Butcher prays for a second coming; SPL: Motherwell; Beating Celtic

SEPTEMBER 11, 2001, is a date which is indelibly marked in the public mind, but perhaps in years to come a local holiday will also be called in Lanarkshire to commemorate September 10, 2002. People would gather to mark the last, defining moment of Motherwell Football Club's age of innocence, even despite the swathe of redundancies that had foretold it months earlier.

On that night - when the champions, Celtic, were deservedly defeated and an expected buyer, local butcher Ian Adams, was waiting in the wings - John Boyle was spotted cavorting along the touchline in celebration. The club had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

But now, three months on, as the same two teams prepare to meet in the East End of Glasgow this afternoon, no news is good news in Motherwell. The club lie adrift at the foot of the Premierleague, having taken just one point out of the last 30 available since that match. They also remain deep in the throes of administration after the Adams-led consortium pulled out of the running.

Pressure is growing on manager Terry Butcher as his team aim to negotiate the eight games before the transfer window opens with the most threadbare of squads, which has been further decimated by players becoming increasingly prone to acts of indiscipline.

Unhelpful rumours, inspired by that touchline jig, persist that Boyle - still the club's chairman and main creditor - will take over day-to-day running of affairs at Fir Park once more, even though the Sunday Herald understands he would only become involved again if the club is faced with the immediate prospect of being wound up.

Bryan Jackson, of Pannell Kerr Foster, is the kingmaker charged with giving life or death to clubs in this part of the country, having given Airdrie United the kiss of life during his spell as administrator of Clydebank.

He has heard nothing about Boyle staging a dramatic return. "I know there has been some speculation about it because from a legal point of view he is still the chairman and the board of directors are still the directors," he said.

"Because he is still seen there it causes a bit of speculation. But I have never had a conversation about him coming back in any capacity. The instructions from the board are to try and find an external buyer and that is what we are trying to do."

It is obviously more difficult to sell a club rooted to the bottom of the table but, according to Jackson, Motherwell were struggling to find a buyer even when they were doing quite well.

In parallel with First Division leaders Falkirk and Inverness Caledonian Thistle's lack of progress in trying to build a stadium fit for the SPL, there are no plans being made for relegation, and indeed some money will be made available to Butcher for new signings or loan deals when the transfer window opens next month. The club have still not been tempted with any offers for James McFadden or Dirk Lehmann.

"I think you would plan for that [relegation] in the close season," Jackson said. "I don't know how you'd do it now. Just as we weren't carried away when we had a few good results at the beginning of the season, we can't panic after a few bad results, although it is obviously concerning. We have a budget for this year, based on the likely income."

Indeed, Jackson believes the club could continue trading in administration for years, even if it is hardly an ideal scenario.

The future of Butcher as manager, just like his appointment, will also be influenced by such factors. Last season, the services of Billy Davies were dispensed with after he took just two points from the first seven league games. Butcher's recent record doesn't compare favourably, but cash restrictions mean that not only is Butcher working with both hands behind his back, the club do not have enough money to replace him anyway.

Visiting Celtic Park is hard at the best of times, but without the suspended Daniel Sengewald, David Partridge, Stephen Pearson and the injured Keith Lasley and Douglas Ramsay, the pressure on the team's defence is likely to be impossible to resist.

Butcher hopes it will trigger a change of fortune. "Since that game we've had a rotten run," he said. "We've certainly not gelled the way that we did against Celtic. We need something to turn it around, whether it's a good performance against Celtic or not."

Just avoiding a heavy defeat would make it another date to remember.

Copyright 2002 SMG Sunday Newspapers Ltd.
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