McHugh targeting another chapter in his book of fairy tales
MOTHERWELL have never beaten Rangers in a cup semifinal since the club was formed way back in 1886.
Yet should they finally achieve that feat in the Betfred Cup this weekend, it still has no chance of toppling Fir Park captain Carl McHugh’s finest footballing fairy tale.
As a Bradford City player, the 24-year-old midfielder was part of a journey that would be more at home within the pages of a Brothers Grimm book.
In 2013, Phil Parkinson’s side became the first fourth-tier club to reach the English League Cup final in 50 years.
After memorable wins over Wigan and Arsenal, McHugh went on to score in a two-legged semifinal victory over Aston Villa.
To put the achievement in context, the entire Bradford city team cost just £7,500 to assemble — the same sum that Villa’s top earners made in a single day.
So forgive McHugh if he is not quaking in his boots at the task facing Motherwell when they face Rangers at Hampden on Sunday.
‘I don’t think it will be as big a shock on Sunday if we win against Rangers,’ smiled the 24-year-old Irishman, whose side eventually lost 5-0 to Swansea in the final at Wembley in 2013.
‘It was a magical run with Bradford City when we got to the League Cup final.
‘We beat Arsenal and Aston Villa over two legs and I scored in the semi-final against Villa, so that was absolutely brilliant.
‘I took 111 fans across from Ireland to the final at Wembley. I think half of Donegal was there to see me. I was a busy man for the week leading up to the game.
‘It was great for me and my family and friends that everyone managed to get over for the game.
‘The whole adventure with Bradford was brilliant and it is something I will always have with me through my career.
‘But that was a few years ago now and I would like to go one step further this time and win the Cup with Motherwell.’
Motherwell have won 11 of their 15 games this season and sit just a point behind Rangers in the Premiership table.
For McHugh, the current feelgood factor under boss Stephen Robinson outweighs any historical baggage of never having beaten the Ibrox side in a semi-final.
‘You can’t read anything into a stat like that,’ he shrugged. ‘We’ve had a good start to the season. We started the Betfred Cup group stage really well and I think that has stood us in good stead. It really helped us gel and we’ve carried that on into the league season.
‘We are just going to focus on the performances we have been putting in lately and see where that takes us on Sunday.
‘We keep stressing that it’s only a good start we’ve had to the season. We need to keep it up and keep working hard.
‘I don’t think anyone apart from ourselves expects us to come through it on Sunday. But we believe in ourselves and we know what we are good at.’
Should Motherwell win the competition, McHugh would be their first captain to hold the trophy aloft since 1950. For the Irishman, the prospect of making history is enticing.
‘It’s a short career and you don’t get many opportunities like this very often,’ he said.
‘Your career flashes before you. I am 24 now but it feels like ten minutes ago I was a young player aged 16.
‘It all goes so quickly but I don’t think the history aspect adds to the pressure on Motherwell.
‘We are just looking forward to the semi-final on Sunday.
‘We have no fear of playing Rangers. Yes, we lost to them on the opening day of the season at Fir Park, but the first 20 minutes that day was as poor as we have played this campaign. But we still could have taken something from the game with our crosses into the box.
‘We are not afraid to say we put lots of crosses into the box and we are strong from set-pieces.
‘We have scored a lot of goals from that and it’s something we’ll be looking to do on Sunday.
‘I don’t think you could say we have the element of surprise any more.
‘Yes, we made a lot of changes in the summer, but teams have watched us play 15 games now and they know what we can do.
‘What has made a big difference to us this season is that we have good depth to the squad.
‘Last season, there were eight or nine players who would always be playing no matter how their form was.
‘But now we have to match the standards the manager sets in training — and we need to show that at Hampden.’