MARK Russell wants to make up for last season’s Scottish Cup shock at Spartans by going on a run in this season’s competition.

Morton travel through to Coatbridge to face League Two champions Albion Rovers in today’s third round tie, weather permitting.

Left-back Russell started against the Lowland League side last term and was subbed off with the score tied at 1-1.

The Ainslie Park outfit scored a 90th-minute winner to spring one of the upsets of that year’s competition, and leave the likes of the 19-year-old Ton defender red faced.

But Russell is using that Spartans defeat as a spur this term, as well as a reminder that the Ton cannot afford to treat Albion Rovers lightly this afternoon.

He told the Tele: “I’m definitely looking forward to the cup game today, especially after last year when we got put out off Spartans. After that … hopefully we can get a wee run.

“That was one of my worst experiences in football. We were winning and they came back, so it was brilliant for them, but it was embarrassing for us. We are a professional team expected to go there and win, and then to get beat...so hopefully we can do well in this season’s competition.

“That’s the plan. Obviously we had a wee run to the quarter-finals in the League Cup and that was decent, so we’re aiming for another one.

“But Albion Rovers will be a decent team. I obviously look at League One to see how teams are doing after playing in that league and realising how tough it was last year, and they are doing well.

“They drew 1-1 with Dunfermline last weekend. Dunfermline are obviously going for the league [title] and Albion Rovers have just come up, so they seem to be doing alright.”

Morton come into today’s cup tie off the back of a 1-1 draw of their own, having shared the spoils in last Friday’s Renfrewshire derby against St Mirren. It was Paisley-born Russell’s first time playing in front of his hometown crowd in a competitive outing, and he admitted to feeling nervous in the early part of the match.

He explained: “It was the first time I’d played a proper game there and I was a bit nervous to start with, to be honest. All my pals were texting me during the week and that. Some were in the home end — a lot of the boys I went to school with and played football with are St Mirren fans.

“But some of my other pals I used to go to Rangers games with sat in the Morton end. They come to some of the games at Cappielow.

“So I was a wee bit nervous, but as the game went on I settled down. I got the ball down and started to put crosses in, and it felt like a normal game then.

“I thought we were the better team overall and created a lot more chances, especially in the second half.

“In the first half I thought we were alright, but not at our best, not our usual self. But in the second half we came into it and got the goal. We could even have won it.”

Russell also faced up to one of his Paisley pals on the park that night in talented St Mirren midfielder Stephen Mallan. The pair were actually involved in a flashpoint when Mallan went through the back of Russell with a terrible tackle on 41 minutes.

Referee John Beaton rushed to the scene of the incident as if to show a red card but eventually booked the Saints man, and it was a decision Russell agreed with.

He said: “I’ve seen it back and it was a bad tackle, but it wasn’t a sore one and wasn’t as bad as it looked even though my sock was ripped.

“I’m actually quite pally with Stevie Mallan. We had a mutual friend and became friends through that, so we had a laugh about it after.

“He came up to me at half-time and apologised and then I was speaking to him after the game as well. He’s not a dirty player and said he didn’t mean it, that he was going for the ball. I didn’t really think it should have been a red card.”