MANAGER Billy Reid will look to put the speculation over James McCarthy's future to one side as Hamilton try to secure Clydesdale Bank Premier League survival.
Bids for McCarthy from Celtic and Portsmouth in the past ten days have proven an unwelcome distraction for the club at the end of their first top-flight season for 19 years.
Swansea have also confirmed their interest in the 18-year-old PFA Scotlan
d Young Player of the Year, but so far no-one has met Hamilton's valuation of their prize asset, which stretches to seven figures.
In the meantime, Reid has backed McCarthy to stay fully focused on helping his current employers secure the point they require to avoid relegation, starting against local rivals Motherwell today.
"I don't think anybody knows what's going to happen at the bottom of the table," said Reid. "There have been so many twists and turns, especially recently, that anyone who isn't safe yet is still in it.
"It's a derby, so both sets of players will be right up for it as always. Derbies are always great occasions, no matter what is at stake, but we're also in the position where we can guarantee our survival."
Hamilton will still be without defender David Elebert (hamstring) today but James McArthur returns from suspension.
Motherwell manager Mark McGhee wants his side to play silky football while the rest of their bottom-six opponents scrap to avoid relegation.
The Fir Park club enter the Lanarkshire derby safe in seventh place while only four points separate the quintet battling the drop. Motherwell have loftier aims in sight as they remain in pole position to clinch a Europa League spot courtesy of the Fair Play standings.
"It's certainly revitalised the anticipation of next season," said McGhee, who has ruled out a return to Reading. "Having made Europe last year, there was that close-season excitement and that could be there again, which is fantastic coming out of the blue.
"I said before the post-split games that it was about performances in these five matches; I wanted to play well and to show that we're the best football team in the bottom six, and then results would look after themselves.
"We certainly showed it in the St Mirren game, where we passed the ball very well and won comfortably, and I think the difference between winning and not winning against Inverness in midweek (a 2-2 draw] was our pitch, so we're showing that we're able to get up for the games and finish it off properly."
McGhee suspects out-of-contract midfielder Stephen Hughes and goalkeeper Graeme Smith will not be in claret and amber next season, but is still hoping to secure on-loan Maros Klimpl on a permanent deal. The manager said: "I'm anticipating they (Hughes and Smith] will leave, but I haven't heard that they've signed for anyone."
The full article contains 489 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
