This is an excerpt from this week's Claret and Amber Alert, a free Motherwell newsletter written by Graeme McGarry that goes out every Thursday at 6pm. To sign up, click here.
It's great news for every Motherwell fan that Aston Oxborough has agreed a contract extension at the club until the summer of 2027. Especially me, as I'd already written this newsletter about him before the news dropped.
I say this with the greatest of respect to Liam Kelly and the service he gave to Motherwell Football Club, but as the weeks go by, it is getting harder and harder to understand just how he kept Oxborough on the bench for the entirety of last season.
Indeed, given the performances of 'The Ox' so far this term, it is puzzling that the big keeper was happy to sit on the sidelines for the past two campaigns patiently waiting for his chance, rather than seeking a first team opportunity elsewhere.
Thank goodness for that, though. While recognising that we are still in the early days of his Motherwell career proper, Oxborough has been a revelation between the sticks so far this season, and on the eye test alone, seems a massive upgrade on a keeper in Kelly whose confidence was clearly through the floor during his final months at the club.
It helps that he is physically imposing, standing four inches taller than Kelly at 6’4’’. That allows him to be more aggressive in terms of commanding his area, and while there has been the odd flap here and there, his presence and willingness to come for the ball has had a settling effect on the defenders in front of him.
The difference though between the keepers doesn’t just come down to a perception of their physicality, it is laid down starkest of all when you dig into the stats, albeit from the small sample size we currently have to go on in the case of Oxborough.
Of the 12 keepers with the most minutes in last season’s Premiership, Kelly was rock bottom of the pile when it came to his shot-stopping percentage, the measure of goals saved above average as a percentage of shots faced by a goalkeeper.
From an expected goals against tally of around 43, Kelly conceded 52, meaning that around nine goals were conceded that he should have reasonably been expected to save over the course of the season.
Oxborough, by contrast, is fourth in this season’s table so far, behind only Kasper Schmeichel, Jack Butland and Dimitar Mitov. He has conceded eight goals so far, but with the quality of shots he has faced, he would have been expected to have conceded around 10.
Again, its early days, but only Ross Laidlaw at Ross County has faced more shots on target in the eight Premiership matches to date (37, to Motherwell’s 36), so if that is extrapolated out across the season and Oxborough maintains such levels, it could make a massive difference to where Motherwell ultimately end up in the table.
Of the goals he has conceded, it is only the St Johnstone equaliser from Benjamin Kimpioka that springs to mind where he might feel he should have done better, and even then, I’m being slightly harsh.
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So, hats off to the big man. The wee man and I were seated right behind the Motherwell net in the first half at Easter Road on Saturday, and had a close-up view of his brilliant double save from Mykola Kukharevych. It came at a moment when Hibs were well on top, and a goal then could have seen their tails go up, and Motherwell be overwhelmed.
As it was, that double save allowed the team to go in at half time level, regroup, and go on and win the match from that platform. Long may his fine form continue.
There are of course other less tangible reasons why Kelly may have retained his place in the starting XI ahead of Oxborough last season. Kelly was a leader, both on the park and off of it, and commanded huge respect within the dressing room.
He was also the captain, and while I can’t speak for Stuart Kettlewell, I would imagine that dynamic made it tricky for him to even consider pulling him out of the team unless he literally started chucking them in.
That’s all in the past now though, and after an uncertain summer when nobody was really sure who was going to claim the gloves after the club brought in Krisztian Hegyi on loan from West Ham, the number one jersey now indisputably belongs to Oxborough.
And again, with the greatest of respect to Kelly, I think the fans, and the Motherwell backline, feel all the more relaxed for that.
AND ANOTHER THING…
It was great to meet Heather Horner, the chairperson of the MFC Disabled Supporters Association at Easter Road at the weekend, and subsequently hear about their plans to celebrate International People of Disabilities Day (which is on December 3rd) when Hibs come calling to Fir Park on November 30th.
People like Heather are the real unsung heroes of the club, and I know she has been putting in a power of work behind the scenes to make it a special day, so the least I can do is give it an early shout out here.
There will be loads of stuff going on, and I will detail some of that nearer the time, but Heather has very kindly invited my own son Jack to read out the teamlines on the day. Hopefully, after his antics celebrating at the end of the Dundee United game, he keeps his shirt on this time.
