Stuart Kettlewell challenges Motherwell players to step up in Lennon Miller's absence

Motherwell boss Stuart Kettlewell admits Lennon Miller’s injury has come as a huge blow to the team but he challenged other players to take on responsibility in his absence.

Miller has been a key player for the Steelmen this season and the teenage midfielder is one of the rising stars of the Scottish game but he is now facing six to eight weeks on the sidelines with an ankle injury.

Kettlewell didn’t try to hide how disappointed he was to be without an important part of his side and said the 18-year-old was going to be missed.

“Lennon has been a pillar of our team,” he said. “A mainstay and a stand-out for us.

“I would put him in the stand-out category of the division as a whole.

“I’ve even got myself to that point where he deals with it all so well that I’ve handed him the captain’s armband at the age of 18 for the last couple of months, and there’s a semi-final included in that as well.

“There’s absolutely no doubt that he’s going to be a huge loss for us. He’s going to be missed over that period of time but we’re going to need to have players who step forward and show that kind of responsibility.”

Miller’s first game out was Thursday’s 1-0 defeat to Hearts at Tynecastle and Kettlewell didn’t see the levels of commitment he wants from his team without the captain.

“We’re going to have to have players that come and take part,” the manager said. “For the first twenty minutes yesterday it was completely unacceptable and didn’t get much better in the second half.

“It was unacceptable from the point of view of how we handle the ball, try to pass the ball, how we try and get the ball back, our energy, our intensity and I’ll say it again, not taking part in a game of football.

“You can have your worse game in terms of possession of a football, mis-control or misplace passes but the one thing you have to do is be flat out. Yesterday I have to question that.

“I’ve said that to the group and it’s not really been a thing for us here at Motherwell. We’ve had bad results or bad days but yesterday I felt there was too many that didn’t take part in the game.”