30/05/2007

Chester City Friendly Announced

It would seem that yesterday's blog was correct - Morton wont be playing Barrow AFC this summer. Today Morton announced that we will be playing Bobby Williamson's Chester City at the Saunders Honda Stadium on Monday the 23rd of July with a 7.45pm kick-off.

This announcement would suggest that the friendly v Stenhousemuir (announced on their website) was unconfirmed by Morton and will not be played.

Chester currently play in Coca Cola League 2. They finished 18th in the league last season.

After a quick glance through their squad it would appear that most of their players will be unfamiliar to Morton fans but with Bobby Williamsons recent installment as manager this could all change by the time the fixture comes round.

Chester will also host last seasons 2nd division foes Raith Rovers on the 14th of July.

http://www.gmfc.net/club-news/news-view.asp?id=159

http://www.chestercityfc.net/Home

Barrow Return Unlikely

Last week Morton announced that we would be returning to Morecambe for one of this seasons pre-season tour fixtures and that they were attempting to arrange another friendly for the following Monday or Tuesday. Last season this fixture was played against Barrow AFC but they have already announced their full pre-season fixture list on their official website with no mention of a possible friendly with Morton. However they don't have any fixture pencilled in for that date as of yet so there is still the possibility.

I really enjoyed the Barrow friendly last season but from a personal viewpoint I would prefer if we went somewhere new.

http://www.barrowafc.com/index.php?page=newsmain

29/05/2007

Greenock Morton Supporters Trust AGM

For any Trust members or anyone else who might be interested the GMST have announced the date and location of this year's AGM - Saturday the 16th of June , 1pm - 3pm in the Gamble Halls in Gourock.

All Trust members are welcome to attend.

The GMST has 5 objectives. The main objective is to "purchase a substantial shareholding in Greenock Morton Football Club in order to have an influence in the running of the club with supporters representation on the board of directors". The other objectives are listed as :

  • To strengthen the bonds between Greenock Morton Football Club and the local community in Greenock, Port Glasgow and Gourock and the surrounding area, and to represent the interests of the local community in the running, wholly or partly, of Greenock Morton Football Club.
  • To benefit present and future members of the local community by promoting encouraging and furthering the game of football as a recreational facility, sporting activity and focus for community involvement.
  • To provide and maintain facilities for the enjoyment of professional football.
  • To promote coaching schemes to develop the football skills of young people and to widen interest in football regardless of the sex or ethnic origin of those involved.

If you like the principles and aims of the trust you can join by either taking out a yearly membership for £10 or joining the loan fund with a minimum contribution of £500.

For more information click here : http://www.gmst.org.uk

To download forms to join click here : http://www.gmst.org.uk/gmst/download/index.php

27/05/2007

Where Are They Now

As you may have noticed there hasn't been much Morton news lately and this blog has become an exercise in pin-pointing the location of ex Morton players and managers. Unfortunately this entry isn't going to be any different.

Clyde have announced that they will not be offering former Morton favourite Alex Williams a new contract and that means he is effectively a free agent as of now.

http://www.clydefc.co.uk/latestnews.cfm?id=2317

It's sad to see Alex' career spiralling downwards in this way as he was a player with great potential but, clearly, Williams is his own worst enemy. From Young Player of the Year in 2002, a £50,000 transfer, finishing top scorer for Morton as we won the 3rd division championsip to successive free transfers suggests that he is either very unlucky or doing something wrong. However, I for one hope he buckles down and gets his career back on track - good luck Alex.

According to yesterday's Scottish Sun (26.5.07) former Morton, Dundee and Queen's Park manager John McCormack is the front runner for the vacant Albion Rovers job. 'Cowboy' took over in 2002/03 and guided Morton to the 3rd division championship. He was sacked after Morton collapsed in season 2003/04 and made a poor start to the 2004/05 season. In the intervening period he also had a spell in charge of junior side Bellshill.

