1996–97 Motherwell F.C. season

Motherwell
1996–97 season
Manager	Alex McLeish
Premier Division	8th
Scottish Cup	Quarter-Finals
League Cup	Second Round
Top goalscorer	League: Tommy Coyne (11); All: Tommy Coyne (11)
	← 1995–96 1997–98 →

The 1996-97 season was Motherwell's 12th consecutive season in the Scottish Premier Division, the top division of Scottish Football.

Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	GK	SCO	Scott Howie
—	GK	SCO	Stevie Woods
—	DF	SCO	Kevin Christie
—	DF	NIR	Stephen Craigan
—	DF	SCO	Greig Denham
—	DF	SCO	Brian Martin
—	DF	SCO	Eddie May
—	DF	SCO	David McCallum
—	MF	SCO	Chris McCart
—	DF	SCO	Steve McMillan
—	DF	SCO	John Philliben
—	DF	SCO	Fraser Wishart
—	DF	NED	Mitchell van der Gaag
—	MF	SCO	Billy Davies
—	MF	SCO	Jamie Dolan


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	MF	FIN	Joni Lehtonen
—	MF	SCO	Lee McCulloch
—	MF	SCO	Shaun McSkimming
—	MF	SCO	Andy Roddie
—	MF	SCO	Ian Ross
—	MF	FIN	Simo Valakari
—	MF	SCO	Mickey Weir
—	FW	SCO	Dougie Arnott
—	FW	SCO	Alex Burns
—	FW	IRL	Owen Coyle
—	FW	IRL	Tommy Coyne
—	FW	NIR	Roy Essandoh
—	FW	SCO	Willie Falconer
—	FW	SCO	John Hendry

Competitions

Premier Division

Results summary


Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
36	9	11	16	44	55	−11	38	5	5	8	24	25	−1	4	6	8	20	30	−10

Source: Fir Park Corner

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
Ground	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	A	H	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H
Result	D	D	W	L	D	D	W	L	D	L	L	L	W	L	W	L	D	L	L	L	L	W	L	W	L	D	W	L	D	L	L	D	W	D	W	D
Position	6	7	3	5	5	5	4	6	5	7	8	9	7	8	7	8	8	8	9	9	9	8	9	7	9	8	7	7	7	8	9	9	9	9	7	8

Source: Fir Park Corner
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Results

10 August 1996 1	Dundee United	1 – 1	Motherwell	Dundee
BST (UTC+1)	McSwegan 7'		van der Gaag 78' May Denham	Stadium: Tannadice Attendance: 8,157 Referee: Captain W Simpson

17 August 1996 2	Motherwell	2 – 2	Aberdeen	Motherwell
BST (UTC+1)	McSkimming 40', pen.', 51' McMillan Falconer		Windass 24' Shearer 72' Kiryakov	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,036

24 August 1996 3	Raith Rovers	0 – 3	Motherwell	Kirkcaldy
BST (UTC+1)	Browne Millar		van der Gaag 23', 58' Arnott 31' Dolan	Stadium: Stark's Park Attendance: 4,836

7 September 1996 4	Motherwell	0 – 1	Rangers	Motherwell
BST (UTC+1)	van der Gaag McSkimming		Gough 39' Gascoigne	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 12,288

14 September 1996 5	Dunfermline Athletic	1 – 1	Motherwell	Dunfermline
BST (UTC+1)	Clark 5'		May 57'	Stadium: East End Park Attendance: 5,687

21 September 1996 6	Hearts	1 – 1	Motherwell	Edinburgh
BST (UTC+1)	Weir 5'		Arnott 46' May	Stadium: Tynecastle Attendance: 10,932

28 September 1996 7	Motherwell	1 – 0	Kilmarnock	Motherwell
BST (UTC+1)	Arnott 19' Dolan 86'		Anderson 86'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,700

12 October 1996 8	Celtic	1 – 0	Motherwell	Glasgow
BST (UTC+1)	Marshall 80' van Hooijdonk 90'		May McSkimming	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 49,422

19 October 1996 9	Motherwell	1 – 1	Hibernian	Motherwell
BST (UTC+1)	McSkimming 73' Dolan Burns		Leighton 26' Harper 73' Wilkins	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 6,784

26 October 1996 10	Rangers	5 – 0	Motherwell	Glasgow
BST (UTC+1)	Laudrup 51', 78' Gascoigne 66', 79', 84'		Ross McCart	Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 48,160

