Lucketti plans to tap Brown for SPFL advice
ASSISTANT manager Chris Lucketti will lean on football doyen Craig Brown should he and Motherwell boss Graham Alexander need any Fir Park pointers.
Lucketti and Alexander, the new management duo at the Lanarkshire club, played together for six years at Preston during which former Motherwell and Scotland manager Brown had a twoyear spell as boss.
Ahead of the Scottish Premiership clash with Ross County tonight, Lucketti, who was with Alexander at Fleetwood, Scunthorpe and Salford, revealed the influence of Brown, now 80.
He said: “I was signed by David Moyes at Preston so I had a good connection with him and regularly keep in touch with him.
“Craig Brown came to manage after he left and Craig is somebody that I have a load of respect for.
“He still texts me and had nothing but good wishes for Graham and myself and I have nothing but respect for what he did for me at Preston.
“He was superb, great to work for and he knows the game inside out.
“He came to Preston and he was just a great guy, you wanted to perform to your highest levels.
“He was nothing but supportive to me and everyone at Preston in my time there.
“I didn’t speak to him before we came but I’ve spoken to him since we have signed and he is positive.
“He has been a big part of Motherwell himself obviously and he is a great sounding board if we ever need to use him for advice.”
Motherwell have drawn twice and lost once since Alexander took over from Stephen Robinson and are above bottom side Hamilton only on goal difference and a point behind Ross County having played two games less.
Lucketti believes victories
are not too far away. The former Bury and Huddersfield defender said: “We are looking to build on the performances and we have been really pleased with the performances but we need to extend that 90 minutes.
“We had 45 minutes against St Mirren and for 75 minutes against Rangers we were superb and even in the first half against Aberdeen we hit the post and we were creating chances. So the performance levels have been really good it is now a case of extending those and those will lead to the results we need.
“We have been focusing on performances and we do believe performances will lead to results.”
Meanwhile, Ross County’s Jason Naismith is hoping Borna Barisic’s practical tutorial stands him in good stead for the future.
The marauding Croatia leftback played a full part in the Scottish Premiership leaders’ thumping 5-0 win over the Staggies at Ibrox on Saturday as Steven Gerrard’s side stretched their lead over Celtic to 23 points having played three games more.
At 26, right-back Naismith, who rejoined the Highland club recently after a spell at Peterborough, is no rookie but admitted he had his eyes opened by Barisic.
“Obviously playing against international players you are always learning on the job and my direct opponent was Barisic,” said Naismith.
“The guy is a Croatia international and you take wee pointers. Even [with] me at 26, some of the stuff he did during the game I have in my mind and hopefully that improves me as a player.
“I know I went away from the game with that attitude. Just wee things. When the ball breaks down, how quickly he gets back into position.
“Not necessarily that he needed to do it, I just think he was getting himself into good habits for when he comes up against better teams who will probably put him under more pressure, being brutally honest.”