Finally, congratulations to two former Morton loanees. Yesterday Paul Hartley was part of the Celtic team that beat Dunfermline 1-0 to lift the Scottish Cup and Robert Earnshaw won his 33rd cap for Wales in a 2-2 draw with New Zealand. So far he has scored 12 goals in his 33 caps.

26/05/2007

Ex Ton Manager Ian McCall Takes Over at Partick Thistle

Morton will go head to head with an old face next season. Yesterday former Morton gaffer Ian McCall was appointed manager of Partick Thistle. He will replace Dick Campbell in the Firhill hot seat.

McCall managed Morton for four months in season 1999 / 2000. Like Allan Evans (who was mentioned on another blog entry the other day) McCall had to contend with a notorious chairman - Hugh Scott - need I say more. In his short spell in charge he excited the Morton fans by bringing in Robert Earnshaw on loan from Cardiff City and was in charge when we were beaten 1-0 by Rangers (at Love Street) in the Scottish Cup.

McCall is assured a frosty reception at Cappielow because of his claim that Morton still owed him money under the aforementioned Hugh Scott. The article in a national newspaper ( the Scotland On Sunday I think) stated or implied that present owner Douglas Rae should pay the money. Rae refuted the claims.

I think this is a decent appointment for Thistle and could see them putting up more of a challenge than was previously expected.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/morton/806222.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/p/partick_thistle/6693751.stm

25/05/2007

In The Papers

Greenock Telegraph - 24.5.07

Morton manager Jim McInally has revealed that former Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock sent him a hand written letter of congratulations on Morton's promotion to the first division.

Last summer Warnock brought his United team to Cappielow for a pre-season friendly. At the time he revealed he had a soft spot for Morton as he has a family link with the area. He also revealed that he has a holiday home in Dunoon and paid £50 for a brick at Cappielow.

http://www.greenocktelegraph.co.uk/stories/story.php?id=8662


Commute Too Much For Mathers

According to the BBC sport website Paul Mathers has rejected Morton's new contract offer because the commute from Dundee to Greenock was too much for him.

The article goes on to say that he wanted to find a new club that would allow him to spend more time with his family.


http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/morton/6645291.stm

Morton Return To Morecambe

Yesterday Morton announced that we will be returning to Morecambe - who were promoted to the Football League last season - for one of the games in our annual pre-season tour. This match will be played on Saturday the 21st July with a 3 pm kick-off. The second fixture will be played on either Monday the 23rd or Tuesday the 24th july, the opponents have yet to be confirmed.

The midweek game is likely to be Barrow AFC (again) or Lancaster City as both are the only teams who play nearby.

The announcement that we will play on Monday or Tuesday means that there can't be any truth in Stenhousemuir's announcement that we will be playing them at Ochilview on that same Monday.

The club also confirmed the rumours that the Renfrewshire Cup Final against St. Mirren will be played on Saturday the 28th July. The website also states that the match will be played at Love Street which is contrary to the rumours the match would be played at Cappielow.

The Morecambe friendly will see Morton make a swift return to the sea-side resort as we also played them last pre-season. In that match Morton ran out 2-0 winners in a convincing victory. Paul McGowan and Chris Templeman scored the goals. I don't think I'd be alone in saying that this match is a bit disappointing from a fans perspective. I would have liked to visit a new town and football ground rather than do the same thing as last year. At the end of the day you can't complain too much as these matches are arranged for the benefit of the team, not the supporters.

http://www.gmfc.net/club-news/news-view.asp?id=157

24/05/2007

Where Are They Now

Former Morton manager Allan Evans (furthest right in the picture) has been appointed centre of excellence manager at Plymouth Argyle where he will also manage their under 16s team.

Evans managed Morton for a spell in the 2000/01 season. This was under the dubious tenure of one Mike Peden and basically meant that he had little (or no) chance of being successful.

