Motherwell star unveils his burning cup final wish as he relishes 1st goal and hits back at Dundee Utd fans

Motherwell striker Zach Robinson reckons it was about time he found the net in claret and amber - and he was happy to let Dundee United fans know about it.

The striker scored an impressive first goal for the Steelmen since joining from AFC Wimbledon in the summer. He picked an opportune time to get it, the opener in a crucial 2-1 victory in the first Premier Sports Cup quarter-final this season.

It sends Motherwell back to Hampden in a cup competition for the first time since the 2017/18 season where they reached both the League Cup and Scottish Cup finals. Robinson - who spent the last two seasons on loan at Dundee - was happy to give back what United fans dished out to him.

He endured a stop-start campaign at Dens Park last season, and after breaking his Motherwell duck at Fir Park, the only point he has to prove is one to himself. Robinson said: "It was a great way to get my first goal for the club and I felt, personally, it was about time to score.

"I'm very happy to have scored. I've come close a couple of times with some moments here and there. But, as a striker, you just know if you keep doing the right things then it'll come. I feel like the reward has come for all my hard work. It was a decent strike but every goal counts the same for me so I don't care how they come about.

"In every game you hope it's going to be your day. I go into every game hoping I get the best out of myself - and against United I did. For me, it's not really the case that I was thinking, 'Right, I have to score, I have to score'.

"I was just going into games trying to do the right things and play my best. The United fans were giving me a bit, so I guess I gave them a little bit back with the goal! It's the way it is. It's nothing personal, it's just football.

"I didn't have a great season last season for a few reasons and I really just want to continue looking forward and pushing forward now. It's not that I have a point to prove to others but to myself, really."

His manager, Stuart Kettlewell, has a track record in developing players and strikers feature high on his list of projects. The most recent success story in that department is Theo Bair, who went from the St Johnstone fringes to a seven-figure player in Ligue 1 with Auxerre a season at Motherwell, with Robinson aware of Kettlewell’s development traits.

He said: "The manager has, 100 per cent, been brilliant with me. He's worked a lot with me on all parts of my game. In terms of the goals, he's been really reassuring.

"And he doesn't have a bad record working with strikers, does he? That's down to the detail he works on, in every area of the game.”

Now into the semi-final stage with Aberdeen, Rangers and either of Celtic or Falkirk, Robinson isn’t content with just a day out. He hopes that Motherwell can go all the way and clinch glory.

He added: “It was a good performance. As a team, we played well. But there's still room for improvement. Cup competitions, when you go far in them, they give you momentum in the league as well.

“This is the furthest I've ever been in a cup competition and I don't intend to stop. It's a game at Hampden, an occasion, but you don't just want to get to the semis and call it a day. You want to get to the final, then you want to win.”