Dundee 3 - 1 Morton

Dundee 3 - Griffiths (54), Harkins (65), Malone (87)
Morton 1 - Weatherson (60)

Att: 4259

Top o' the league, and we're naw: a Dundee side inspired by star players Leigh Griffiths and Gary Harkins proved to too hot for the Ton as they ran out comfortable 3-1 winners at a snow covered Dens Park today.

Allan McManus said that Morton would go back to the drawing board after last week's defeat at home to Queen Of The South. There were changes, in terms of personnel and formation, but nothing drastic. However, I think that might be more to do with the limitations of the current squad rather than Grady's mindset. We went back to more of a flat four in midfield: Carlo Monti and Erik Paartalu were central with Kevin Finalyson and Jim McAlister back in their more familiar position close to the touchline. Iain Russell - who recently returned from a loan spell at Alloa - replaced McAlister up front, while Alan Reid - back after suspension - replaced Davie MacGregor at left-back. MacGregor and Ryan McGuffie found themselves in the unfortunate position of bench warmers on a freezing cold day.

Russell almost made an immediate impact when he beat the Dundee offside trap to get on the end of Monti's ball over the top, but the former Brechin man only succeeded in sidefooting his volley over the bar.

Three minutes later Dundee goalkeeper Rab Douglas managed to push a powerful Peter Weatherson free-kick round the post. Paartalu got on the end of the resultant corner, but his front post header was caught by Douglas.

Colin Stewart was also on form at the other end. First he made a great save to deny Gary Harkins in the 26th minute. The Greenock-born midfielder let fly from 25-yards, but the Ton number 1 was equal to the effort and managed to get two strong hands behind his save. The first save was all about good solid goalkeeping, his next was all about instinct, agility and reflexes. A corner from the right was headed towards goal by Leigh Griffiths, but Stewart could only parry to the feet of Craig Forsyth, who was about six yards out. I'd already written it off as a certain goal, but Stewart somehow managed to arch back and make a superb block on the line. Monti was also alive to the danger and got back to clear the ball off the line.

As usual, we started brightly before fading as our opponents came into the game. We managed to play some decent football and create a couple of good chances early on, but Dundee appeared to settle down towards the end of the half. The home side were in the ascendancy, yet I still felt there was cause for optimism as we'd done enough to contain the league leaders away from home to go in level at half-time.



Unfortunately, Dundee needed only 14 second half minutes to crush my positive attitude. Craig Forsyth whipped a diagonal cross in behind the Morton defence from out on the left. Dominic Shimmin and Alan Reid both appeared to think the other man should've been picking up Griffiths - the talented striker took advantage of the confusion by nipping in behind them to head past Stewart with ease.

At this point I thought it was game over. So you can imagine my astonishment when we levelled in the 60th minute. Finlayson picked the ball up on the right and delivered an inch perfect cross to the front past where Weatherson had done enough to get in front of his marker to head past Douglas to make it 1-1. Peter's heading techniqiue is superb at times - and this was one of those times. In one motion he managed to lean back and twist his body in such a way that it allowed him to guide the ball away from Douglas and into the top corner. This was the Geordie's 9th goal of the season. Last season he managed 10 goals all season, while the total was 11 the season before. Keep it up Peter!

Just as the equaliser revitalised my once-crushed spirits Harkins decided to crush them again. Dundee caught Morton out with a swift counter attack in which Richie Hart raced away down the left. The former Caley Thistle midfielder managed to out sprint the chasing Paartalu to get to the by line before cutting back to the edge of the box where the in-rushing Harkins arrived right on time to side-footed past Stewart with ease.

We didn't take this lying down and, although Dundee were starting to take control, we did manage to create some chances. In the 76th minute Douglas did well to parry a stinging Paartalu volley, the rebound eventually found its way to Weatherson who hooked over from six yards. To be fair to Peter the ball came to him at a difficult height and he did have a defender right behind him putting him under pressure. But it was a decent chance nonetheless.

In the 82nd minute Jim McAlister manufactured a chance for himself when he flicked the ball between two Dundee players on the edge of the box. He ran round them and curled a speculative shot towards the top corner. The view provided by our seat in the main stand wasn't great, but from where we were sitting it seemed as if the shot was inches from nestling in the Dundee net.

