Owen Coyle's goal seven minutes after the break was enough to separate the
teams in a tense but disappointing clash.
It provided Motherwell's first win in four outings and lifted them above
Hibernian to eighth in the Scottish League premier division table.
Tommy Coyne created the winning goal with a perfect pass that split the United
defence and allowed Coyle to drive the ball low into the net.
A minute earlier, Coyne had sent a shot curling past the post, capitalising on
slack defensive play by Magnus Skoldmark who, after slipping near the goal, was
swiftly substituted by United boss Tommy McLean.
Both sides created chances but failed to take advantage of them, neither side
being constantly tested by the opposing forwards.
The best goalmouth action came two minutes before half-time when United's
experienced sweeper Maurice Malpas headed the ball back towards his goal. But he
was unaware Sieb Dykstra had come off his line and the goalkeeper was forced to
scramble back as Coyne was ready to pounce.
Coyne occasionally threatened but did not receive the support he could have
expected from midfield. Neither side gained the upper hand in the middle of the
park and it made for a match of few goalscoring opportunities.
Robbie Winters' pace never paid dividends and Kjell Olofsson was well
off-target on many occasions.
Motherwell's new loan signing Rob Newman suffered an unhappy start by being
booked after 24 minutes for what looked an innocuous foul on Winters, but
otherwise had a steady match on the right side of a defence in which John
Philliben was commanding in the centre.
Teams
Motherwell: Woods, May (Ross 78), McMillan, Newman, Martin,
Philliben, Hendry, Shivute, Coyne, McSkimming, Coyle (Weir 67).
Subs Not Used: Denham.
Booked: Newman.
Goals: Coyle 52.
Dundee Utd: Dykstra, Skoldmark (McSwegan 56), Malpas, Pressley,
Perry, Pedersen, Olofsson, Zetterlund, Winters,
Easton (McLaren 74), Dolan.
Subs Not Used: Sinclair.
Booked: Skoldmark.
Att: 4,555
Ref: J Underhill (Edinburgh).
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