Stuart Kettlewell told Motherwell manager job is his as he gets set to talk terms

Stuart Kettlewell will get the chance to take the Motherwell job permanently on the back of his impressive caretaker stint.

Record Sport understands Fir Park chairman Jim McMahon has told the 38-year-old the position is his if he wants it and the parties will meet this morning to talk terms. Kettlewell has steadied the ship in the wake of Steven Hammell’s dismissal last weekend with two wins on the bounce to move SIX points clear of the relegation zone.

Resurgent Well defeated Hearts 2-0 at Fir Park yesterday on the back of the midweek win against St Mirren and it was enough to convinced club chiefs the ex-Ross County man could take charge on a longer-term basis. Well bosses also held talks with much-travelled English gaffer Ian Holloway and former Hull City gaffer Grant McCann, while former Hibs manager Jack Ross took himself out of the running.

Discussions will take place this morning and it remains to be seen if the job will be until the end of the season or much longer. Kettlewell admitted last night he was planning to sleep on it after a dream week in the caretaker gig. He admitted he couldn’t do much more in terms of an audition for the position and said: “I’ve spoken to one or two of the guys who were delighted with the 90 minutes, the result and performance.

“Win, lose or draw then get up the road and try and chill out because the last week has been chaos trying to work towards six points. But there has to be a reset in that and try to get some sleep as well because that’s not been coming too freely recently. You want the best for the club so we’ll pick that up tomorrow and see the situation.

“I’m massive on the practical side. So many people talk about the game. The younger ones do something on the