Motherwell 3-1 Livingston: Theo Bair scores twice for first win in 16 games
- Published
Blair Spittal's strike gave Motherwell an early lead which they would never relinquish
Theo Bair scored twice as Motherwell beat Scottish Premiership bottom side Livingston to record a first win in 16 matches and ease the pressure on manager Stuart Kettlewell.
Motherwell raced into a two-goal lead, Blair Spittal prodding the ball beyond Shamal George after 14 minutes before Bair bundled in a second five minutes later.
Scott Pittman netted for the first time since April 2022 to pull the visitors back into it, before Bair rampaged clear down the left before cutting inside and lifting in a delicate finish.
All of that happened in the first 35 minutes and it would stay that way to condemn Livingston to a 12th game without a win, leaving them six points behind Ross County.
Motherwell, though, are up to eighth, seven points clear of bottom spot.
Both managers had acknowledged the importance of this contest and had spoken of receiving a bit of luck in the fight against relegation. There was no luck necessary for Motherwell, however.
Livingston goalkeeper Shamal George was beaten twice within the first 20 minutes.
First, Joel Nouble had his pocket picked by Mika Biereth. The Finnish forward shunted the ball to Bair, who touched into the path of Spittal, who poked home.
Livingston had failed to win any of the 12 games in the league this season and they found themselves two goals down inside 20 minutes without having threatened once.
Bair's earlier favour was reciprocated by Spittal. The latter clipped a delightful ball through, with Bair making no mistake in prodding the ball past an outrushing George.
Against the run of play, Livingston kept their hopes of a comeback alive when Pittman acrobatically turned in a tidy Cristian Montano through ball.
But Bair, rampant throughout the first half, snagged a second in divine fashion. He raced on to a Biereth long ball, chopped inside Mikey Devlin, and delightfully dinked the ball over George to re-extend the hosts' lead to two.
A second half lacking in quality ensued. Livingston were able to stamp some authority on the game, but failed to test Liam Kelly as wild strikes and a lack of cutting edge finishing condemned them to defeat.
Player of the match - Theo Bair (Motherwell)
Two goals and potentially the most unselfish assist of all-time from the Canadian forward makes him the only option despite numerous strong performances amongst the Motherwell XI
Lethargic Livi fail to threaten ruthless Motherwell - analysis
Kettlewell spoke before kick-off about his side receiving praise for their play amid a winless run and they finally got some reward for that here.
From the first kick, Biereth and Spittal were relentless in their pursuit of the ball.
They constantly pressed their opponents, squeezing them into uncomfortable situations and seeing their hard work pay off - with the first goal coming from the daunting duo catching out Joel Nouble in a compromising position.
Their persistence and a solid foundation behind them allowed Bair to fully express himself. An atypical assist, a well-earned goal and a stunning second was only made possible due to the hard-working attackers around him.
Livingston… what is there to say? Sloppy mistakes cost them early on and there was a complete lack of cutting-edge quality.
Only one shot on target - Pittman's unorthodox finish - proves there was quite simply not enough quality going forward. Especially so in the second half, in which the home side were content sitting in throughout.
What they said
Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell: "How we started the game was fundamental. I thought we started with a real purpose and I felt the players carried out the message to a tee, which sometimes is a little bit of a frustration for me.
"If we are being brutally honest, we had four or five gilt-edged chances. We scored a few but I think we could have been more ahead than we were.
"Theo [Bair] has all the attributes to be a success in this league. In the first 45 minutes, everyone could see that. He seems to get more criticism than others, in my opinion, but if he performs like he did today then the world is his oyster."
Livingston manager David Martindale: "I thought we had turned a corner. I know the results haven't been there but the performances have. Today, I don't think we performed. It's not the first time [I've not been happy].
"That first half was probably one of the worst I've seen since I've been in at Livingston. That doesn't come down to tactics, formations or game plans - that comes down to individuals not taking responsibility and doing their jobs properly.
"I take the majority of the responsibility but today, that first half performance was not good enough. It was not of the standards I expect of Livingston."
What's next?
Motherwell travel to face Hibernian and Livingston host Hearts, both on Tuesday at 15:00 GMT.