JIM Duffy says Morton’s celebrations were muted despite Saturday’s huge win over Stranraer because they immediately turned their attention to the do-or-die final day match with Peterhead.

The Cappielow club beat the Blues 2-0 in Saturday’s live TV clash to move to the top of the table for the first time since mid-March.

It was a win that set up a thrilling shootout this coming Saturday when they host former manager Jim McInally’s men at Cappielow while second-paced Forfar welcome Ayr United to Station Park.

Duffy was thrilled with what he described as a terrific result but revealed there was no outpouring of joy on the field or in the privacy of dressing room afterwards either as the job is far from done.

With the title race balanced on a knife edge - the Ton and Dick Campbell’s men are both on 66 points and separated by just three goals - he insists his players’ eyes are fixed firmly on the prize.

According to the experienced boss, that unswerving mindset meant they instantly switched their focus to the big match against the Blue Toon rather than revelling in their Stair Park triumph.

Duffy told the Tele: “The match was extremely tough and extremely competitive, with two teams giving everything to try and achieve the result. Thankfully we managed to come out on top.

“We were delighted with the result, but I ushered the players in after the match. It was important to win the match but there’s another game to come.

“I wanted to try and make sure they understood that it was important to get three points but that it doesn’t decide anything.

“We spoke before the game about trying to make sure we gave ourselves a chance, because the Forfar game was finished and we knew they had won the match and scored some goals.

“So in effect we started as we finished really in that we were in the same position with Forfar as we were before the game.

“So it wasn’t a case of saying anything to the players other than making sure we stayed focused for next week.

“It was a terrific result but it was quite calm in the dressing room after it. It was just like a normal win because that’s what it was: a normal win.

“It was an important win but it didn’t decide anything, so it wasn’t a case of people getting carried away or anything like that.

“It was just a case of winning the game, being pleased about, enjoying it in the same way you do any win and getting ready to head home.

“That’s what we did. We didn’t think too much about it, we didn’t speak too much about it. We now look to next week and begin our preparations for that.” The Ton boss was particularly pleased with the way his young side stood up to be counted on the big occasion at a difficult venue.

He added: “It was a highly competitive match and a match where there were going to be opportunities and it was about who took their chances, because both of us were going for the win.

“Obviously Stranraer came out the blocks a bit quicker and really got us penned in a little bit in the first 10 minutes. Derek Gaston made a great save in the early part of the match from a set-piece.

“But after 20 minutes I felt we settled into the game and once we did that and managed to get a grip of the game a wee bit, I felt we played pretty well after that.

“From half an hour on, we started to relax and play to the levels we know we can play. In that period we managed to get a couple of goals.

“In the second half, although there were a lot of balls getting thrown in and around our box, there wasn’t really a clear-cut chance for Stranraer and we had two or three going the other way.

“That could have maybe made life a wee bit easier for us, but it was a terrific clean sheet. We kept it tight and in general defended very well. Overall we were just delighted to get the win.”