Motherwell had chances, yes, but nothing that Chris Smith couldn't deal with. Whatever Scott McDonald and David Clarkson threw at him in normal time, in between their diving and playacting, he dealt with easily. The closest Motherwell came to a goal was when McDonald volleyed over from the edge of the six yard box.
Saints were superb. John Potter set the tone with a few minutes on the clock when he volleyed just over, whilst John Sutton forced Graeme Smith to make a fantastic save from a Simon Lappin corner.
In the second half, Saints should have scored, and that they didn't is down to the officials more than anything else. A Lappin free kick was hammered goalward by Andy Millen, only for a Motherwell player to head it off the line. Was it over? Some Saints players, and several fans, seem to think it was, but neither the referee or the linesman gave it and it didn't stand.
Substitute Charlie Adam went close with a few free kicks, and even hit the bar with one in the last minute. You just knew it wasn't our night, and so it proved when Clarkson punced on a Stephen Craigan rebound for the first, and Darren Smith slotted home for the second soon after. Saints had a few chances in the second period of extra time, but it wasn't to be.
A fantastic performance from every Saints player, with no failures. The same could not be said of the referee, who was awful all night, dishing out yellow cards and being consistently inconsistent. Meanwhile, the Motherwell players playacted all night, Clarkson, McDonald and Richie Foran being the main offenders, whilst goalkeeper Smith also got in on the act.
If we can keep up this type of performance in the league this season we'll be near the top come May. Let's just hope that last night is our only cup defeat of the next seven days!