Evans is best known for his time at Aston Villa where the defender lifted the European Cup in 1982 and gained inclusion in Scotland's World Cup squad in the same year. He also had spells as West Bromwich Albion caretaker manager in March 2000 and as Aston Villa assistant manager under Brian Little in the mid to late 90's.

http://www.teamtalk.com/football/story/0,16368,1799_2138251,00.html

McGowan Hopes To Go Out On Loan Again Next Season

In an interview posted on a Celtic fan's website (and brought to my attention by a post on greenockmorton.net by Largston) Paul McGowan has stated that he loved every minute of his time on loan at Morton last season and that everything went brilliant for him.

He goes on to say that he is confident that he can make the break through at Celtic next season but that if he doesn't he would be more than willing to go out on loan again.

Although McGowan is a good player he is certainly not going to get first team football at Celtic next season. I think most Morton fans would be more than happy to see him return but I'm not sure that a loan deal would be the preferred option. In my opinion if we can't sign him for a fee of £50,000 or under we should focus our attention on a striker for the longer term rather than rely on another loan signing.




23/05/2007

New Goalkeeper for Next Season ?


According to Inverclyde Now Jim McInally has said that he will be withdrawing the contract offer made to Paul Mathers. The reason given was that Mathers was taking too long and the manager hadn't expected to be looking about for a new 'keeper at this stage.

Mathers is rumoured to be signing a part-time deal with East Fife.

I have to say I'm quite happy with this news. I thought Mathers was a good addition last season and done a decent job for us. However I don't think he was good enough for the step up.


In related news, today's Greenock Telegraph has a story that McInally is searching for a Mather's replacement in Poland with Artur Boruc for help.

I think this is a great idea. The Polish market is as yet untapped in Scotland (Zurawski, Boruc and Malkowski aside) and I think it's about time Scottish clubs made use of this resource.

Poles who are not quite top standard and play outside the top clubs like Legia Warsaw will probably be on low wages like most workers in the country. Like most Poles who have emigrated since Poland joined the EU, they would be more than happy to come to the UK to earn better wages and that's where Morton and similar sized clubs should come in. These players are probably of a higher standard than our indigenous players but can't earn as much money in Poland. You can hardly watch a game in England (outside the Premiership) without one of the teams having a Pole in their ranks and they, invariably, seem to be the best players on show. I think Hal Stewart would have liked the ring of the 'Polish Invasion'.

http://www.inverclydenow.com/news-detail2.asp?ID=3594

20/05/2007

Squad Update

At present there hasn't been any news about signings for the 1st division, only a few rumours. The only updates so far have been that Morton have retained the majority of last seasons squad.



The only changes since last season have been Paul McGowans return to Celtic at the end of his loan spell and the release of Michael Fulton and Kenny McLean. Paul Mathers is out of contract and is yet to sign a new deal.


At the moment the squad looks like this :


Goalkeepers (1)

David McGurn


Defenders (7)

Stewart Greacen
Ryan Harding
David MacGregor
Alan Gilbride
David McLeod
Craig Black
Gary Phillip

Midfielders (9)

Jamie Stevenson
Chris Millar
Scott McLaughlin
Jim McAlister
Kevin Finlayson
Dean Keenan
Ryan Russell
Scott McKellar
Gary Laughran

Attackers (3)

Chris Templeman
Bobby Linn
Brian Graham

Utility (2)
Peter Weatherson
Alex Walker

On paper the squad of 22 isn't very impressive. Especially when you consider around 8 of them are youth / reserve players with little first team experience. Most Morton fans will be keen to see around 3, 4 or even 5 strong signings to compete in the 1st division preferably with some experience to guide what is a young team.

18/05/2007

Gretna Friendly Announced

Morton have announced another pre-season friendly date. We will play SPL new boys Gretna on Wednesday the 18th July at Fir Park, Motherwell. The kick-off time has not yet been confirmed.

The pre-season schedule so far is :

Wed 18th July - Gretna (away)
Mon 23rd July - Stenhousemuir (away)

3 More Sign Contract Extensions, 2 Move On

Scott McLaughlin has signed a new 1 year deal with Morton. Reserve players David McLeod - who was out injured for a long spell this season - and Scott McKellar have also penned new deals. I haven't found any indication of the lengths of those contracts. Although it has been rumoured McLeod's contract is a bit shorter in order for him to prove he can come back from his broken leg.

