Robinson’s cup half full ahead of Hampden clash with Rangers

Motherwell manager Stephen Robinson has his eyes firmly on reaching the Betfred Cup final after beating Hamilton in the league.

Robinson’s side face Rangers in the semi-final of the cup competition this weekend having won six of their last eight games in all competitions.

Peter Hartley scored the winner for Robinson’s side in a typically hard-fought 2-1 victory at the Superseal Stadium on Saturday. And the manager, who signed a new deal at Fir Park on Friday, is excited about his side’s cup chances.

He said: “We have the semifinal now, so we can just concentrate on that. We have the chance to get to the final, which is a great opportunity for us, and hopefully one we can take but until that, we just take every game as it comes.”

He added: “I watched the Rangers game [against St Johnstone]. We are confident going into the game as they will be, they’ve had a couple of good results so I’m looking forward to it, but all the expectation is on them.”

Andy Rose levelled the scores for Motherwell after Ioannis Skondras’ opener, meaning there was no goal for frontman Louis Moult, but Robinson was confident his side will continue to get results even if their top scorer is not on target.

“I think we have shown every week that we’re more than just Louis Moult. He would be the first person to recognise that,” Robinson said.

Accies boss Martin Canning was frustrated by another slack defensive performance, but was encouraged by the debut of summer recruit Antonio Rojano – who made his first appearance after a frustrating wait for a work permit. “It was good to get him on the pitch,” said Canning. “He can be pleased with his debut.”