Cadden cannot countenance more misery at Hampden

CHRIS CADDEN has already tormented himself with a full replay of Motherwell losing at Hampden this season. He has no wish to repeat the experience this summer.

The Scotland Under-21 midfielder harbours a few regrets over Stephen Robinson’s side letting Celtic slip away from them to win the Betfred Cup final 2-0 in November.

Craig Gordon’s save from Louis Moult and the controversial sending-off of Cedric Kipre which led to a second Celtic goal were the moments Cadden wishes he could erase.

Not until returning to Hampden for the Scottish Cup final to gain revenge over Celtic or scoring a shock success over Rangers would enable Cadden to put those memories to bed.

Motherwell can book their place in the May showpiece by beating Aberdeen on Saturday.

‘Celtic are hard enough to match with 11 men never mind ten, so it was tough for us and the red card was a big turning point in the game for me,’ said Cadden.

‘I thought we were good up until half-time and were well in the game. Craig Gordon had an unbelievable save and these things change games. You need a bit of luck against Celtic.

‘I’ve watched it back. And it was a hard watch. But we will learn from that experience, especially myself as a young player. Getting there just made me more hungry to get back again. ‘You don’t want that to be your last final. You want to get back and we will try to do that in the semi against Aberdeen. We will relish the chance to get back there. ‘With the top six gone for us, TORMENTED: Cadden is looking for a change of luck that’s a bummer. Although we want to finish as high as possible and get seventh, the Scottish Cup is even more important to us now.’

Moult, now of Preston North End, was the hero of the last-four Betfred clash against Rangers with two goals.

Cadden is confident Motherwell retain the services of match-winners against the big opponents, including the man recruited as a direct replacement for Moult.

‘Curtis Main has stepped up and done really well since he came here and Ryan Bowman has played well too,’ said Cadden.

‘Against Rangers last week, for me, Curtis was the best man on the field.

‘He was unplayable. He bullied them. Outstanding. He has great strength. He has stepped up to the plate and is in form.

‘We’ve lost to Aberdeen in the league since and I hope that’s a kick up the backside for us. We have to be better in the semi-final to beat a good Aberdeen team.’