2 November 1996 11	Motherwell	1 – 3	Dundee United	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Ross 59'		Olofsson 55' McKinnon 57' Winters 89'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,814

11 November 1996 12	Motherwell	0 – 2	Hearts	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	May Martin Burns		Paille 54' Robertson 88' Weir	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,441

16 November 1996 13	Kilmarnock	2 – 4	Motherwell	Kilmarnock
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Wright 55', 87' (pen.)		Coyne 9', 59', 89' Philliben 49'	Stadium: Rugby Park Attendance: 7,087

30 November 1996 14	Hibernian	2 – 0	Motherwell	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Jackson 35', 90' (pen.) Wilkins		Dolan Davies	Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 7,332

7 December 1996 15	Motherwell	2 – 1	Celtic	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Davies 39' Ross 89' Roddie		Hay 83' McKinlay	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 11,589

11 December 1996 16	Motherwell	0 – 1	Raith Rovers	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)			Lennon 89'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 4,040

14 December 1996 17	Aberdeen	0 – 0	Motherwell	Aberdeen
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Shearer		Martin McMillan Dolan Roddie Burns	Stadium: Pittodrie Stadium Attendance: 10,000

21 December 1996 18	Motherwell	2 – 3	Dunfermline Athletic	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Ireland 12' (o.g.) Coyne 29' van der Gaag Davies		Miller 15' (pen.) Andy Smith 56', 75'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 4,529

26 December 1996 19	Dundee United	2 – 0	Motherwell	Dundee
15:00 GMT (UTC)	McSwegan 36' Hannah 67'		Martin	Stadium: Tannadice Attendance: 8,072

28 December 1996 20	Hearts	4 – 1	Motherwell	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Robertson 22' (pen.), 75' Weir 53' Hamilton 63'		Coyne 12' Martin McSkimming Davies Falconer	Stadium: Tynecastle Attendance: 11,164

4 January 1997 21	Celtic	5 – 0	Motherwell	Glasgow
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Di Canio 29' (pen.) van Hooijdonk 41' Cadete 75', 86' Wieghorst 87' Mackay McNamara		McCart Denham	Stadium: Celtic Park Attendance: 45,374

11 January 1997 22	Motherwell	2 – 1	Hibernian	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	McSkimming 20' Hunter 24' (o.g.) van der Gaag		Dow 49' Welsh	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,855

18 January 1997 23	Motherwell	1 – 3	Rangers	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Coyle 68' (pen.) van der Gaag McSkimming Ross Falconer		Albertz 20' Laudrup 60' Gascoigne 88'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 13,166

21 January 1997 24	Motherwell	2 – 0	Kilmarnock	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Coyle 3', 38' van der Gaag		Mitchell Reilly	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,508

1 February 1997 25	Dunfermline Athletic	3 – 1	Motherwell	Dunfermline
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Miller 11' Tod 26' Britton 76'		Davies	Stadium: East End Park Attendance: 4,796

8 February 1997 26	Motherwell	2 – 2	Aberdeen	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Falconer 48' Burns 54' Philliben 82' May		Dodds 11' Martin 33' (o.g.) Windass 82' Glass	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,555

18 February 1997 27	Raith Rovers	1 – 5	Motherwell	Kirkcaldy
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Duffield 79'		Coyle 27' van der Gaag 40' Coyne 48', 54' May 81' Valakari	Stadium: Stark's Park Attendance: 3,052

22 February 1997 28	Motherwell	0 – 1	Celtic	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	McMillan		Cadete 10'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 12,131 Referee: Jim McCluskey

1 March 1997 29	Hibernian	1 – 1	Motherwell	Edinburgh
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Wright 51'		Coyne 64' Falconer	Stadium: Easter Road Attendance: 8,328

15 March 1997 30	Kilmarnock	1 – 0	Motherwell	Kilmarnock
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Wright 77' MacPherson		Martin Wishart	Stadium: Rugby Park Attendance: 7,612

22 March 1997 31	Motherwell	0 – 1	Hearts	Motherwell
15:00 GMT (UTC)	Martin Davies		Paille 12'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 6,245

5 April 1997 32	Aberdeen	0 – 0	Motherwell	Aberdeen
BST (UTC+1)			Valakari Davies Coyle	Stadium: Pittodrie Stadium Attendance: 9,000 Referee: Captain W Simpson

