JIM Duffy says Morton need to be more thoughtful in their final ball as they aim to improve upon their attacking play away at Annan Athletic tomorrow.

The Ton have been ineffective going forward in recent weeks, drawing a blank in four of their last five outings — including the abandoned match at Alloa — whilst scoring just once.

After struggling to test Hibs goalkeeper Mark Oxley on Tuesday, Duffy pinpointed their decision making in the final third as a problem that has haunted them this term.

The frustrated Cappielow gaffer has been pleased with their organisation and work ethic but feels they must be far more effective going forward to take their game to the next level.

He told the Tele: “The final ball was our weakness against Hibs. It has been all season really and it’s continued to haunt us a little bit. We get into some good positions but pick the wrong option time and time again. When we attack we need to attack with more thoughtfulness.

“It’s almost like we run as quick as we can and into a brick wall rather than run quickly and calm down, have a 20-yard burst and then put your foot on the ball and see what options are available.

“The last two games have been difficult because obviously the opposition have had the lion’s share of the ball and that’s left us in too much of a hurry.

“Against Hibs, with anything that went into the box, they either got players round it or we once again picked the wrong option.

“We were laying balls off that were slightly behind someone, slightly to the side of someone … it was never set up to go and have a strike at goal.

“That part of our game is definitely the most frustrating part, and that’s something we’ll continue to work on because we need to be significantly better in it.

“We have got to understand where we are and where we’re trying to go to and what we need to improve on. Where we are is a side who are organised, have tremendous commitment, fantastic work ethic and a real desire to improve.

“And where we want to go to is to have that same structure about the team but add something to our play in the final third, and that will take a bit more time.”

It is something Duffy will continue to work upon in training but he insists it is not a case of waving a magic wand. 

According to the Ton boss, the process will require his young attackers to grow and learn from match situations as they get more games under their belt at Championship level.

He added: “You can work on a dozen routines at training, linking up the play and passing it back, but when you do that it’s static.

“You can put defenders in, but they’re not going to go in and clatter somebody like in a match, and in a match situation there’s more tension. In training if you get a chance there’s a calmness about you because it’s a training routine.

“It doesn’t matter how realistic you try to make it, it’s still a training routine.

“In a match, if you don’t take advantage of a chance it can be the difference between winning or losing, particularly in a tight game like Tuesday.

“But you’ve just got to keep working at it and there’s no magic formula. If there was a formula in a book or a coaching manual every manager would be using it.

“It would be easy then, but there isn’t a formula. The solution is to keep getting into those areas and keep asking the questions.

“Our strikers are young. Denny [Johnstone] is 21, Declan [McManus] is 21 and Alex [Samuel] is 20 — they’re young and they’ve just got to keep working on it.

“Those players have got some tremendous assets but what they’ve not got is experience and game knowledge. They’ve got to learn that part of it and that takes time.”

A trip to face League Two opponents Annan for tomorrow’s Scottish Cup tie might appear like the ideal opportunity to get amongst the goals on the face of it.

But the Galabankies have proven they are no pushovers by recording the shock of the fourth round when they trounced top-flight Hamilton Accies 4-1 last month.

Duffy added: “They had a great result in the last round, phenomenal, and probably the result of the round even with Linlithgow Rose winning [at Forfar].

“Then they had a great result last week against Elgin City who are top of the league.

"They scored four goals in both of those games, so it shows they are a real threat going forward on their own park.

“It will be a different kind of test for us from the last couple of games. In those we’ve had to be very disciplined and orgnanised against Rangers and Hibs.

“This will be the first time we’ve been favourites to win a game for a number of weeks, but football isn’t as simple as being in a higher division. We’ve played against teams with huge resources in recent weeks and we’ve made it very difficult for them.

“A team who’re organised can do that, and I know Jim Chapman very well and he’ll be very organised. He will have done his homework and I’m under no illusions it will be a tough match.”

A victory would see Ton progress to the quarter-finals of the Scottish Cup for the first time since 1999, but Duffy has instructed his players to put any thoughts of the final eight to the side.

He explained: “You just go and try and win the game whether it’s the first round, second round, third round ...

“I think when you get as far as the semi- final then it becomes something and that’s the reason why you get so many nervy semi-finals with a place in the final at stake.

“Up until then you look at the next round of the cup and that’s all it is. For us we want to try and get back to winning ways.

“The next game gives us the chance to try and do that without concerning ourselves too much with where it takes us.”