Dundee settled the match in the 87th minute. A Harkins corner from the left appeared to be harmlessly drifting beyond everyone and out for a throw in before Shimmin inexplicably side footed the ball out for another corner. You can only imagine that the Dominic didn't get a shout from any of his team mates. In saying that, you could also argue that he should've been more aware of his surroundings. Either way Dundee capitalised on the mistake when Eddie Malone headered home Forsyth's corner from the opposite side. The former St. Mirren defender rose unchallenged to head home just yards from goal. Stewart was posted missing and took the blame for the goal in the press the next day.

James Grady criticised his side for being defensively naive and stated that there was only so many times you can explain to the players what he wants them to do before he has to concede that they just aren't good enough. He told the Tele's Roger Graham that he'll be looking to strengthen in the January transfer window: "We need to get better quality in and we need players with a better mental strength."

Under Grady our performances have improved, but the results haven't. A couple of additions are essential. We only have to look to the difference guys like Gary Harkins and Leigh Griffiths can make to an otherwise average squad of players. Hopefully Douglas Rae can see this and agrees. The alternative is to concede money is tight, stick with what we've got and risk relegation to the second division.


Morton (4-4-2):

1. Stewart - 7
2. Van Zanten - 6
3. Reid - 5
4. Shimmin - 6
5. Greacen - 5
6. Paartalu - 7
7. Finlayson - 6
8. Monti - 7
9. Weatherson - 7
10. Russell - 5 (16. Kane - 71 mins)
11. McAlister - 6


Unused Subs:

12. Wake
14. McGuffie
15. MacGregor
20. McWilliams

Booked: Monti

Stewart
van Zanten Greacen Shimmin Reid
Finlayson Paartalu Monti McAlister
Weatherson Russell

Dundee: Douglas, Paton, Malone, Kerr, MacKenzie, Lauchlan, Forsyth, Hart, Griffiths (Clarke - 81), McMenamin, Harkins (Klimpl - 82).

Subs Not Used: Benedictus, Cameron, Soutar.

Booked: Hart, Malone.

My man of the match: Gary Harkins (Dundee)

Sponsor's man of the match: Gary Harkins (Dundee)


Matchday Programme (Click to enlarge)

Match Ticket










Greenock Telegraph - Match Report

Greenock Telegraph - Match Reaction

The Scottish Sun - Match Report

dundeefc.co.uk - Match Report

bbc sport - Match Report

Kevin McKinlay On Trial

Former Ross County, Partick Thistle and Dundalk midfielder Kevin McKinlay is currently on trial with Morton.

The Evening Times' Bert Mitchell states that the 23-year-old played in a bounce game versus Rangers on Tuesday, and that he will also play in another closed doors game next week.

McKinlay is quoted as saying: "Obviously I am keen to get things sorted out and hopefully the trial match went well and Morton will have another look at me next week

"They are very ambitious under Allan and James and I'd love the chance to sign for them. I am a bit short of match practice, but my fitness is good and hopefully I can do myself justice and earn a deal."

According to his profile on ptfc.co.uk Kevin is "primarily left sided, strong in the air and quick, and can play on either side of the park or in a more central role."

Full Name: Kevin Donald McKinlay
Age: 23 (28.02.1986)
Position: Left Midfield; Left Back

Born: Stirling, Scotland
Nationality: Scottish
Height: 6' 0"

Former Clubs: Chelsea, Ross County [loan], Ross County, Partick Thistle, Dundalk (Republic of Ireland)

Evening Times - Former Jag Kev In For Morton Switch (18.12.2009)

ptfc.co.uk - Kevin McKinlay profile

AGM Report

by Russell Gordon

The 113th Annual General Meeting of Greenock Morton Football Club took place in the board room of Cappielow Park this evening, with around 40 shareholders present, along with chairman Douglas Rae, directors Crawford Rae and Stuart Duncan, secretary Mary Davidson taking the minutes and Chief Executive Gillian Donaldson.

Mr. Rae snr. kicked off proceedings by telling us of four apologies before asking Mrs. Davidson to read the minutes from last year's meeting, which were swiftly approved.

