Motherwell axe Reserve League team as the Fir Park club cut costs

Motherwell boss Stuart Kettlewell has confirmed that they have pulled out of the Reserve League to cut costs, and will instead seek to farm youth players out on loan.

Kettlewell says this is a move he suggested, which was backed by the Fir Park club’s board, as they bid to cut squad sizes down.

He says having 15 or 16 extra players is unsustainable, and a specific employee has been tasked with finding the best moves for young stars.

But Kettlewell says young players like Lennon Miller, Ewan Wilson, Mark Ferrie and Luca Ross will remain with the first team.

He said: “We have changed it behind the scenes. Everybody speaks about cutting costs, which is absolutely the case.

“We had more than 50 players, I think it was, at the club last season and I’ve been a driving force in that I feel everyone that’s at the club must have a realistic opportunity to play in your first team.

“Not being disrespectful to anybody, but for us to run with another 15-16 players at the club that aren’t pushing to be in your first team, it’s not sustainable for a club like Motherwell, so we’ve had to taper that down.

“Very much our focus comes on that under-18s group that we have, and the loan system that we want to try and utilise.

“Currently we’ve got four or five, with potentially more, going out on loan.

“We don’t go and get a ‘loans manager’ into the football club, but I’ve asked a member of staff to take that on as part of his remit, to really focus in on that and make sure we’re finding the correct loans for players.”

Kettlewell added: “When they come back, be it half a season or a full season, it’s linked to improving and developing their specific attributes, but also it gives them a real chance to come back and play in our first team.

“That