
Motherwell's hopes of finishing seventh have been rocked by Hearts, admits Dan Casey
The Steelmen will require a strong finish this week to achieve their target of a seventh place finish in the Premiership
Dan Casey admits Motherwell's hopes of finishing best of the bottom six are slim after Saturday's defeat to Hearts.
The Steelmen went down 3-0 in the capital, allowing the Jambos to leapfrog them into seventh spot in the table and move a point clear with just two games of the Premiership remaining.
Motherwell, who are safe from the drop, will see their campaign come to an end over the next few days with their final home game against Kilmarnock tomorrow night, followed by a trip to the Highlands on Sunday to face relegation-threatened Ross County.
And the Irish defender said: 'We've done our job to an extent but we also have goals to be top of the bottom six.
'This defeat has rocked our chances so we need to get back on it and finish strong in the final two games. Our lack of consistency probably cost us top six this year, so we need to focus on that going forward.
'The support has been great this season and even when we were struggling, they came out in their numbers.
'It's frustrating for them if we aren't putting in worthy performances. It's not fair on them. But we have two games left and we want two good performances and results.'
Casey is out of contract in the summer and added: 'I'm just focused on the next two games and we will see what happens.'
The 27-year-old was at the centre of a key moment in Saturday's defeat, with a VAR review deeming him to be offside and obstructing the goalkeeper's view when Callum Slattery looked to have pulled Well level.
It took five minutes for referee Ryan Lee and the VAR team to come to a decision and Casey said: 'It was very disappointing.
'The first half was a 50-50 game and the goal we had disallowed was a very harsh decision.
'I was running across but I don't think the keeper was going to save it either way. By the book, it's probably disallowed but if you are a football person, you know he's not getting to the shot.
'I believe it should stand but the rules are the rules and that's how it is. I believe VAR is working but for a decision to take that long stops the flow of the game.
'There were seven minutes added on in the first half and that's not great for anyone. VAR gets more right than wrong but it's about getting them made quicker.'

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