This is an excerpt from this week's Claret and Amber Alert, a free Motherwell newsletter written by Graeme McGarry that goes out every Thursday at 6pm. To sign up, click here.

She wore, she wore…sorry, just getting a little bit excited here ahead of the game tonight. And how good it is to be able to get carried away when it comes to watching Motherwell again.

When the Scottish Cup draw was made, I can’t have been alone in feeling slightly trepidatious.

A tricky away tie at a lower league team in form. A venue where Motherwell have both good and bad memories, from ‘Hugo Sanchez, eat your heart out!’ when Colin O’Neill tucked away that penalty in ’91 to a full scale rammy in the away dressing room as Ian Baraclough got his jotters in 2015, there is usually drama when the ‘Well head to Cappielow.

Then there was the fact that Morton are a team bang in form, and Motherwell – at that point – were not. And the thought of Dougie Imrie punching the air in victory in front of the ‘Well support in his cream chinos (a risky sartorial choice, perhaps, for the bold Dougie…) didn’t bear thinking about.

READ MORE: Motherwell 5 Ross County 0: Bair continues scoring run in rout

That scene may well still come to pass. And, whisper it, Dougie Imrie is actually a really nice and affable bloke when you meet him away from the pitch. On it though, I wish him nothing but the worst when he is involved in a team taking on Motherwell, whether they are in the red and white jerseys of Accies or the blue and white of Morton.

So, the 2000 or so ‘Well fans who are likely to make the trip to Greenock then will do so in far greater confidence than they may have done just a few short weeks ago, while still retaining that essential coping mechanism for all who support the club – the acceptance that it still all might go pear-shaped – in the back of their minds.

For that, Stuart Kettlewell deserves a huge amount of credit. I think there is a widespread relief among the fanbase that the manager has been able to steady the ship since defeating Livingston, because I sense a real willingness for him to succeed.

Sometimes, when on a run such as Kettlewell’s side were prior to Christmas, there is a toxicity in the air and an anger that can be almost impossible for any manager to overcome. But while that run may have pushed patience among the fans to the very limit, there was always a feeling that no one really wanted to see him lose his job.

There are still too many draws, of course, but the performances since and including the game at McDiarmid Park have been really good on the whole, culminating in the pasting of Derek Adams’ diabolical Ross County outfit on Tuesday evening.

What a difference from the game in the Highlands when they cuffed Motherwell 3-0 just a few short months ago, the nadir of the season and of Kettlewell’s reign.

When assessing that turnaround, a major caveat has to be County’s regression in that period under Adams, and there is no doubt that the half-hearted defensive efforts of the Staggies played a part in Motherwell hitting five past them. They were, quite frankly, pathetic.

You can only play what is in front of you though, and in truth, Motherwell really should have scored more. As wild a take as it may seem, it’s not too outlandish to say that they could have threatened the 12-1 club record victory set against Dundee United back in 1954.

Theo Bair is a man transformed and hit his sixth in six games from the spot, but he should have had a hat-trick at the very least. Harry Paton had a couple of great opportunities. Georgie Gent should have burst the net with another chance in the second half. And there were other moments where the final pass just didn’t connect when County were exposed.

READ MORE: Motherwell must tie down key asset as St Mirren circle

It is only a minor complaint, and one that seems strange to make after pasting someone 5-0. But hopefully the players can develop a more clinical edge, because against slightly better teams than County like St Johnstone and far better teams like Kilmarnock that has been the difference between one point and three.

And what more can we say about Blair Spittal? In last week’s newsletter I heaped praise on him and implored Motherwell to tie him to a new contract. They may have to up their offer still further after that display.

The emergence of Davor in the midfield seems to have allowed Spittal to push further forward and allowed him to really showcase his attacking guile, and his link up with the powerful running of Bair in behind is proving a huge problem for opposition defences to combat. Now that Motherwell have 16 or so wing backs to choose from, let’s hope that is where he stays.

At the risk of having this all come back to bite me and having a gloating Dougie Imrie on the blower over the weekend, I am (perhaps dangerously) confident ahead of the game at Cappielow then.

Ach, I’ll enjoy it while it lasts. Which will hopefully be at least through to Sunday at 4.40pm, when the Scottish Cup quarter final draw hands Motherwell a home tie against Bonnyrigg Rose…