Motherwell clash is why we play game
IT would be hard for anyone involved in this relegation battle to describe it as laugh-aminute fun. Giggles and grins are few and far between when livelihoods are at stake.
Ask Danny Redmond if he and his Hamilton team-mates are taking any enjoyment out of fighting for survival in the Premiership, however, and he comes up with a slightly surprising answer.
‘We’d rather be safe,’ concedes the Englishman, pausing slightly before adding: ‘But this is why we play football.
‘We need to perform under pressure, it’s part of the game, and hopefully we can do that.’
That Accies are under some degree of pressure is certainly true, although the same stresses and strains apply to at least three — maybe four — of the teams in the bottom six.
Today’s visitors to the Superseal Stadium, local rivals Motherwell, currently occupy the Play-off position only because their goal difference is inferior to that of the Accies.
Four goals, that’s all that separates the combatants in a Lanarkshire derby already accepted as maybe the most important in the history of the fixtures. On such fine margins do seasons — entire careers, even — rise and fall.
Redmond, a boyhood Liverpool fan who grew up revelling in the Merseyside derby heroics of Reds skipper Steven Gerrard, understands both the keen nature of the rivalry and the implications of failure for either team.
The midfielder said: ‘We’re just ahead of them on goal difference, so we know it will be a massive game.
‘But we have a lot of guys with experience of this sort of thing — and I hope we can all step up and prove the doubters wrong.
‘This is one of the biggest games of the season. And it’s a huge derby under the circumstances.
‘We’ve both got a lot to lose. We both want to stay in the top league. If our fans get behind us here, we can come out on top.
‘Because it’s a derby, you need to build yourself up. You know it will be a feisty game. Hopefully, though, we can get the ball down and play good football.
‘I grew up a Liverpool fan but it was hard to get a ticket to the derbies, so I watched most on the telly.
‘I’d rather be playing than watching. That’s too nervous, watching from the stands or on TV.
‘The most nervous I ever felt watching was one of the games when Liverpool were at Everton and Gerrard scored a screamer. I recall that game because Gerrard was my hero.
‘I was watching it on the telly with a few of my Everton mates and it was good to rub it in.
‘You are nervous in the circumstances of a derby. But you know what it requires and have dealt with pressure before.’ Somewhere amid the nerve-stretching hype about battling qualities and mental strength, there is a game of football to be played. Hopefully.
On paper, many would favour a Motherwell team with that little bit extra firepower; Louis Moult sitting high in the Premiership scoring charts is evidence of what the Steelmen can do on their day.
But, of course, this game won’t be played on paper. It’ll be played on a plastic pitch not exactly beloved by a majority of visiting teams.
‘We get the ball down and play,’ said Redmond. ‘And so do they, in fairness. But we’re at home and, hopefully, that’s an advantage.
‘We train on the astro most days and hopefully we can take that as an advantage.’ Much of the mood music coming out of Fir Park suggests that, despite the obvious talent in their ranks, Motherwell’s run of one win and two draws in their last eight games has created a mood of desperation.
Asked if he picked up on the feeling that the visitors might be just a little cast down, however, Redmond declared: ‘You can’t take it into consideration. One game can change everything.’
Something has to give in Hamilton today, with both teams knowing that a point might be worse than useless in their current situation.
Pressure on, fans baying for blood, everything — absolutely everything — on the line.
This is why they play.