The chairman then went on to give us his report from a year that had its fair share of ups and downs, from the euphoria of avoiding relegation at Firhill in April 2008 through the catastrophic start to season 08/09, the "substantial improvement" in the 2nd and 3rd quarters and the disappointments of the final quarter, culminating in defeat in each of our last four games resulting in a more disappointing finish than could've been expected at one stage towards the end of the season.

Mr. Rae outlined his own high and low points from last term, speaking glowingly of our 4-3 Co-op Cup win at Easter Road and of the purchase of the Reid Kerr Stand from Love Street at a cost of £50,000 (installation costs will bring this closer to the £250,000 mark). He was, however, disappointed with declining crowds, having budgeted for average crowds of 3200 on Morton's return to the First Division. My personal thoughts are that this was an ambitious target, given that, whilst a better standard of football is on display in the First Division, enticing fair weather fans to see a team that isn't winning all the time is harder than getting them to watch a team that was winning more often than not as was the case prior to promotion. Added to rising overheads, such as players wages at the higher level, and electricity, water costs etc. the possibility of part time football across the First Division could well be round the corner in 2-3 years time unless a major sponsor can be attracted to the SFL. Let's be honest, that ain't going to happen.

The chairman made it quite clear that the purse-strings are being tightened and was quick to point out that supporters' expectations regarding spending in January may well differ greatly from the reality of the situation; "It is not a question of need, but of what we can afford". Former manager Davie Irons' ears may well have been burning at this juncture, with the blame being laid at his feet for the playing budget being exceeded by £100,000 due to some "ridiculous" pay rises in the chairman's opinion. With last season being Dunfermline's second season in the SFL, and a lot of the higher earners at East End Park coming off the wage bill, there was scope for strengthening in Fife. When Jim McIntyre approached certain Morton players (who weren't named), Irons felt he had to match the Pars' offer to keep a hold of his men. Dundee were also sniffing about a few of the squad at this time.

New manager James Grady seems more keen on bringing in part-time players who have the desire to take the step up. From a financial point of view that may be no bad thing, but whether it pays off on the park remains to be seen. Mr. Rae then pointed out that with 12 players out of contract in the summer, Grady will have room to manoeuvre - this brought me to the conclusion that Grady and McManus will be staying in the dugout beyond the end of the season, something that the board refused to confirm or deny. They did however seem very encouraged, certainly with performances, if not results. Although the club's crippling injury list was used as a form of legislation for that.

It was interesting to note the chairman pointing out that Grady and McManus have revitalised morale to the extent that the dressing room is a much happier place than at any point in the previous 18 months. This prompted Andy Morrison to speculate whether or not the board blame Irons for previous issues. This was quickly refuted, but it's not rocket science to try and work out what the common denominator was in all the bad feeling in the Cappielow dressing room.

Mr. Rae conceded it will be difficult trying to move players on, citing Bobo Balde's refusal to do anything other than pick up a wage at Celtic Park for a few years, as nobody's going to move on for a worse deal. John Edwards then asked whether the club would review their policy on the length of contracts they would issue to players. Mr. Rae pointed out that all contract negotiations depend on certain circumstances such as the player's age, his sell on value etc., but 2 year deals are the ideal scenarios in most cases as a one year deal allows a player to start looking at better offers almost immediately, whilst 3 year deals can leave the club with some dead wood that's hard to shift. He said that of the 12 players that are out of contract [Ed - by my reckoning it's 13 , 14 if you include Allan McManus's playing contract: link), only 2 are likely to receive offers before the end of the season.

The Chairman then passed on to Stuart Duncan to discuss the club's youth set-up. With three teams operating at under-19,under-17 and under-15 levels, the club are looking to get into the SFA Pro Youth set-up for the start of next season. There are 5 pages of criteria that they have to meet - and the goal posts are likely to be moved again by the start of next term. All teams are required to use the new 3G parks, but the club are in contact with Inverclyde Council on a regular basis given that they are currently in the process of spending £35 million on Sports facilities in the area. Stuart did say that the SFA employ a tick list to audit facilities - basically the better the facilities, the more money you get. Perhaps that explains why there's not been much coming out of Cappielow for years. In order to enter the new set up a Head of Youth Development has to be appointed, with the club looking to appoint an experienced pro from within. Given the lack of coaching experience such an appointment would likely have, I'm a bit sceptical. There was a bit of confusion as to the new academy being a seperate entity from Morton, given that it is deemed to be self financing yet the club benefit without putting much in in return and hold the players' registrations, but it was made pretty clear that we had no other option. Do we want our promising young boys pulling on St. Mirren shirts? No, thought not.

