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First Quarter Review


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With the first quarter of the season done and dusted, and with no shortage of drama, our resident writer has taken stock and considered our performance over the course of the Betfred Cup and the first quarter of the league campaign. Let us know your thoughts below! 

 

QUARTERLY REVIEW

 

As the first quarter of the season has now drawn to a close and we enter the second quarter, now's probably an appropriate time to take stock and look at where Morton are as we head into the winter.

 

After a summer of upheaval which saw the removal of manager Jim Duffy to be replaced by Ray McKinnon, and the sad passing of Douglas Rae, we saw many of Duffy's boys moving onto pastures new- guys like Rikki Lamie going to Livingston and Ross Forbes to Dumbarton went with our best wishes, whilst the same can't be said for Scott Tiffoney, who joined Lamie at Livingston, Thomas O'Ware and (eventually) Jai Quitongo who took the sideways step to relegated Partick Thistle. Andy Murdoch's departure to Ayr United was greeted with bemusement by most, as was Gary Harkins' departure to Queen of the South.

 

The marquee signing of the season was former loan striker Denny Johnstone, who unfortunately hasn't managed to hit the ground running as yet due to injury. Goalkeeper Ryan Scully has established himself between the sticks since coming in from Partick, and a whole new defence was assembled by McKinnon- centre backs Gregor Buchanan from Livingston and Kerr Waddell on loan from Dundee have been joined by full backs Rory McKeown and Reghan Tumilty to form a new look back line. Returning Chris Millar and Jim McAlister have come in to the midfield along with former Rangers, Rangers* and Dundee United midfielder Charlie Telfer, whilst McKinnon's attacking options were bolstered by the signings of the aforementioned Johnstone, Connor Bell and Ross MacLean, on loan from Motherwell. Most baffling signing of the summer was the return of Tiffoney on a loan deal from Livingston- perhaps as a form of compensation given he was out of contract but would've commanded some form of development fee.

 

It's fair to say the season was approached with cautious optimism, but the League Cup campaign didn't do much to support that theory as a Lawrence Shankland inspired Ayr United came from 1-0 down at half time to resoundingly beat Morton 3-1 after Michael Tidser's free kick had given us the lead. Murdoch's performance in Ayr's engine room did little to convince those that he should've been kept on that McKinnon had made the right decision. An improved midweek performance at Firhill still failed to yield any points, as Morton fell two behind only to dominate the second half and come out with only Tumilty's sweet strike to show for their endeavours. Already out of the tournament, our home wins against Stenhousemuir and Albion Rovers were little more than dead rubbers- Rovers in particular were one of the worst teams seen at Cappielow in years.

 

The league campaign started with Morton storming into a 2-0 lead at home to Queen of the South after fine strikes from Tidser and MacLean only to throw away the lead in the last 20 minutes. We can take consolation from the fact that we're one of the few teams to stop Stephen Dobbie from scoring so far though. A trip to Recreation Park saw Morton win 2-0, with a double from Chris Millar, although we were fortunate not to concede at 1-0.

 

The Irn Bru Cup was treated with contempt by McKinnon, who fielded a shadow side as we visited old foes Dumbarton and succumbed to a 2-1 defeat. In fairness to those selected, they were unfortunate not to get a result, but P&O won't be getting any bookings from these parts this season unfortunately.

 

That disappointment was followed up by undoubtedly the performance of the season, as Morton became the first team to beat Ross County in 36 second tier games, having fallen behind on the hour at Cappielow. Tidser's howitzer was followed up by Bob McHugh's tremendous strike from new signing Johnstone's knock down on his second debut for the club. All was well with the world.

 

But as we walked out of Cappielow that fine August evening, we weren't to know what was round the corner. As deadline day approached, and with Falkirk hilariously rooted to the bottom of the division with no points, Paul Hartley was emptied as it became apparent that his recruitment over the summer had been a disaster. After their attempts to bring in Ian McCall from Ayr were rebuffed, rumours started to circulate that Ray McKinnon's head had been turned by the prospect of a couple of trips to East Fife next season.

 

Within hours, McKinnon was gone, much to the disgust of Crawford Rae and all involved with the club. This overshadowed the trip to Firhill the following day, which resulted in a narrow 1-0 defeat for caretakers John Sutton and Derek Anderson, in a game most memorable for Kris Doolan's goal that never was. After a week off for the international/Challenge Cup break that McKinnon afforded us by not bothering to try and beat Dumbarton, his first game in full charge ended in a humiliating 1-0 defeat to Welsh pub team Connah's Quay Nomads. No laughing at the back there.

 

Former Finland international Jonatan Johansson was appointed to replace the snake and was unfortunate not to come away with a win on his managerial debut as Michael Tidser's early penalty was canccelled out by an injury time strike from substitute Fraser Fyvie after Scott Tiffoney switched off from a throw in immediately after coming on.

