Aberdeen manager Jimmy Calderwood praised Charlie Mulgrew's dead-ball prowess and his side's battling qualities after the win over Motherwell.Mulgrew curled home a 25-yard free-kick with four minutes left at Fir Park, with the game heading for a goalless draw.

Debutant Tommy Wright forced Graeme Smith into a fine save from a header but Aberdeen had otherwise struggled going forward.

Motherwell enjoyed the better of the play but lacked a cutting edge and Jamie Langfield produced a good diving save from Paul Quinn's header.

Calderwood said: "We had to battle, we lost 14 away games last season and it cost us dearly in the end and you have got to come to very difficult venues and scrape and scratch.

"We can play a lot better, and Motherwell can, but it's a vital victory."

On Mulgrew, the Aberdeen boss said: "He has got that quality, we were doing free-kicks and corners on Friday and his delivery was fantastic.

"He got a rollicking for the first-half effort, which was a joke for his quality, but he can be very dangerous."

The strike was a huge lift for the Dons, who saw fitness problems compound last week's loss to Inverness.

Jamie Smith fell ill in the morning, leaving Aberdeen one player short on their bench, while Zander Diamond lasted just 20 minutes of his first appearance this season.

Diamond was brought in at right-back after missing the 2-0 defeat to Inverness and much of pre-season because of a foot injury, but he limped off with a thigh strain.

Calderwood said: "I left Lee Mair at home, Zander felt it on Friday and I never knew that. It's a lesson and we will bring extra players with us in future."

Motherwell boss Mark McGhee vowed to work on sharpening his side's cutting edge.

"When you don't score in a game like that where you are so dominant in terms of possession and territory, there is always a danger something like that can happen," he said.

"When they got the free-kick, I thought, 'Here we go'."

McGhee, whose side lost 3-2 at Hearts in their opening game, added: "We are disappointed but not despondent.

"There were things that weren't quite good enough, there are things we can improve on that will make a difference. And that will come.

"We defended better today but, in their box, around the edge of their box, we didn't really look like we would score."

Meanwhile, Calderwood will study footage of a confrontation between Wright and Stephen Craigan, which saw the Englishman move his head towards the Motherwell skipper's.

The former Darlington frontman escaped unpunished but was soon booked for a late tackle on Stevie Hammell.

Calderwood did not see the first incident, but he will speak to the 23-year-old over his yellow card.

"I will have a wee whisper and it's up to him, it depends on how big his bank balance is," Calderwood said.

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