# 2007–08 Motherwell F.C. season

The 2007–08 season was Motherwell's 10th season in the Scottish Premier League, and their 23rd consecutive season in the top division of Scottish football. Because of finishing 3rd in the SPL, the club managed to qualify for Europe in the UEFA Cup, their first season in Europe for 13 years.

## Important events

* 18 June 2007 – Motherwell name Mark McGhee as their new manager, replacing Maurice Malpas, who was sacked at the end of the previous season.
* 4 August 2007 – The first Scottish Premier League fixture of the season (against St Mirren) ends in a 1–0 win at Love Street.
* 25 August 2007 – Motherwell play at Fir Park as the away team for the first time in their history, in a match with Gretna, who are groundsharing for the season. Motherwell win the match 2–1
* 29 August 2007 – The first League Cup fixture of the season against Raith Rovers ends in a 3–1 win at Fir Park. Motherwell advance to the Third Round.
* 31 October 2007 – Motherwell are eliminated from the League Cup against Rangers, ending in a 2–1 defeat at Fir Park
* 29 December 2007 – Captain Phil O'Donnell dies after collapsing on the pitch during Motherwell's 5–3 win over Dundee United. A post mortem reveals left ventricular failure of the heart. Motherwell's next two games (against Hibernian and Celtic) are postponed as a mark of respect. Players wear O'Donnell's signature on their shirts for the rest of the season.
* 4 January 2008 – The funeral of Phil O'Donnell is held at St. Mary's Church, Hamilton.
* 12 January 2008 – The first Scottish Cup fixture of the season against Hearts (also the first match Motherwell play since O'Donnell's death) ends in a 2–2 draw at Tynecastle. Motherwell win the replay 1–0. The club advance to the Fifth Round.
* 4 February 2008 – Motherwell are eliminated from the Scottish Cup after a 2–1 defeat to Dundee at Fir Park.
* 10 May 2008 – Motherwell beat Aberdeen 2–1 to all but seal their place in next seasons UEFA Cup. Hibernian's 2–0 defeat to Celtic confirms Motherwell's place in Europe for the first time in 13 years.
* 22 May 2008 – The final Scottish Premier League fixture of the season against Hibernian ends in a 2–0 win at Easter Road.

## Squad

Updated 5 December 2010
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 1 | GK | SCO | Graeme Smith |
| 2 | DF | SCO | Martyn Corrigan |
| 3 | DF | SCO | Steven Hammell |
| 4 | DF | SCO | Mark Reynolds |
| 5 | DF | NIR | Stephen Craigan |
| 6 | DF | NIR | Brian McLean |
| 7 | MF | SCO | Stephen Hughes |
| 8 | FW | SCO | Simon Lappin |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Chris Porter |
| 11 | FW | SCO | Ross McCormack |
| 12 | FW | SCO | David Clarkson |
| 14 | MF | SCO | Keith Lasley |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 15 | GK | ENG | Luke Daniels |
| 16 | MF | SCO | Marc Fitzpatrick |
| 17 | MF | SCO | Robert Malcolm |
| 18 | MF | SCO | Steven McGarry |
| 20 | GK | SCO | Colin Meldrum |
| 23 | DF | SCO | Paul Quinn |
| 23 | MF | SCO | Darren Smith |
| 30 | FW | SCO | Paul Slane |
| 32 | FW | SCO | Jamie Murphy |
| 33 | FW | SCO | Mark Archdeacon |
| 44 | FW | SCO | Robert McHugh |

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| 31 August 2007 | MF | Stephen Hughes | Leicester City | Undisclosed |
| 31 January 2008 | DF | Steven Hammell | Southend | £110,000 |
| 26 February 2008 | DF | Robert Malcolm | Derby County | Free |

### Loans in

| Date from | Date to | Position | Name | From |
| 31 August 2007 | 6 Months | | Lewis Grabban | Crystal Palace |
| 31 January 2008 | 6 Months | MF | Simon Lappin | Norwich City |
| 31 January 2008 | 6 Months | | Luke Daniels | West Brom |

### Out

| Date | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| 24 May 2007 | MF | Kevin McBride | Darlington | Free |
| 25 July 2007 | MF | Brian Kerr | Hibernian | Free |
| 30 July 2007 | FW | Scott McDonald | Celtic | £700,000 |
| 1 August 2007 | GK | Alan Martin | Leed United | Free |
| 17 August 2007 | DF | Paul Keegan | Partick Thistle | Undisclosed |
| 29 November 2007 | DF | Simon Mensing | Hamilton | Undisclosed |
| 4 January 2008 | DF | Martyn Corrigan | Kilmarnock | Free |
| 19 January 2008 | DF | William Kinniburgh | Partick Thistle | Undisclosed |
| 19 January 2008 | DF | Jim Paterson | Plymouth | Undisclosed |

