LES HUTCHISON has vowed to deliver financial stability to Motherwell ...

and has set his sights on Premiership survival.

The businessman is edging closer to a takeover at Fir Park that will see him join forces with the Well Society and buy the club from John Boyle.

The Steelmen last week appointed Ian Baraclough as boss and he will take charge of his first match when they face bottom-of-the-table St Mirren this weekend.

Hutchison said: "The first objective is for the club to be sustainable financially. That is, without question, what the club needs to do.

"The way that is done, by that I mean the number of fans that get involved, the number of local companies that get involved and support the club and the team.

"Now that it's more of a philanthropic, community-based entity, I'm hoping that will encourage local business people to get involved.

"The early days is about how much support we can get over the coming months and early years.

"And, depending on the scale of that, and obviously the budget that is available to ultimately put players on the pitch, it is our sincere hope we stay in the Premiership.

"For me, an ideal outcome would be that we have found a sustainable financial model, very, very community-focused and that Motherwell Football Club is still in the Premiership.

"If we achieve all that and the club is in the hands of the fans, that, for me, would be a successful outcome."

Hutchison has stepped up to the plate to offer his financial assistance to the Well Society and keep their dreams of fan ownership alive.

And the businessman has urged supporters to play their part and ensure a bright future at Fir Park.

He said: "The difference going forward is, instead of a small handful of people trying to sell the football club and its attributes, we now have 1,200 sales people who can now use the great work they have done to spread the word, and try to bring a friend to a game, try and encourage local business to become engaged.

"We now have 1,200 sales people and I wish all my businesses had 1,200 sales people because I don't think I would have much difficulty in being successful.

"The key is: don't underestimate what you have done and what you can do.

"There are now 1,200 people who must want to make this work. There are very few things that can fail if you have 1,200 people trying to make it work.

"We still have a lot of work to do, but it's important to have fun along the way."