McCall Hoping For An Upset

18 May 2011 10:55
Motherwell are regulars at Hampden this seaosn and hope Saturday's trip will be one to savour. Stuart McCall is confident his team can cause a Scottish Cup final upset on Saturday if they hit top form at Hampden. Motherwell have been to the national stadium twice before this season where they were unfortunate to lose 2-1 against Rangers in the League Cup in January before easing to a 3-0 win over St Johnstone in their second semi-final. Motherwell know how to rise to the occasion and have done so at other times this season, such as when they beat Celtic 2-0 at Fir Park in February and beat cup holders Dundee United 3-0 in the quarter-final replay.  McCall said: "The one thing we can take into it is that, since I've been here, there have been four or five outstanding performances and we know we've got that in the team we send out. We can look back to the semi against Rangers, the two cup games against Dundee United, beating Celtic here. But on Saturday we've got to be looking forward and go at it and give the best we've got. It will be down to the players, they have been outstanding this season and if they are at their best we have the chance to cause an upset. We've got a lot of young boys but the experience of the European games helped them, as did the two games at Hampden already. There should be no stage fright, everyone is really focused."  McCall has experience of going into games like this as part of the favourites when playing in Scotland for six years with Rangers, but he knows what it is like to upset the odds. He said: "Sport, football, everywhere is littered with the underdogs rising. I remember my debut for Scotland against Argentina, the World Cup holders at the time. Nobody gave us a prayer but we won. I was playing for Bradford and we had to beat Liverpool in the last game to stay up in the Premiership. They were going for the Champions League spot and had Owen, Gerrard, top players, and we managed to win. It can be done but it's all about the players being the best they can be."  McCall has been shuffling his team for the closing games of the season in a bid to get everyone at peak fitness. The tactic has worked with goalkeeper Darren Randolph 100% fit after a thigh strain and full-back Maurice Ross recovered from a groin problem. McCall said: "I'm pleased because the bottom line was going into the game with a fully-fit squad and that's what we're going to have. Training this morning was really keen and at a good tempo."

Source: FOOTYMAD