rather low on EL, and again we ended up with a stall where the away side decided to recouperate some EL for the road ahead. Another match, another junk lineup of 49% SL Used. However, this time Motherwell were able to up their finishing somewhat - both Billy Bland and Guy Clark were able to find the net, with the latter scoring a brace. 3-0 the final here, as MOT maintain their 12 point lead at the top. With 8 matches remaining, Motherwell only need 13 points to guarantee the title, meaning that EL can now likely be focused on trying to aim for a league and cup double. However, that could change should league results start to go in the wrong direction.