Match report: Morton 1 Dundee United 4

(Muirhead, 62)       (Docherty, 20, Middleton, 23, Moult, 51, Watt, 58).

MORTON endured a night of misery as the unravelling of their season escalated with a 4-1 home mauling at the hands of Dundee United.

On a night punctuated by torrential showers, it was raining goals for the visitors from Tayside as they took a giant stride towards the Championship title, capitalising on some abject defending from their opponents.

You feared the worst for the battle-weary Greenock men going into a clash against the league leaders which was their third game inside a week.

The fact they were facing a buoyant United side which had finally found its groove only added to the sense of trepidation, and when news filtered through pre-match that Ton would be without injured striker George Oakley the mood darkened just the like the weather.

Aside from that enforced alteration up top, with Jai Quitongo coming into the attack, manager Dougie Imrie also made changes in defence, with Calum Waters dropping to the bench.

In came Darragh O'Connor, who was deployed on the right of a back four with Tyler French shuttled over to left back, and in midfield Iain Wilson made his first start in over a month since his injury, at the expense of captain Grant Gillespie.

Michael Garrity, who had set up Ton's goal in the midweek draw at Ayr, also dropped out of the team with veteran midfielder Alan Power drafted back into the engine room.

Jim Goodwin's visitors meanwhile had the luxury of naming an almost-unchanged starting eleven, with former Ton player of the year Liam Grimshaw brought in at right back to add more physical presence.

It would not be long before the settled look of United's line-up would begin to tell.

After a fairly even and uneventful first 15 minutes or so, the visitors were soon looking the more energetic and composed of the two sides as they began probing for an opener.

Jack Baird had to look lively to get an excellent block in to thwart Tony Watt and from the resultant corner kick the giant Ross Graham headed wide.

But the breakthrough was only a few minutes away.

Ton conceded a free-kick around 25 yards out and after Louis Moult's shot was blocked by the wall, Grimshaw sent over a deep cross which United captain Ross Docherty - who had too easily given Power the slip - rose highest to meet.

He planted a firm header back across goal and beyond the outstretched arms of the diving Ryan Mullen to break the deadlock.

Just four minutes later the men from Tannadice doubled their money.

Glenn Middleton picked up possession on the right and drove with purpose towards the Morton box, exchanging passes with Kai Fotheringham, who ran straight into a desperate block by O'Connor.

With the Ton defence at sixes and sevens, the ball fell to Tony Watt whose shot ricocheted into the path of Middleton just seven yards out, and he gleefully rattled a left-footed strike past Mullen.

After less than half an hour Morton were looking all at sea against a rampant United attack and staring a pasting in the face.

However they managed to steady the ship somewhat in the wake of that rapid double blow.

Wilson, one of the few players in the home side who looked comfortable on the ball, saw a shot from just outside the box deflected away for a corner, giving a bit of respite and offering a silenced and shellshocked Cowshed some encouragement.

From the cleared set piece the ball was worked wide to Cameron Blues on the right, who played a tantalising low ball across the face of goal which was begging to be knocked into the net.

Much to his frustration, none of his team-mates had the instinct to gamble and make a front post run, allowing the visitors' Craig Sibbald to nick in first.

He cleared decisively and the danger was gone.

As Ton finally looked like growing into the proceedings they fashioned another opening when the ball broke to Robbie Muirhead on the edge of the box.

Ton's top scorer took a touch and cracked in a low left foot shot which fizzed just wide of Jack Walton's near post.

Play immediately swung to the other end and Mullen grasped a shot from the dangerous Watt as the Tangerines tried to put the squeeze on.

There was controversy a few minutes later when Quitongo burst down the inside left channel and went tumbling down with Sam McClelland in close attendance.

But referee Graham Grainger was having none of it and ran straight up to the grounded player before brandishing a yellow card at him for simulation.

It was the first real flashpoint in a game which from a Morton perspective had been a damp squib, with the visitors well on top and keeping them strangely subdued.

Facing a mountain to climb, Imrie's men returned for the second half with Garrity on for Wilson as they sought to find a way back into the game.

But things were to go from bad to worse.

They managed only five minutes before they were breached again, with some truly dreadful defending proving costly.

A hopeful header over the top somehow found Kai Fotheringham inside the box, and while he was fully alert, the Ton defence dithered fatally.

Despite having three defenders around him, he was allowed to lay the ball off to Sibbald, whose sclaffed shot fell kindly for the waiting Moult - lurking in splendid isolation at the back post - to fire high into the net for his fourth goal in four games against the Greenock outfit.

There was almost an immediate riposte from the hosts, with O'Connor sending a header just wide from Blues's cross, before an unseemly melee at the other end of the park led to yellow cards for Kirk Broadfoot and Graham.

The referee was again centre stage moments later when Quitongo surged into United's box and appeared to be taken down by Sibbald, but his strong spot-kick claims were denied, much to his fury and that of Imrie on the sidelines.

Salt was rubbed in the wounds less than a minute later as United extended their advantage - and if the third goal had been a poor one to concede, the fourth was a fiasco.

With 56 minutes on the clock, Baird was caught out horribly just short of the halfway line, ruthlessly ransacked by Watt who had all the time in the world to stride forward and slot a low shot past the helpless Mullen.

Mercifully for Morton the final goal of the game - albeit a scant consolation - would fall to them, with Muirhead producing a smart right-footed finish 62 minutes in after Garrity's inswinging cross had caused problems in United's box.

Imrie sent on subs Waters, Gillespie, Lewis McGrattan and Jack Bearne for Power, Quitongo, French and Robbie Crawford and his side battled manfully to to try and make the scoreline a bit more respectable.

They should have pulled it back to 4-2 when clever and unselfish play by Muirhead laid a chance on a plate for McGrattan, but his shot lacked conviction and was palmed away by Walton.

Muirhead came close himself in the dying embers when he neatly sidestepped two United defenders on the edge of the box and stabbed in a low shot which whistled just wide of the upright.

In truth it would have put a false complexion on things as Goodwin's men were worthy of their wide winning margin as they close in on promotion back to the Premiership.

For an increasingly-leggy looking Ton, the only consolation they have is that there is no midweek game to come and on Saturday they will be playing the team at the bottom of the league rather than top.

Irrespective of that, they will have to do a lot better than this lamentable display if they want to ensure safety and salvage a bit of pride before the season ends.

MORTON (4-2-3-1): Mullen, O'Connor, Baird, Broadfoot, French (Waters, 62), Power (Gillespie, 62), Wilson (Garrity, 45), Blues, Crawford (Bearne, 76,), Quitongo (McGrattan, 62), Muirhead. Sub not used: Murdoch. Bookings - Broadfoot, Waters, Quitongo.

DUNDEE UNITED (4-2-3-1): Walton, Grimshaw, McClelland, Graham, McMann, Docherty (Wotherspoon, 82), Sibbald, Fotheringham (Thomson, 82), Watt, Middleton, Moult (Tillson, 64). Subs not used: Newman, Meekison, Mochrie, Macleod, Cudjoe, Harding. Bookings - Graham.

Referee: Graham Grainger.

Attendance: 2,423.

TON STAR MAN: Robbie Muirhead had to lead the line on what was a very difficult night for the team, he took his 17th goal of the season well, came close to netting a second and also laid a chance on a plate which Lewis McGrattan should've buried.