Unfortunately two players have been allowed to leave. Michael Fulton will remain at Largs Thistle while Kenny McLean will stay with Maryhill Juniors, both players spent this season on loan with those teams.

I wasn't surprised to see Fulton released. He was a skilfull player but as he hadn't made a big enough impact to force his way into the first team at 22 years old he was probably never going to.

I was surprised to see McLean released, to an extent. McInally seemed to like Kenny and even started him in the crucial play-off match at Peterhead last season. However this season he went out on loan to Maryhill and fell off the radar. Sadly he came back to attention when it was revealed that he had testicular cancer. Since then there hasn't been much mention of him at all. I don't know whether the decision to release him was to do with ability, Mclean being happier playing part-time and working as a plumber or whether his illness would affect his ability to have an impact at professional level. Whatever the reason I'm sure everyone at Morton wishes McLean, and Fulton, all the best in the future.

http://www.greenocktelegraph.co.uk/stories/story.php?id=8614

Cappielow Improvements Take Shape

Morton have lodged two planning proposals with Inverclyde Council in order to implement improvements at Cappielow for next season.

They are as follows :

1) Week Ending 27/4/07 (page 23 of PDF File) - Erection of new light towers by Greenock Morton Football Club, Cappielow Park, Sinclair Street, Greenock, PA15 2TY per QCon (Scotland) Ltd., Newbigging Office, Burntisland, Fife, KY3 0AQ.

2) Week Ending 4/5/07 (page 25 of pdf file) - Extension to club shop by Greenock Morton Football Club, Cappielow Park, Sinclair Street, Greenock per Richard Robb Architects, 7 Dunvegan Avenue, Gourock, PA19 1AE.

There doesn't appear to be any mention of the erection of a new fence in the Cowshed which has also been rumoured to be under consideration.

http://www.inverclyde.gov.uk/documents/PlanningRegister2007.pdf

17/05/2007

Billy Stark Signs 3 Year Deal at Queen's Park

Former Morton manager Billy Stark has signed a three year contract extension with newly promoted Queen's Park.

This ends speculation that he would be taking over at Partick Thistle which would have seen him come into direct opposition with Morton in the 1st Division next season.

I was speaking to a Partick Thistle fan yesterday who says that he expects Ian McCall to be in the running for the job but with players like Mark Roberts, Kenny Arthur and a couple of others set to leave Firhill he thinks Thistle will get relegated next season.

Bobby Lennox Almost Signed for Morton

Bobby Lennox, who played for Celtic when they won European Cup in 1967, recently told the Greenock Telegraph that he was very close to signing for Morton.

Lennox was set to play a trial match against Queen's Park but the game was cancelled due to rain. If it wasn't for the Greenock weather he may well have signed on at Cappielow instead of going on to become one of the famous Lisbon Lions.

http://www.greenocktelegraph.co.uk/stories/story.php?id=8603

5 Players Sign New Contracts

David McGurn, Alex Walker, Brian Graham, Craig Black and Alan Gilbride have all signed new 1 year deals at Morton.

All of the players mentioned are on the fringes of the first team or regulars in the reserves. Signing up all 5 suggests to me that McInally has kept them on board to beef up his squad for the 1st division which is a more physically demanding league that could well see us getting far more injuries next season.
I was surprised to see Alan Gilbride get a new deal as whenever I have seen him he's looked shaky at the back. Although, in saying that, he played very well against Forfar Athletic on the last day of the 2005/06 season and has impressed on loan at Largs Thistle this season.

Also of note were Black and Graham signing new contracts. Graham's dad had told me Brian was frustrated with his lack of first team chances on the back of his tremendous goalscoring record in the reserves. Black was supposedly unhappy with his new offer but it would seem that that rumour was garbage or he has settled for the offer on the table. Either way it's great news for Morton.