Right, down to the nitty-gritty - Alistair Donald. Danny Goodwin asked what he contributed to the club, only for the chairman to mutter "Nothing", confirming he resigned from the board on the 8th December 2009. Crawford Rae went on to say that he had been brought into the club as he seemed to share the Raes' dream of SPL football, and the thought of a fresh face with new ideas appealed. However, given the time he spent in New York and Helsinki, due to his other business commitments, he felt he couldn't dedicate the necessary time to his role at Cappielow. A partner in Accenture Consultancy he was seen to have worthy experience and was placed in charge of revenue and grants. Asked if Mr. Donald fulfilled his financial commitment to the club, the chairman replied, "No, he is indebted to the club and is being pursued."

On to Dominic Shimmin and his injuries. The chairman accepted that there has been a great deal of scepticism about Shimmin's commitment from various parties within Cappielow, himself and the manager included, and that Shimmin had received two written warnings from the club, but after knuckling down in an intense 3 week programme he has shown no lack of commitment although his contract probably won't be renewed in the summer.

Having rambled on, I'll clear up some other matters that were discussed. I brought up issues regarding the Smiths website that has been poorly maintained, almost certainly resulting in loss of revenue and the Bukta fiasco of the summer. The club will speak to Smiths regarding the website, but couldn't comment on Bukta for legal reasons! Make of that what you will.

The club's relationship with Riverside Inverclyde was also brought up, given the fortunate position Queen of the South have found themselves in with a local contractor planning to throw up stands at Palmerston. The club have spoken with them, but not agreed on anything.

Regarding ground improvements, £230,000 has been spent on lighting to bring it up to SPL standards and the Wee Dublin End Stand is still scheduled to be open for the start of next term. A Flood Defence System has also been installed after the stand suffered water damage last winter from flooding from the railway line. As ever, Mark Farrell was also commended on his excellent work on the Cappielow pitch.

Some concerns were also raised about the potential for trouble at the Celtic game, but these were dispelled after Crawford told us of his talks with the Match Commander. Celtic fans in colours can expect to be rejected from the home sections of the ground, but don't expect this to be a weekly occurance, as the board made it clear that unlike some fans, they have no qualms with people turning up for ordinary league matches in Old Firm colours.

If we can reach one conclusion from the night, at least we can be sure that Alistair Donald wasn't the knight in shining armour some made him out to be. Here endeth that chapter.

AGM Tonight

The Greenock Morton Football Club annual general meeting will be held at Cappielow later tonight.

Morton shareholder, and occasional greenockmortonfc.blogspot contributor, Russell Gordon will be in attendance - and he plans to ask a few pertinent questions.

Russell has kindly offered to write up a report of the evening. This will appear here in the next couple of days.

Celtic Tickets On Sale Today

Tickets for the Morton versus Celtic Scottish Cup tie went on sale to the general public earlier today.

I'd already ordered four using my season ticket and when I went over to Cappielow to pick them up about 1pm today I walked into the office and bought an extra ticket for a friend without even having to wait in a queue.

However, I have read that there were queues outside Smiths prior to the shop opening. Some people were there as early as 7.40am. So if anyone's looking to pick up tickets hassle free, then get yourself to Cappielow.

Russell Returns To Cappielow

Morton striker Iain Russell has returned from a loan spell at Alloa Athletic and wants to force his way back into the first team at Cappielow.

He told the Scottish Sun's Ally Graham of his ambitions: "I've really enjoyed my time at Alloa, but I could have played more games and scored a few more goals. But they are in a great position in the league and I think they can go all the way this season.

"I've still been training at Morton and have been impressed with the new manager so I'm hoping I can reclaim my spot in the side."

In his short time at Recreation Park Iain started four matches, made two substitute appearances and scored two goals. In has last match he set up teammate Scott Agnew for the winning goal at home to Brechin City.