 

Two disappointing home performances followed after the appointment of Peter Houston as Johansson's assistant, with Tiffoney (not quite) making amends for his blunder by salvaging a scarcely deserved draw against Dunfermline, thanks in no small part to old friend Lee Robinson giving us our usual gift by fumbling Tiffoney's tame shot. When league leaders Ayr came to town, what could've gone wrong did. Having come back to level Shankland's early strike through a fine Charlie Telfer counter, Morton began to assert their authority on the game, in spite of Michael Tidser in midfield picking up a knock in the build up to the equaliser. Tidser, for once, was to prove the villain of the piece, after fluffing his lines from the spot before Ayr took the lead and proceeded us to pick us off at will in the last 20 minutes.

 

Telfer was again on the scoresheet as Morton travelled to Inverness in a 1-1 draw. In truth, Morton can be thankful to Ryan Scully for gaining the point, but after the previous week's mauling, it can only be considered as a good result.

 

And so the snake returned on Saturday, and was sent back to Falkirk with nothing after Bob McHugh did to Falkirk what he did so often for them, coming off the bench to grab a late winner, giving Morton three important points and a smug sense of satisfaction at getting one over the old boss.

 

As we head into the second quarter we're within striking distance of the play offs and well clear of the league's hapless bottom feeders, but really have to start turning the draws into wins if we are to trouble those at the top of the table. Much will depend on the fitness of Denny Johnstone, whose woes appear to be never ending as, with only 11 goals from our first 9 fixtures, it's clear that goals are proving hard to come by. With trips to Dingwall and Dumfries over the next few days, we're heading into a difficult spell in which points might be hard to come by. Picking up maximum points at home to Alloa, Partick, Dundee United and Inverness in this quarter could prove platform for a play off push.

 

A more than winnable home draw against Peterhead in the Scottish Cup provides scope for a run in that particular competition too, so plenty to keep us interested as the league begins to take shape.

 

Will Ross County live up to their tag as bookies favourites and make an immediate return to the Premiership? Can Ayr mirror the achievements of previous League One Champions Livingston by making it back-to-back promotions? When will Inverness lose a football match?Can Morton get themselves in the mix? Is Robbie Neilson the man to fix the mess left by Czaba Lazlo? When will Dunfermline and Partick get the digit out? Can Dobbie and Harkins push Queen of the South towards the top end of the table? Can Alloa repeat the feats of Dumbarton by enjoying an extended stay in the division? Is Ray McKinnon the next Jack Ross or are their more laughs to come from Falkirk?

 

Here's hoping it's Morton that are the ones making inroads over the next few weeks and months.

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  • 4 weeks later...

With the first quarter of the season done and dusted, and with no shortage of drama, our resident writer has taken stock and considered our performance over the course of the Betfred Cup and the first quarter of the league campaign. Let us know your thoughts below! 

 

QUARTERLY REVIEW

 

As the first quarter of the season has now drawn to a close and we enter the second quarter, now's probably an appropriate time to take stock and look at where Morton are as we head into the winter.

 

After a summer of upheaval which saw the removal of manager Jim Duffy to be replaced by Ray McKinnon, and the sad passing of Douglas Rae, we saw many of Duffy's boys moving onto pastures new- guys like Rikki Lamie going to Livingston and Ross Forbes to Dumbarton went with our best wishes, whilst the same can't be said for Scott Tiffoney, who joined Lamie at Livingston, Thomas O'Ware and (eventually) Jai Quitongo who took the sideways step to relegated Partick Thistle. Andy Murdoch's departure to Ayr United was greeted with bemusement by most, as was Gary Harkins' departure to Queen of the South.

 

The marquee signing of the season was former loan striker Denny Johnstone, who unfortunately hasn't managed to hit the ground running as yet due to injury. Goalkeeper Ryan Scully has established himself between the sticks since coming in from Partick, and a whole new defence was assembled by McKinnon- centre backs Gregor Buchanan from Livingston and Kerr Waddell on loan from Dundee have been joined by full backs Rory McKeown and Reghan Tumilty to form a new look back line. Returning Chris Millar and Jim McAlister have come in to the midfield along with former Rangers, Rangers* and Dundee United midfielder Charlie Telfer, whilst McKinnon's attacking options were bolstered by the signings of the aforementioned Johnstone, Connor Bell and Ross MacLean, on loan from Motherwell. Most baffling signing of the summer was the return of Tiffoney on a loan deal from Livingston- perhaps as a form of compensation given he was out of contract but would've commanded some form of development fee.

 

It's fair to say the season was approached with cautious optimism, but the League Cup campaign didn't do much to support that theory as a Lawrence Shankland inspired Ayr United came from 1-0 down at half time to resoundingly beat Morton 3-1 after Michael Tidser's free kick had given us the lead. Murdoch's performance in Ayr's engine room did little to convince those that he should've been kept on that McKinnon had made the right decision. An improved midweek performance at Firhill still failed to yield any points, as Morton fell two behind only to dominate the second half and come out with only Tumilty's sweet strike to show for their endeavours. Already out of the tournament, our home wins against Stenhousemuir and Albion Rovers were little more than dead rubbers- Rovers in particular were one of the worst teams seen at Cappielow in years.

 

The league campaign started with Morton storming into a 2-0 lead at home to Queen of the South after fine strikes from Tidser and MacLean only to throw away the lead in the last 20 minutes. We can take consolation from the fact that we're one of the few teams to stop Stephen Dobbie from scoring so far though. A trip to Recreation Park saw Morton win 2-0, with a double from Chris Millar, although we were fortunate not to concede at 1-0.