12 April 1997 33	Motherwell	5 – 0	Raith Rovers	Motherwell
BST (UTC+1)	Falconer 17' Weir 46' Coyne 53', 74' Coyle 78'		Harvey	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 4,691

19 April 1997 34	Motherwell	1 – 1	Dundee United	Motherwell
BST (UTC+1)	Coyne 36' (pen.) Christie 88' Weir		McKimmie 40' Zetterlund 66' Bowman	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 5,382

5 May 1997 35	Rangers	0 – 2	Motherwell	Glasgow
BST (UTC+1)	McLaren Gascoigne		Coyle 7', pen.', 84' Valakari Weir	Stadium: Ibrox Stadium Attendance: 50,059

10 May 1997 36	Motherwell	2 – 2	Dunfermline Athletic	Motherwell
BST (UTC+1)	Weir 32' van der Gaag 73'		French 38' Bingham 59' Fraser Britton	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 9,676

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
6	Aberdeen	36	10	14	12	45	54	−9	44
7	Kilmarnock	36	11	6	19	41	61	−20	39	Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup qualifying round^[a]
8	Motherwell	36	9	11	16	44	55	−11	38
9	Hibernian (O)	36	9	11	16	38	55	−17	38	Qualification for the Play-off
10	Raith Rovers (R)	36	6	7	23	29	73	−44	25	Relegation to the First Division

Source: Soccerbase
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:

^ Kilmarnock qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup as the winners of the Scottish Cup.

Scottish Cup

25 January 1997 Third Round	Partick Thistle	0 – 2	Motherwell	Glasgow
			McSkimming 65' Davies 76'	Stadium: Firhill

15 February 1997 Fourth Round	Motherwell	1 – 1	Hamilton Academical	Motherwell
	Coyle 33'		Clark 69'	Stadium: Fir Park Attendance: 8,050

26 February 1997 Fourth Round Replay	Hamilton Academical	0 – 2	Motherwell	Glasgow
		[ Report]	Coyle 1', 77'	Stadium: Firhill

8 March 1997 Quarter Finals	Dundee United	4 – 1	Motherwell	Dundee
	McLaren 47', 66' Winters 63' Olofsson 87'	[ Report]	Van der Gaag 80'	Stadium: Tannadice Attendance: 11,054

League Cup

13 August 1996 Second Round	Motherwell	0 – 0 (a.e.t.) (2 – 4 p)	Alloa Athletic	Motherwell
				Stadium: Fir Park

Statistics

Goal scorers

Ranking	Position	Name	Premier Division	Scottish Cup	Total
1	FW	Tommy Coyne	11	0	11
2	FW	Owen Coyle	7	3	10
3	DF	Mitchell van der Gaag	6	1	7
4	MF	Shaun McSkimming	4	1	5
5	FW	Dougie Arnott	3	0	3
6	FW	Willie Falconer	2	0	2
	MF	Eddie May	2	0	2
	MF	Ian Ross	2	0	2
	MF	Mickey Weir	2	0	2
	MF	Billy Davies	1	1	2
		Own goal	2	0	2
12	FW	Alex Burns	1	0	1
12	DF	John Philliben	1	0	1
TOTALS			44	6	50

References

[table_note_res_CWC0.20897897528903-1] Kilmarnock qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup as the winners of the Scottish Cup.

[a]

v t e 1996–97 in Scottish football
« 1995–96 1997–98 »
Domestic leagues	Football League Premier Division First Division Second Division Third Division Highland League
Domestic cups	Scottish Cup Final League Cup Final Challenge Cup Final Junior Cup
European competitions	Champions League UEFA Cup Winners' Cup UEFA Cup
Related to national team	Results 1998 World Cup qualifying (Group 4)
Club seasons
Premier Division	Aberdeen Celtic Dundee United Dunfermline Athletic Heart of Midlothian Hibernian Kilmarnock Motherwell Raith Rovers Rangers
First Division	Airdrieonians Clydebank Dundee East Fife Falkirk Greenock Morton Partick Thistle St. Johnstone St. Mirren Stirling Albion
Second Division	Ayr United Berwick Rangers Brechin City Clyde Dumbarton Hamilton Academical Livingston Queen of the South Stenhousemuir Stranraer
Third Division	Albion Rovers Alloa Athletic Arbroath Cowdenbeath East Stirlingshire Forfar Athletic Inverness Caledonian Thistle Montrose Queen's Park Ross County