15/05/2007

In The Papers

Greenock Telegraph by Roger Graham (14th May 2007)


Paul Mathers tells Roger Graham that he hopes to sign a new contract by the end of this week and that signing a new deal at Cappielow would be his "preferred option". The article also states that he has already spoken to two other clubs and intends to speak to another some time during the week.

Read the full story here : http://www.greenocktelegraph.co.uk/stories/story.php?id=8581


Greenock Telegraph by Roger Graham (15th May 2007)

Morton legend Allan McGraw pays tribute to his former Morton team-mate Kai Johansen who passed away a few days earlier.

McGraw said : "Kai was a lovely man. He always made you feel welcome."

Current chairman Douglas Rae told Roger Graham : "I was saddened to hear of his untimely death."




14/05/2007

Craig Black Unhappy with Contract Offer ?

Another rumour I heard this weekend is that Morton Reserve player Craig Black is not very happy with the contract he has been offered by the club.

From what I hear he is on a modest wage and expected an improved offer but was offered the same terms as his previous contract.

Hopefully there are no problems and that Black does sign a new contract as I think he is a player with a bright future at morton.

Signing Rumour

On Saturday night I heard a rumour that Morton have signed a player on loan from Rangers for next season and that the player in question was the under 19's team captain and from Greenock.



After doing a bit of research I've found that Rangers U-19s do have a boy from Greenock playing for them :


  • Nicholas Gallacher
  • Position : Defender
  • D.o.B : 24/01/1990
  • Born : Greenock
  • National Honours : Scotland U-16 International

I'm not sure if there's any substance in this story but I'm pretty sceptical myself.

http://www.rangers.premiumtv.co.uk/page/Squad/U21s/0,,5,00.html

http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/news.cfm?newsid=1623

13/05/2007

Former Morton Star Kai Johansen Dies

Former Morton and Rangers player Kai Johansen (3rd from left in back row) has died aged 67.

Johansen signed for Morton from Danish club Esbjerg in 1964, following fellow Dane Eric Sorenson to the club. At that time Morton signed a large number of players from the Scandinavian country in a series of transfers that have become popularly known as the 'Danish Invasion'.

Right-back Johansen was such a success at Morton that he was transferred to Glasgow Rangers for £20,000 the following year. At Rangers he famously scored the winning goal in the 1966 Scottish Cup Final replay against Celtic.

According to Neil Brown's website detailing Morton players career totals he played 33 games for Morton without finding the back of the net and played 238 matches for Rangers. He gained 20 caps for Denmark in a very impressive career.

http://www.sportinglife.com/football/scottishpremier/news/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/07/05/13/SOCCER_Rangers_Johansen.html

http://www.neilbrown.newcastlefans.com/morton/morton.htm

Morton 7 - 1 Greenock High School FP

A Morton team that looked to be managed by goalkeeper David McGurn cruised to a comfortable 7 - 1 victory over Greenock High School Former Pupils. The match was played to celebrate the High School's centenary year.

The high school opened the scoring when Barry Munro (I thought it was ex Morton player Denis McGhee) blasted home a cracker from long range. Craig Black equalised when he burst through to blast home. Brian Graham put Morton ahead when he tapped home for the first of a hat-trick. His second was the goal of the game. The prolific young striker took an immaculate touch before lobbing the stranded High School keeper from the edge of the box. 3-1 the half-time score.

In the second half both teams made a lot of substitutions, in particular Morton who used a rolling substitution system. The High School also took the opportunity to bring on some players from their past. Something that I heard one of the current players bemoaning in the James Watt pub after the game.The rout was completed by a Chris Millar double - one of which came from a comical backpass which the second High School sub keeper strangely picked up - a penalty scored by Brian Graham to complete his hat-trick and a goal from new signing Lee Mitchell.

