Report as Motherwell and Ross County start new Scottish Premiership season with a goalless draw at Fir Park; goalkeepers took the plaudits as Aston Oxborough made an assured league debut for Motherwell while Ross Laidlaw earned the visitors a point with several excellent saves
Monday 5 August 2024 13:32, UK
The goalkeepers took the plaudits as Motherwell and Ross County started the season with a goalless draw at Fir Park.
Aston Oxborough made an assured league debut for Motherwell after two years as understudy to Liam Kelly, while Ross Laidlaw earned his team a point with several excellent saves.
Motherwell had the better of the game but are still trying to find their cutting edge, with a number of attacking midfielders injured and a strike-force which is in the early stages of development following the departure of Theo Bair.
Zach Robinson and Moses Ebiye both missed good chances, with Filip Stuparevic nowhere to be seen after a poor display in last weekend's goalless draw against Partick Thistle.
New signing Apostolos Stamatelopoulos came off the bench midway through the second half but did not get an opportunity to open his account.
Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell handed Oxborough the gloves ahead of West Ham loan player Krisztian Hegyi and was rewarded with an assured display, with the 26-year-old commanding his box, showing good handling and looking alert when needed to come out further.
Robinson created the first chance when he dispossessed Will Nightingale and ran away from the defender but he curled his shot past the post with only Laidlaw to beat.
Ebiye had two good first-half chances which were well set up by wing-backs Ewan Wilson and Stephen O'Donnell. The forward was denied by a point-blank stop from Laidlaw from the first and completely missed his attempted header from the second.
Laidlaw tipped over a Dan Casey cross that was dipping under his bar at the start of the second half and Motherwell continued to push forward with their final ball letting them down on several occasions.
Oxborough had made a couple of simple first-half saves and made a more impressive one to push Ronan Hale's curling free-kick past the post.
Both Stamatelopoulos and Ross Callachan were handed debuts off the bench, the latter making his first appearance since suffering cruciate ligament damage 16 months ago while playing with County.
The hosts lost a bit of momentum, though, and former Motherwell striker Jordan White glanced a free header over the bar from Akil Wright's cross, although he might have been offside.
Laidlaw maintained his clean sheet with a brilliant one-handed stop to push Wilson's powerful 22-yard volley behind for a corner. The Motherwell wing-back had been growing in influence as his Premiership debut progressed.
Nightingale had a chance to win it from a late corner but fired well over the bar from 10 yards.
Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell said: "There wasn't a whole host of chances but the best chances certainly went to us.
"We know we have to be more creative in the final third. We know we need to take more risks at times."
Kettlewell also revealed Sam Nicholson is set to be sidelined for a "sustained period" due to a knee injury, adding the news is a "real blow".
Ross County manager Don Cowie said: "We spoke going into the season that we needed to be harder to beat away from home, so I'm delighted to get a point and delighted to get a clean sheet.
"It was a clear sign of everyone putting their body on the line to make sure we got that clean sheet.
"It was a bit frantic, a bit erratic at times in terms of possession. But I'm seeing enough to know what we can work with and it's really pleasing to come away from home and get the point."