The Scottish Sun - Spotlight On Division 2 (14.12.2009)

Morton 1 - 2 Queen Of The South

Morton 1 - Weatherson (23)
Queen Of The South 2 - Burns (31), Holmes (64)

Att: 1814



Lightning strikes twice: 12 years ago Laurent Djaffo scored a stunning 40 yard volley to earn Ayr United a draw at Cappielow. Today, Queen Of The South's Derek Holmes scored a carbon copy of that goal to earn his side a 2-1 win.

After a run of consistent team selection James Grady decided that changes were needed after a poor second half showing at Dingwall in midweek. Dominic Shimmin was restored to the starting eleven after nine months out injured. As a result, David MacGregor moved out one to left-back to take the place of the suspended Alan Reid. There were also changes further forward: up front, Jim McAlister was preferred to both Brian Graham and Brian Wake (possibly because Grady felt he was more mobile than those two), while Ryan McGuffie took Jim's place in midfield.

Just like in the Ross County match last Tuesday, Morton started brightly. In the 8th minute McAlister headed an Erik Paartalu cross over the bar. Two minutes later Peter Weatherson headed a Carlo Monti cross inches wide.

Morton should've taken the lead in the 16th minute. Monti clipped a free-kick into the Queens box from just inside the opposition half. Weatherson jumped and flicked the ball on and quick as a flash he turned his marker and got on the end of his own header to volley towards goal, but David Hutton was equal to it. However, the keeper's block fell perfectly for the in-rushing McGuffie who only succeeded in blasting the ball right back at Hutton who made another decent save. A goalmouth scrambled ensued, one in which Stewart Greacen had a couple of shots blocked before the ball was cleared to safety. In my opinion, McGuffie really should've scored.

Derek Holmes almost gave the away side the lead a minute later. The chunky striker chased down a backpass and blocked Colin Stewart's attempted clearance. Fortunately for Stewart the ball flew over the crossbar.

We eventually got the goal our play merited in the 23rd minute. Paartalu was quickest to a loose ball out on the right, he steadied himself before drilling an undefendable cross into the six yard box. Weatherson managed to sneak ahead of the Queens of the South rearguard and bullet a header past Hutton for his eighth goal of the season.



Stewart Greacen sometimes comes unstuck when faced with a striker of a similar height and physical stature. Kenny Deuchar has given the big man a torrid time on more than one occasion. I also remember lanky Alloa striker Andy Brown giving him a bit of a runaround in one match at Cappielow. To be fair, he hasn't been coming second best in many of these battles over the last season or two, but he certainly did at the weekend. Derek Holmes was outmuscling him and beating him in the air with alarming regularity. In the 29th minute Holmes nodded the ball down (after outjumping Greacen) to David Weatherston, but Stewart managed to push the pacy striker's shot around the post for a corner.

The Dumfries men equalised in the 31st minute. Willie McLaren skipped past Greacen out on the left and cut inside before releasing Paul Burns down the right. The matchstick thin midfielder ran at Davie MacGregor who backed off, and backed off, thus giving Burns enough time and space to hit a speculative shot at goal that hit off the underside of Stewart's body and bounced up into the net. It was a pretty weak effort that Stewart should've saved, but MacGregor should've never let him get a shot away in the first place.

In the 35th minute referee Steven Nicholl decided to wave play on after Marvin Andrews appeared to foul Weatherson in the box. Kevin Finlayson clipped a diagonal pass in behind Andrews, Peter chested across the Trinidad and Tobago defender at angle that put him past his opponent with no chance of recovery - unless he fouled him! Andrews turned and barged into the Ton striker for what should've been a stonewall penalty. The only problem was that the only man in the stadium who didn't agree was the man who mattered. This proved to be a big turning point.

Just like in the Ross County match we faded spectacularly. To be quite frank, the second half performance was pretty abysmal. We only had two real chances of note in the second half. In the 5oth minute McAlister dragged a left footed shot past Hutton's left hand post. Then, 30 minutes later, substitute Stevie Masterton drilled a 30 yarder inches past the same post.