### Loans out

| Date from | Date to | Position | Name | To |
| 5 October 2007 | 5 November 2007 | DF | Martyn Corrigan | Dundee |
| 19 October 2007 | 3 months | DF | David Nixon | Queen of the South |
| 2 November 2007 | 3 months | DF | Danny Murphy | Dunfermline |
| 29 November 2007 | 2 months | DF | William Kinniburgh | Partick Thistle |
| 20 February 2008 | 6 months | FW | Martin Grehan | Forfar |

### Released

| Date | Position | Nationality | Name | Joined | Date |

## Competitions
### Overview

| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record |
| Competition | First match | Last match | Starting round | Final position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % |
| Premier League | 4 August 2007 | 22 May 2008 | Matchday 1 | 3rd | 38 | 18 | 6 | 14 | 50 | 46 | +4 | 047.37 |
| Scottish Cup | 12 January 2008 | 11 February 2008 | Fourth round | Fifth Round | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | +0 | 033.33 |
| League Cup | 29 August 2007 | 31 October 2007 | Second round | Quarterfinal | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 066.67 |
| Total | Total | Total | Total | Total | 44 | 21 | 7 | 16 | 62 | 55 | +7 | 047.73 |
Last updated: 22 May 2008 Source: Soccerway

### Premier League
#### Table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Celtic (C) | 38 | 28 | 5 | 5 | 84 | 26 | +58 | 89 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Rangers | 38 | 27 | 5 | 6 | 84 | 33 | +51 | 86 | Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round |
| 3 | Motherwell | 38 | 18 | 6 | 14 | 50 | 46 | +4 | 60 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 4 | Aberdeen | 38 | 15 | 8 | 15 | 50 | 58 | −8 | 53 | |
| 5 | Dundee United | 38 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 53 | 47 | +6 | 52 | |
* ↑ Teams played each other three times (33 matches), before the league split into two groups (the top six and the bottom six) for the last five matches.

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Source: BBC Sport

#### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 |
| Ground | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | A | A | H | A | H | H | H | A | H | H | A |
| Result | W | W | L | W | L | W | L | D | L | W | L | D | W | W | W | W | W | L | L | W | L | W | W | W | L | D | D | L | L | W | W | L | D | L | L | W | D | W |
| Position | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |

#### Results

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Motherwell Scorer(s) | Report |
| 4 August 2007 | St Mirren | Love Street, Paisley (A) | 1–0 | 5,257 | McGarry (3) | BBC Sport |
| 11 August 2007 | Inverness C.T. | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 2–1 | 4,259 | O'Donnell 85', McCormack 90' (pen.) | |
| 18 August 2007 | Kilmarnock | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–2 | 4,985 | Clarkson (23) | |
| 25 August 2007 | Gretna | Fir Park, Motherwell (A) | 2–1 | 3,758 | Lasley (8), Porter (62) | BBC Sport |
| 3 September 2007 | Hearts | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 0–2 | 5,081 | | |
| 15 September 2007 | Aberdeen | Pittodrie, Aberdeen (A) | 2–1 | 10,154 | Quinn (34), Porter (37) | BBC Sport |
| 22 September 2007 | Falkirk | Falkirk Stadium, Falkirk (A) | 0–1 | 5,245 | | |
| 29 August 2007 | Rangers | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–1 | 10,009 | Porter (24) | BBC Sport |
| 6 October 2007 | Dundee United | Tannadice, Dundee (A) | 0–1 | 6,286 | | BBC Sport |
| 20 October 2007 | Hibernian | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 2–1 | 7,071 | McCormack (35,37) | |
| 27 October 2007 | Celtic | Celtic Park, Glasgow (A) | 0–3 | 57,566 | | BBC Sport |
| 3 November 2007 | St Mirren | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–1 | 5,123 | Porter (29) | BBC Sport |
| 10 November 2007 | Inverness C.T. | Caledonian Stadium, Inverness (A) | 3–0 | 3,608 | Clarkson (15,53), Smith (87) | |
| 24 November 2007 | Kilmarnock | Rugby Park, Kilmarnock (A) | 1–0 | 5,016 | O'Donnell (46) | BBC Sport |
| 1 December 2007 | Gretna | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 3–0 | 6,431 | Clarkson (44,74), Porter (61) | BBC Sport |
| 8 December 2007 | Hearts | Tynecastle, Edinburgh (A) | 2–1 | 16,633 | Porter (53), Zaliukas (67 og) | |
| 15 December 2007 | Aberdeen | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 3–0 | 5,326 | McCormack (8 pen.,45), McGarry (12) | BBC Sport |
| 22 December 2007 | Falkirk | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 0–3 | 5,241 | | BBC Sport |
| 26 December 2007 | Rangers | Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow (A) | 1–3 | 49,823 | Quinn (65) | BBC Sport |
| 29 December 2007 | Dundee United | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 5–3 | 5,227 | Hughes (11), Porter (14), McCormack (17), Clarkson (55,56) | BBC Sport |
| 19 January 2008 | St Mirren | Love Street, Paisley (A) | 1–3 | 4,291 | Clarkson (11) | BBC Sport |
| 9 February 2008 | Kilmarnock | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–0 | 6,618 | Clarkson (90) | |
| 16 February 2008 | Gretna | Fir Park, Motherwell (A) | 3–1 | 2,877 | Porter (25), McCormack (47,90) | BBC Sport |
| 20 February 2008 | Inverness C.T. | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 3–1 | 4,526 | Clarkson (7,42), Porter (10) | |
| 23 February 2008 | Hearts | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 0–1 | 5,925 | | |
| 27 February 2008 | Aberdeen | Pittodrie, Aberdeen (A) | 1–1 | 8,240 | Smith (83) | BBC Sport |
| 1 March 2008 | Falkirk | Falkirk Stadium, Falkirk (A) | 0–0 | 5,108 | | BBC Sport |
| 12 March 2008 | Hibernian | Easter Road, Edinburgh (A) | 0–1 | 11,692 | | BBC Sport |
| 22 March 2008 | Dundee United | Tannadice, Dundee (A) | 0–2 | 6,779 | | BBC Sport |
| 29 March 2008 | Hibernian | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–0 | 6,580 | Clarkson (3) | |
| 5 April 2008 | Celtic | Celtic Park, Glasgow (A) | 1–0 | 58,624 | Lappin (43) | BBC Sport |
| 13 April 2008 | Celtic | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–4 | 9,771 | McManus (24 og) | BBC Sport |
| 26 April 2008 | Dundee United | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 2–2 | 5,027 | Porter (17,50) | |
| 3 May 2008 | Celtic | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–2 | 9,158 | Porter (60) | BBC Sport |
| 7 May 2008 | Rangers | Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow (A) | 0–1 | 48,238 | | BBC Sport |
| 10 May 2008 | Aberdeen | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 2–1 | 8,574 | Smith (61), Porter (81) | BBC Sport |
| 17 May 2008 | Rangers | Fir Park, Motherwell (H) | 1–1 | 10,445 | Porter (50) | BBC Sport |
| 22 May 2008 | Hibernian | Easter Road, Edinburgh (A) | 2–0 | 10,754 | Lappin 4', Murphy 50' (pen.) | BBC Sport |

### Scottish Cup 2007–08

| Date | Round | Opponent | H/A | Score | Motherwell Scorer(s) | Attendance | Report |
| 12 January 2008 | 4th Round | Hearts | A | 2–2 | Chris Porter (64,78) | 13,651 | BBC Sport |
| 22 January 2008 | 4th Round Replay | Hearts | H | 1–0 | Ross McCormack (23 pen.) | 8,300 | — |
| 11 February 2008 | 5th Round | Dundee | H | 1–2 | Darren Smith (61) | 5,733 | — |

### Scottish League Cup 2007–08

| Date | Round | Opponent | H/A | Score | Motherwell Scorer(s) | Attendance | Report |
| 29 August 2007 | 2nd Round | Raith Rovers | H | 3–1 | Brian McLean (45), Ross McCormack (74), Chris Porter (90) | 3,571 | — |
| 26 September 2007 | 3rd Round | Hibernian | A | 4–2 | David Clarkson (17), Keith Lasley (20), Ross McCormack (24), Chris Porter (83) | 7,000 | BBC Sport |
| 31 October 2007 | Quarter-finals | Rangers | H | 1–2 | Paul Quinn (90) | 9,283 | BBC Sport |