 

The Irn Bru Cup was treated with contempt by McKinnon, who fielded a shadow side as we visited old foes Dumbarton and succumbed to a 2-1 defeat. In fairness to those selected, they were unfortunate not to get a result, but P&O won't be getting any bookings from these parts this season unfortunately.

 

That disappointment was followed up by undoubtedly the performance of the season, as Morton became the first team to beat Ross County in 36 second tier games, having fallen behind on the hour at Cappielow. Tidser's howitzer was followed up by Bob McHugh's tremendous strike from new signing Johnstone's knock down on his second debut for the club. All was well with the world.

 

But as we walked out of Cappielow that fine August evening, we weren't to know what was round the corner. As deadline day approached, and with Falkirk hilariously rooted to the bottom of the division with no points, Paul Hartley was emptied as it became apparent that his recruitment over the summer had been a disaster. After their attempts to bring in Ian McCall from Ayr were rebuffed, rumours started to circulate that Ray McKinnon's head had been turned by the prospect of a couple of trips to East Fife next season.

 

Within hours, McKinnon was gone, much to the disgust of Crawford Rae and all involved with the club. This overshadowed the trip to Firhill the following day, which resulted in a narrow 1-0 defeat for caretakers John Sutton and Derek Anderson, in a game most memorable for Kris Doolan's goal that never was. After a week off for the international/Challenge Cup break that McKinnon afforded us by not bothering to try and beat Dumbarton, his first game in full charge ended in a humiliating 1-0 defeat to Welsh pub team Connah's Quay Nomads. No laughing at the back there.

 

Former Finland international Jonatan Johansson was appointed to replace the snake and was unfortunate not to come away with a win on his managerial debut as Michael Tidser's early penalty was canccelled out by an injury time strike from substitute Fraser Fyvie after Scott Tiffoney switched off from a throw in immediately after coming on.

 

Two disappointing home performances followed after the appointment of Peter Houston as Johansson's assistant, with Tiffoney (not quite) making amends for his blunder by salvaging a scarcely deserved draw against Dunfermline, thanks in no small part to old friend Lee Robinson giving us our usual gift by fumbling Tiffoney's tame shot. When league leaders Ayr came to town, what could've gone wrong did. Having come back to level Shankland's early strike through a fine Charlie Telfer counter, Morton began to assert their authority on the game, in spite of Michael Tidser in midfield picking up a knock in the build up to the equaliser. Tidser, for once, was to prove the villain of the piece, after fluffing his lines from the spot before Ayr took the lead and proceeded us to pick us off at will in the last 20 minutes.

 

Telfer was again on the scoresheet as Morton travelled to Inverness in a 1-1 draw. In truth, Morton can be thankful to Ryan Scully for gaining the point, but after the previous week's mauling, it can only be considered as a good result.

 

And so the snake returned on Saturday, and was sent back to Falkirk with nothing after Bob McHugh did to Falkirk what he did so often for them, coming off the bench to grab a late winner, giving Morton three important points and a smug sense of satisfaction at getting one over the old boss.

 

As we head into the second quarter we're within striking distance of the play offs and well clear of the league's hapless bottom feeders, but really have to start turning the draws into wins if we are to trouble those at the top of the table. Much will depend on the fitness of Denny Johnstone, whose woes appear to be never ending as, with only 11 goals from our first 9 fixtures, it's clear that goals are proving hard to come by. With trips to Dingwall and Dumfries over the next few days, we're heading into a difficult spell in which points might be hard to come by. Picking up maximum points at home to Alloa, Partick, Dundee United and Inverness in this quarter could prove platform for a play off push.

 

A more than winnable home draw against Peterhead in the Scottish Cup provides scope for a run in that particular competition too, so plenty to keep us interested as the league begins to take shape.

 

Will Ross County live up to their tag as bookies favourites and make an immediate return to the Premiership? Can Ayr mirror the achievements of previous League One Champions Livingston by making it back-to-back promotions? When will Inverness lose a football match?Can Morton get themselves in the mix? Is Robbie Neilson the man to fix the mess left by Czaba Lazlo? When will Dunfermline and Partick get the digit out? Can Dobbie and Harkins push Queen of the South towards the top end of the table? Can Alloa repeat the feats of Dumbarton by enjoying an extended stay in the division? Is Ray McKinnon the next Jack Ross or are their more laughs to come from Falkirk?

 

Here's hoping it's Morton that are the ones making inroads over the next few weeks and months.

Too long, didn't read.

THINK FROGS, NOT THUNDERBIRD

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Didn't read - not long enough.

 

I'm waiting for the First Half Season review.

McGhee needs some support, there's no-one backing him up.
Hayes playing it forward, Bell being forced to do it all alone, now forward from Marr, here's Ritchie, still Andy Ritchie, look at the control...

That is a marvellous goal from Andy Ritchie. Twenty minutes on the clock and Morton's supporters come alive. A goal which epitomises the control, the arrogance, the cheek of Andy Ritchie.

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