Motherwell withdraw Brown complaint

Motherwell have withdrawn their complaint to the Scottish Premier League over Craig Brown`s acrimonious departure to Aberdeen.

Motherwell accused the Dons of ''gross discourtesy'' for successfully persuading Brown and assistant Archie Knox to leave Fir Park last week without asking for the Lanarkshire club`s permission to talk to the pair.

But the complaint was withdrawn following ''constructive'' discussions between Aberdeen chief executive Duncan Fraser and Motherwell vice-chairman Derek Weir.

Fraser said: ''As I stated at the start of the week Aberdeen and Motherwell have always enjoyed an excellent relationship. At no point was the integrity of Craig or Archie questioned by either club and we believe that we acted accordingly throughout.

''Both Aberdeen and Motherwell have played significant roles working with others on the challenges facing Scottish football and want to draw a line under the events of the last few days.

''I am grateful to Derek Weir and the Motherwell board for working with us to resolve any issues and we as a club will make no further comment on this matter.''

Motherwell lost their first match after Brown's departure when they suffered a 2-1 defeat by Hearts on Tuesday night. But caretaker manager Gordon Young believes their below-par performance was down to their enforced absence of almost a month and backed his players to prove they have not been derailed by the loss of their management team.

''We have people who are too well versed in the game to feel sorry for themselves,'' Young said. ''The initial shock has gone now. That's a week and like anything in life, once you get over the disappointment, you then have the focus.