## Squad statistics
### Appearances

    As of match played 22 May 2008
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | Premier League | Premier League | Scottish Cup | Scottish Cup | League Cup | League Cup |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | SCO | Graeme Smith | 42 | 0 | 36 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | SCO | Martyn Corrigan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | SCO | Steven Hammell | 16 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | SCO | Mark Reynolds | 44 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | NIR | Stephen Craigan | 43 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | NIR | Brian McLean | 11 | 1 | 6+3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 7 | MF | SCO | Stephen Hughes | 35 | 1 | 29+2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | SCO | Simon Lappin | 15 | 2 | 7+7 | 2 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Chris Porter | 42 | 18 | 34+3 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 2+1 | 2 |
| 11 | FW | SCO | Ross McCormack | 42 | 11 | 30+6 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| 12 | FW | SCO | David Clarkson | 41 | 13 | 34+1 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 2+1 | 1 |
| 14 | MF | SCO | Keith Lasley | 38 | 2 | 25+7 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| 15 | GK | ENG | Luke Daniels | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 16 | MF | SCO | Marc Fitzpatrick | 35 | 0 | 19+11 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | SCO | Bob Malcolm | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | MF | SCO | Steven McGarry | 34 | 2 | 27+3 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | SCO | Paul Quinn | 35 | 3 | 31 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 23 | MF | SCO | Darren Smith | 27 | 4 | 4+19 | 3 | 0+3 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 24 | FW | SCO | Martin Grehan | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | MF | SCO | Stephen Maguire | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 32 | FW | SCO | Jamie Murphy | 17 | 1 | 0+16 | 1 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 44 | FW | SCO | Bob McHugh | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players away from the club on loan: ||||||||||||
| Players who left Motherwell during the season: ||||||||||||
| 3 | DF | SCO | Jim Paterson | 25 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | GER | Simon Mensing | 4 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | SCO | Phil O'Donnell | 19 | 2 | 15+3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 15 | FW | ENG | Lewis Grabban | 6 | 0 | 0+5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 |
| 17 | DF | SCO | Willie Kinniburgh | 2 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | DF | IRL | Danny Murphy | 2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Goal scorers

    As of match played 22 May 2008
| Ranking | Nation | Position | Number | Name | Premier League | Scottish Cup | League Cup | Total |
| 1 | FW | | 9 | Chris Porter | 14 | 2 | 2 | 18 |
| 2 | FW | | 12 | David Clarkson | 12 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| 3 | FW | | 11 | Ross McCormack | 8 | 1 | 2 | 11 |
| 4 | DF | | 22 | Paul Quinn | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 5 | DF | | 23 | Darren Smith | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | MF | | 8 | Simon Lappin | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | MF | | 18 | Steven McGarry | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | MF | | 10 | Phil O'Donnell | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | MF | | 14 | Keith Lasley | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | | | | Own goal | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 11 | MF | | 7 | Stephen Hughes | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | FW | | 32 | Jamie Murphy | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 11 | DF | | 6 | Brian McLean | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | 50 | 4 | 8 | 62 |

### Clean sheets

    As of match played 22 May 2008
| Ranking | Nation | Position | Number | Name | Premier League | Scottish Cup | League Cup | Total |
| 1 | GK | | 1 | Graeme Smith | 9 | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| 1 | GK | | 15 | Luke Daniels | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | TOTALS | 10 | 1 | 0 | 11 |

### Disciplinary record

    As of match played 22 May 2008
| Nation | Position | Number | Name | Premier League | Premier League | Scottish Cup | Scottish Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Total | Total |
| | GK | 1 | Graeme Smith | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| | DF | 2 | Martyn Corrigan | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
| | DF | 3 | Steven Hammell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | 4 | Mark Reynolds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | DF | 5 | Stephen Craigan | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| | DF | 6 | Brian McLean | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | MF | 7 | Stephen Hughes | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| | MF | 8 | Simon Lappin | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| | FW | 9 | Chris Porter | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| | FW | 11 | Ross McCormack | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| | FW | 12 | David Clarkson | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| | MF | 14 | Keith Lasley | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| | MF | 16 | Marc Fitzpatrick | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| | MF | 17 | Robert Malcolm | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| | MF | 18 | Steven McGarry | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| | DF | 23 | Paul Quinn | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| | FW | 23 | Darren Smith | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Players away from Motherwell on loan: ||||||||||||
| Players who left Motherwell during the season: ||||||||||||
| | DF | 3 | Jim Paterson | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| | MF | 8 | Simon Mensing | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | MF | 10 | Phil O'Donnell | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| | | | TOTALS | 63 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 79 | 1 |