Morton Goalscorers - Black, Graham (3 [1 pen]), Millar (2), Mitchell
GHSFP Goalscorer - Munro

Morton Line-Up

1. John Cullis - 5
2. Craig Black - 7
3. Ryan Russell - 6
4. David MacGregor - 7
5. Dean Keenan - 7
6. Scott McKellar - 6
7. Chris Millar - 8
8. Gary Laughran - 8
9. Brian Graham - 7
10. Jamie Stevenson - 6 (12. Lee Mitchell)
11. Gary Phillip - 6 (15. Ryan Harding)

14. Alex Walker
20. David McGurn

My mom - Chris Millar

12/05/2007

Morton v GHSFP Match Preview

Today Morton take on Greenock High School Former Pupils at Cappielow in a match to celebrate the local amateur club's centenary.

Morton will probably line up with a team similar to that which started against Viewfield Rovers on Thursday night. Although I'm not sure whether players like Stevenson, Weatherson and Millar might be replaced by younger boys like Laughran for this one.

According to their website the High school include former Morton players Dennis McGhee - http://www.scottishamateurfa.co.uk/Clubs/ScottishAFL/GreenockH44008/dyncat.cfm?catid=5211 and Stewart Jack who was part of Peter Weir's strong Morton youth set up and played for Queen's Park against Morton at Cappielow in the 2002/03 season.

Kick-off is at 3pm and admission prices are £2 for adults, £1 for Concessions.

First Pre-season Friendly Announced

Morton will play Stenhousemuir in a pre-season friendly at Ochilview on Monday 23rd July with a 7.30pm kick off.

The friendly was announced on Stenhousemuir's official website :

http://www.stenhousemuirfc.com/news.htm#070509b

There has been no confirmation from Morton as yet.

While glancing at Stenhousemuir's news section it was interesting to note that they have released former Morton player Stevie Aitken and one time Morton trialist John-Paul McBride. They have signed ex-Morton goalkeeper John Hillcoat from Brechin.

Mathers Considers Contract Offers

Morton goalkeeper Paul Mathers is currently considering his options after the club offered him a new 1 year deal. According to the BBC Sport website two unnamed part-time clubs have also made offers.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/morton/6645291.stm

11/05/2007

Morton 5 - 0 Viewfield Rovers

Morton 5 - Black, Keenan, Russell, Stevenson (pen), Graham
Viewfield Rovers 0 -

by Russell Steele

Morton will get the chance to regain the Renfrewshire Cup after they saw off Viewfield Rovers last night, in slightly less emphatic fashion than they did when the two sides last met in 2004. On that occasion Morton defeated the amateurs 10-1 with names like Iain Diack featuring on the scoresheet and John Paul McBride fielded as a trialist, as John McCormack’s reign ran out of ideas and neared its sorry end.

It’s a case of changed days at Cappielow now, thankfully, and last night Jim McInally - fresh from agreeing a new rolling contract - opted for a mixture of youth and experience, with first team squad members like Chris Millar, Jamie Stevenson, Peter Weatherson, Alex Walker and Dean Keenan complementing the up and coming prospects like Brian Graham and Craig Black. But their amateur opponents were well up for the game and worked hard to stifle Morton during the first 45 minutes.

The first half was largely frustrating with an impatient Peter Weatherson loudly driving his colleagues forward and imploring them to do more. Once again he sounded like genuine captain material. The first chance came on 12 minutes when Alan Gilbride saw a firm header cleared off the line. Morton then resorted to a series of – largely wayward – efforts from distance, with Weatherson, Millar and Walker all off target. They should have taken the lead on the half hour mark when Scott McKellar and Brian Graham were somehow denied by desperate goal-line blocks after Viewfield keeper David Shearer got himself into a fankle. He redeemed himself with a fine save to thwart Graham again as the half ended, turning his effort from Craig Black’s fierce low cross onto the near post and away for a corner.

In the second half Viewfield visibly tired and retreated towards their own goal. After Craig Black opened the scoring with a header off the underside of the bar, the floodgates opened. Dean Keenan added a second soon after with another header off a Stevenson set-piece and a fine through ball by Chris Millar sent Ryan Russell away to notch a third with a perfect left foot finish. Russell had also set up the first and enjoyed a much better second half after a disappointing showing up until the break. A fourth goal arrived from the penalty spot when Stevenson was fouled in the box and dusted himself down to score the resultant spot kick. The scoring was completed when Craig Black stormed up the pitch, exchanged passes with Gary Loughran (who caught the eye with a bright display off the bench) and set up Brian Graham to make it 5-0.

