‘Worldy’ wins it for Well, driving Dundee deeper into despair
MoTHErWEll 1 Turnbull (69) DuNDEE 0
An unsaveable shot from David Turnbull gave Motherwell their first league victory at Fir Park since April as Dundee continue to descend deeper into darkness.
Under sacked manager Neil McCann and now Jim McIntyre, they have lost 12 of their last 13 games and finding a solution to their problems looks more difficult with each passing week.
Not that Well manager Steven Robinson cared much about that. Two victories in four days have seen his side put eight points between themselves and the Dark Blues at the bottom.
“They gave me some super performances today, from the younger boys as well as the senior pros,” he said.
“David Turnbull scored a marvellous goal and we’re not getting carried away but he’s a massive talent. He’s at a very early stage of his career and unfazed by anything – he needs to be managed properly but we have a few other youngsters coming through as well.
“I did worry that the goal wasn’t going to come. In some of the recent games we’ve lost we created chances and missed but you need to keep believing and we did that. We had a lot of chances and thoroughly deserved to win the game.
“We can go to Ibrox next weekend with confidence now.
“We’ve played Rangers once already and drawn with them but our players have now earned the right to go there and have a right go at them.
“After that we have Aberdeen and it gives us a chance to close the gap on them. If we can keep playing like this – and, crucially, defending like we did today – we can keep climbing the table.”
Dundee keeper Jack Hamilton was called into action in the second minute, diving to push away a netbound 25-yarder from Gael Bigirimana. It took the visitors a while to get into the game but centre-half Darren O’Dea came close to breaking the deadlock with a header from Calvin Miller’s corner which smacked the crossbar.
The home side had the bulk of possession but couldn’t make it count during a towsy first half which saw Cammy Kerr booked following an altercation with Ryan Bowman, who was lucky to escape without a card.
His luck ran out, though, and he was cautioned for a lunge at O’Dea, who needed treatment before returning to the fray.
Jesse Curran and Kenny Miller both had penalty appeals turned down while Curtis Main also had one rejected following a challenge from O’Dea.
Cammy Kerr bravely blocked a netbound drive from Turnbull, one of the few players on view who displayed any composure.
Bowman should have put the hosts in front 13 minutes after the restart but headed Chris Cadden’s cross wide from six yards.
Glen Kamara became the fourth player to have a shout for a spot-kick rejected when he hit the ground after colliding with Turnbull but ref Don Robertson saw nothing illegal in it.
The breakthrough came out of nothing but it was fitting that Turnbull was responsible for it.
There seemed to be little danger when he picked the ball up 30 yards out, but he decided to try his luck and his right-foot piledriver left Hamilton clutching thin air.
Cadden ought to have made the final few minutes easier for the Steelmen when Liam Grimshaw’s pass left him one on one with Hamilton but he panicked and blazed his shot over the bar from 12 yards.
Centre-back Andy Boyle was stretchered off at the death after a 50-50 with Allan Campbell.