Craig Bryson scored the winner for the second game
running as Kilmarnock scraped a late victory against 10-man Motherwell.
Motherwell missed several chances before the
Clydesdale Bank Premier League clash changed in the 63rd minute when
Paul Quinn was sent off for a last-man foul.
The visitors looked to be comfortably holding on for
a point until the ball broke for Bryson to net from close range in the
88th minute.
John Sutton had passed up the best of the
opportunities as Motherwell failed to find reward for some impressive
build-up play.
But Killie's resilience saw them go three points
clear in third place as Bryson added to his winner at Tynecastle two
weeks ago.
Motherwell suffered a blow before kick-off when
skipper Stephen Craigan failed to recover from a groin injury. He was
replaced by David Clarkson, who played on the left of a four-man
midfield, with stand-in captain Keith Lasley dropping to right-back and
Quinn moving inside.
Motherwell made a lively start and only Frazer
Wright's sliding challenge stopped Sutton converting a Steven McGarry
cutback, before Alan Combe held Stevie Hammell's 30-yard free-kick
towards the top corner.
Kilmarnock had their first chance in the 12th minute
after Stephen Hughes slipped while clearing, but Graeme Smith
comfortably held after Conor Sammon had cut inside and shot.
Chris Porter slotted home in the 14th minute after
Clarkson slipped the ball through but the offside flag was quickly
raised.
The home side were forced into a change in the 17th
minute as Simon Ford limped off for James Fowler to come on at
right-back.
Smith made a fine double save moments later after
Sammon had headed on Mehdi Taouil's lofted ball forward.
The Motherwell goalkeeper first beat away Bryson's
volley towards the far corner before holding Danny Invincibile's
first-time follow-up.
The visitors regained the ascendancy and Sutton could
not direct a free header on target from McGarry's near-post corner.
Sutton had another good chance after Jamie Murphy's cross took out Combe
but the striker could not guide his header underneath the bar.
Smith appeared to be barged over by Sammon after
Killie broke but Motherwell cleared and Sutton passed up another
opportunity when he opted to dummy Clarkson's ball across the box.
Murphy was causing Jamie Hamill problems on the right
wing and Combe turned the teenager's powerful strike past the near post.
Sutton waited less than four minutes of the second
half for his next chance after Murphy found him space on the edge of the
box. His shot beat Combe but a deflection slowed the ball down and
Wright cleared off the line. Motherwell kept the pressure on but Combe
held McGarry's 20-yard drive.
The chances dried up and the match changed when Quinn
brought down David Fernandez as the Spaniard ran through on goal.
The Motherwell defence had been caught square by
Sammon's lob over the top and Quinn had no option but to make the
challenge just outside the box, earning a red card from referee Alan
Muir.
Taouil blasted the free-kick into the wall before
Sutton was sacrificed for Bob Malcolm to come on in central defence.
Motherwell were initially forced back and Smith got
down well to save Taouil's bouncing 30-yard strike.
The more defensive-minded Marc Fitzpatrick replaced
Clarkson as Well looked to protect their makeshift back four.
They did so successfully for the bulk of the last
quarter, keeping Kilmarnock well away from the final third. The visitors
may even have sneaked victory had Porter's pass to an unmarked
Fitzpatrick been more accurate after a Murphy-led counter attack.
But Killie got a break when Jamie Hammill's shot from the
left was defletced into the path of Craig Bryson (left) at the far post and the
Killie midfielder slid the ball past Smith.
89 mins
