Nobody can be ruled out of top-six finish, says Lasley
Only nine points separate Kilmarnock in sixth and Ross County at the bottom
Motherwell assistant manager Keith Lasley insists no one in the Ladbrokes Premiership can be ruled out of a top-six finish.
The Steelmen go into Tuesday night's home match against St Johnstone in seventh place, just one goal behind Kilmarnock, albeit having played two games more.
Indeed, only nine points separate Killie from bottom side Ross County and Lasley believes those two clubs - and everyone in between - are capable of reaching the top-half before the split.
The former Fir Park captain said: "It looks a real race to get into that top six now and we feel as if we are one of those teams challenging.
"I think there is a little bit of a gap between Hearts and Hibs, the top five, and the rest.
"We are sitting in seventh position and Killie are in sixth but all the teams down to the bottom will have ambitions to finish sixth because we know how quickly things can change in this division.
"You play a lot of 'six pointers' and we have one tomorrow night against St Johnstone, a team that is close to us.
"I have played in this division enough years. The margins are so fine.
"It will be the team that can put three or four results together on a consistent basis who will ultimately grab that sixth position.
"It can go down to a set play or a lapse of concentration that makes the difference in games.
"We have to be really on it for every minute of every game to be there ready to make the difference.''
Lasley believes Motherwell, with only defeat since the turn of the year, are showing sings of recapturing their early season form.
The former midfielder said: "There has been a lot of highs and lows, particularly the early part of the season when we had a great run in the league and getting to the League Cup final.
"That was fantastic and then we had a tough end to the year and the build up to the (winter) break.
"But since the break we have looked hungry, we have looked fresh and we still hold high hopes of finishing the season well.'