Queen Of The South's winner was sandwiched in between these two chances. Holmes beat (or 'ragdolled' as the guy standing behind me described it) Greacen in an aerial joust and turned to get on the end of his own flick on - much like Weatherson did at the start of the match. He then proceeded to stun everyone present by letting the ball bounce once before smashing a 35 yard volley over the stranded Stewart and into the net via the post. This wasn't quite as good as Djaffo's goal, but spectacular nonetheless. If I'm being critical I'd suggest that Stewart was a bit too far off his line. This goal turned out to be the winner as Queens held on for a 2-1 win.

In Monday's Evening Times assistant manager Allan McManus said: "I felt we didn’t turn up in the second half. We will need to go back to the drawing board.” The last two results have been poor, but the first half performances have been positive and with more players coming back from injury and the January transfer window almost upon us I still feel optimistic that Grady and McManus are taking us in the right direction. I'd prefer to see it as building on what they've already started rather than going back to the drawing board.


Morton (4-4-2):

1. Stewart - 6
2. Van Zanten - 6
3. MacGregor - 5
4. Shimmin - 7
5. Greacen - 5
6. Paartalu - 7
7. Finlayson - 6
8. Monti - 6 (12. Graham - 79 mins)
9. Weatherson - 7
10. McGuffie - 5 (15. Masterton - 75 mins)
11. McAlister - 5


Unused Subs:

14. Wake
16. Shepherd
20. McWilliams

Stewart
van Zanten Greacen Shimmin MacGregor
Paartalu
Finlayson McGuffie Monti
Weatherson McAlister

Queen Of The South: Hutton, McMillan, Harris, McKenna, Reid, Andrews, Burns, Quinn, Holmes, Weatherston (Scally 90), McLaren (Kean 74).

Subs Not Used: Wyness, McParland [Trialist], McGeown,

Booked: McMillan, McKenna.

My man of the match: Dominic Shimmin

Sponsor's man of the match:


Matchday Programme (Click to enlarge)

Greenock Telegraph - Match Report

Greenock Telegraph - Match Reaction

Scottish Sun - Match Report

Daily Record - Match Report

qosfc.com - Match Report

qosfc.com - Match Reaction

bbc sport - Match Report

Flawed Genius Review

Flawed Genius: Scottish Football's Self-Destructive Mavericks

Andy Ritchie's football career never reached the heights it should have. He never succeeded at Celtic, he was never capped by Scotland (at full level), and he never got the big move his talent merited. In fact, Ritchie was only 28-years-old when he stopped playing. An age at which he should've been in his prime.

Stephen McGowan's Flawed Genius examines the reasons why Ritchie never quite fulfilled his potential. However, this isn't strictly McGowan's take on Ritchie. The chapter is more like an extended interview; an interview in which Ritchie comes across as a man full of regrets. Only now does he appear to acknowledge that a lot of his problems were of his own making: he was lazy, had weight issues, drank too much, smoked too much, gambled too much, and had a bad attitude. Reading the chapter it seems obvious that the demon drink is Ritchie's biggest problem. Something he himself admits: "I maintain I have never been an alcoholic, but I would concede this much: I've had my problems with alcohol."

As a Morton supporter I found it quite disheartening to read about how much he wished he left Cappielow, or in some cases, how much he regretted signing in the first place: "Had I known at the time [That Jock Stein tried to re-sign him for £170,000 weeks after letting him leave], I would have created merry hell to secure my return to full-time football." He goes on "It's difficult to explain in words how I felt about it years later. I just wish to Christ I had known it at the time."

To a neutral Ritchie's regret is understandable, but Ton fans who adored him on the terraces might feel slightly hurt to read that he now wishes he'd returned to Parkhead rather than experience the great times he did in Greenock. For this reason I found the chapter depressing reading in places. You come away feeling both sorry for Ritchie, and quite sad that it seems like a lot of his regret centres on the fact that he spent so long at Morton.

McGowan's chapter is unique in that it strips back the gloss and takes a look at the real Andy Ritchie. Not the player, but the man. If it's a glowing tribute supplemented by funny stories and anecdotes you're after then look elsewhere. But if you'd be interested to read about the man behind the myth and legend then I'd recommend this as essential reading.

Buy the book here: amazon.co.uk - Flawed Genius