Jim Gannon is blind to ages as he builds his version of a Motherwell side that he predicts will progress up the SPL as time move on.

Jim Gannon will continue to place his faith in Motherwell's latest crop of talented young players when the season gets under way tomorrow (Saturday). Ross Forbes, Shaun Hutchinson, Jamie Murphy, Steven Saunders and Paul Slane are all in Gannon's mind as he prepares for the game against SPL-new boys St Johnstone. The youngsters did not let Gannon down in Motherwell's Europa League games. Gannon managed to bolster his squad before the McDiarmid Park trip by signing Tom Hateley, midfielder son of former Rangers and England striker Mark, but is still on the look-out for an experienced right-back and forward. Gannon sees the young contingent playing a key role in his first SPL campaign as Motherwell manager. He said: "I think the one thing that will stand out over the last six weeks is the emergence of the young players. These competitive games against increasingly difficult opponents have really given them the confidence that they can play at this level. They are walking tall and feeling good about their part in the team. I think this season, they will play a big part. We're conscious there will be inconsistent patches and tired patches but we're going try to manage that."

Gannon was disappointed in some aspects of his defence during European games against Llanelli, Flamurtari and Steaua Bucharest but he has noticed improvement the longer he works with them. The former Stockport manager said: "It's been well noted that the club have had a few issues in terms of defending set-plays and the way they concede possession. We have tried to strengthen that. The tactics will only get you so far; you rely on personnel to be strong and have conviction in both boxes. I think we've seen an improvement as each games goes by in not just the way we set about defending but also attacking. I'm really pleased by the growth of the team. We do have weaknesses. I think every team will have, but we are looking to minimise those weaknesses and consolidate the strengths."

Gannon is hoping he can steer Motherwell into the top six by the end of this season and has an eye on making a great leap forward in subsequent campaigns. Gannon went on: "Any team I have been involved with has always shown steady and sometimes dramatic improvement over the course of the season and I would like to see that at this club. I would like to make progress on last season, even if it's one place or two places in the league. But it's very much about us at least by the end of the season showing signs of improvement and having structures in place for further improvement over the second or third years. If we go with young players and develop a good team ethic then there is no reason why the club can't make great progress over the next three seasons."

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