Morton face tough test against table-toppers Dundee United

This will be the Greenock side's third game in less than a week and the punishing schedule they have had over recent times looks to have caught up with them.

To all intents and purposes, their bid for a place in promotion play-offs is finished with four games of the season left.

It might not be an arithmetical certainty just yet but it seems all over bar the shouting, and that must be a huge disappointment for the players and manager.

When they defeated Airdrie 2-1 at Cappielow back on February 24 everything in the garden was looking rosy.

That result left them seven points clear in fourth place and just a couple of points behind Partick in third.

Just a couple of days later they took their unbeaten run to 16 games with a dogged 0-0 draw away to Raith Rovers, but since then they have hit the wall.

Injuries, exhaustion and collective and individual loss of form have all combined and taken their toll, killing off Ton's hopes of making the top four.

They have been overhauled by both Dunfermline and Airdrie and now sit seven points adrift of the last play-off slot with only 12 left to play for.

Their attention must now turn to ensuring that their season doesn't disintegrate by tumbling down the table.

First and foremost, the middle to lower end of the division is so tightly packed that they still need a few more points to be assured that they do not end up dragged back into the fight to avoid ninth place and the spectre of a League One play-off.

There is also an important financial incentive at stake to that, as the higher Ton can finish in the table the more prize money they will secure, and that will have a bearing on the manager's budget for next season.

With many of the players going out of contract and a good few of them likely to move on, a summer rebuild is looming and every penny counts if Ton are to try and improve their stock.

For the players individually, they are also effectively playing for new deals either here and elsewhere and will not want to see things meekly peter out after a rollercoaster season.

Tonight will be Ton's penultimate home game of the campaign and it couldn't be tougher with the league leaders arriving fired up.

It's taken them a while to click into gear but United, at long last, look like confirming their pre-season status as clear title favourites.

For most of this season they have been somewhat unconvincing but it seems like they have peaked at the right time, defeating nearest rivals Raith in a top of the table showdown and following up by battering Queen's Park 5-0.

Jim Goodwin's men have a chance to extend their lead at the summit to seven points tonight, and that would be a huge step towards promotion back to the top flight at the first time of asking.

They've had a bit of a trouble dealing with Ton this season, drawing and losing to them at Tannadice before grinding their way to a narrow 1-0 win at Cappielow last month.

In recent times Morton have looked a pale imitation of the team that produced that magnificent 3-2 win on Tayside at the start of the year and they face a tall order to get something out of this evening's game.

But they really could be doing with even picking up a point, with Ayr United breathing down their neck in seventh spot.

Scott Brown's men face divisional whipping boys Arbroath this weekend, with every likelihood that they will collect three points from that game.

With that in mind it was important that Ton avoided defeat from their trip to Somerset Park on Tuesday night, and they managed to do so.

The 1-1 draw was a dour spectacle that will not live long in the memory.

There was plenty of honest endeavour from both teams on a blustery night down on the Ayrshire coast but precious little in the way of any quality.

The game illustrated why the two teams find themselves on the outside looking in at the business end of the campaign, as they huffed and puffed and cancelled each other out.

For Ton the plus point was that it was a much-improved showing from their error strewn weekend loss against Airdrie, and they also welcomed midfielder Iain Wilson back from injury as a second half sub.

Ton pressed their opponents well in the first half and had the better of things until they conceded just before half-time.

After that they seemed to run out of steam and ideas and a share of the spoils was a good outcome for them in the end, especially with the Honest Men rattling the woodwork as they searched for a winner.

The quick turnaround to tonight's fixture is obviously unkind, but Imrie's squad always give their all and will grit their teeth as they try and raise their game to defy the formbook.