Job done then, and another Renfrewshire derby to look forward to - unless Calton 'do a Bellaire' and send St Mirren packing…

Morton

1. David McGurn
2. Craig Black
3. Ryan Russell
4. Peter Weatherson
5. Alan Gilbride (sub Gary Phillip, 67)
6. Alex Walker (sub Gary Loughran, 73)
7. Chris Millar
8. Dean Keenan
9. Brian Graham
10. Scott McKellar
11. Jamie Stevenson (sub Lee Mitchell, 75).

Sub not used:

Paul Mathers.

Greenock Telegraph - match report

10/05/2007

Morton v Viewfield Rovers Preview

Tonight at Cappielow Morton take on amateurs Viewfield Rovers in the Renfrewshire Cup semi-final.

I'd expect the Morton team to be similar to the one that played against Ayr United on the last game of the season. The team that day featured fringe players like Alex Walker, Bobby Linn, Ryan Russell and Brian Graham.

The semi-finals are almost always formalities which result in both local senior sides facing each other in the final, which in recent times has been played as a pre-season fixture between both sides first teams. In the (recent) past the fixture was played by reserve teams in midweek at the end of the season.

St. Mirren face Calton Athletic in the other semi-final on Monday 14th May.

The match kicks-off at 7.30 pm and admission prices are £5 for adults and £2 for concessions.

Unfortunately I'm working and can't make the match but I'll have a match report up later courtesy of local hack Russell 'Lee Naylor' Steele.

09/05/2007

Morton Players Make an Impact at Largs Thistle

A lot of Morton's youth and reserve players have been loaned out to junior sides because of the limited amount of reserve games played this season. On Saturday the 5th May two of those players made a crucial impact in Largs Thistle's match against East Kilbride.

Alan Gilbride and Mick Fulton both scored as Largs ran out 3-0 winners in a match that preserved their status in the Stagecoach Super League 1st Division. Ex-Morton player Phil Cannie scored the other goal. Largs were captained by another ex-Morton player - Neil Shearer.

http://www.largsthistle.org.uk/matchdetails.asp?mid=47

McInally and Clark Sign Contract Extensions

Yesterday it was announced that Jim McInally and his assistant Martin Clark have both signed 1 year 'rolling' contracts with the club.

The new contracts were a formality once promotion was achieved but I'm a bit surprised that they are only for 1 extra year. This suggests to me that either Douglas Rae hasn't got 100% faith in McInally as if he did I'd have expected him to offer at least a 2 year deal or that Jim himself believes that in a year from now he might have the opportunity to move onto a bigger club.

Either way I think Mcinally will do well next season and will go onto bigger and better things - probably in England.

On the subject of Jim McInally I was impressed to read an article in the Daily Record either last week or the week before in which Celtic youngster Darren O'Dea said that his Celtic career has been inspired by Jim McInally. McInally's first words to O'Dea when he walked into Parkhead as 16 year old were 'we aren't going to groom you for the SPL, we're grooming you for the Champions League' and according to O'Dea those words have stayed with him ever since.

01/05/2007

Aiden McGeady - Morton Fan ?!?!

According to an interview on the official UEFA website Celtic player Aiden McGeady used to watch Morton as a youngster (as well as Celtic and Queen's Park).

A friend sent me a link while searching for the date for the UEFA Cup Final which is to be held in Glasgow. In an interview titled 'Aiden McGeady's Glasgow' he says :

"The rivalry between Rangers and Celtic is still pretty intense, but there are several other football clubs in and around the city. When I was younger I used to go with my uncle and my dad to watch Queen's Park [FC] and Greenock Morton [FC] because they were down the road."

I doubt this admission will endear a player who chose to play for the Republic of Ireland instead of Scotland to the Morton support though.

The full interview can be found at : http://www.uefa.com/competitions/uefacup/finals/newsid=513249.html