Ton's chance to open up a gap

Roger Graham • Published 29 Jan 2010 14:00 0 Comments

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Morton still looking for a strike partner for Peter Weatherson.

MORTON meet Airdrie tomorrow at Cappielow in a key match in their bid to pull away from the relegation area of the First Division table.

Fresh off the back of a very important win at Stark's Park last Saturday, this is a chance to put further ground between themselves and the bottom club.

Frankly, Airdrie appear certain to go down. There has to be some sympathy for their manager, Kenny Black, who built a team for the Second Division before Livingston's demotion, due to going into administration, handed the Lanarkshire club a lifeline they had not expected.

It was a reprieve which came as something of a double-edged sword. Had they known their fate at an earlier date it undoubtedly would have affected the composition of their squad.

It is important, therefore, that Morton get full points on their own patch. Twice already this season they have beaten Airdrie. Another success tomorrow would put them 10 points above them and virtually safe from the automatic relegation spot.

United lost to Raith in midweek in the Scottish Cup and that too will have taken something from them both physically and mentally.

At the time of writing, Morton boss James Grady is still beavering away trying to re-shape his squad in the transfer window. So far Alex Walker is off to Brechin on loan, Ryan Harding has gone to East Stirlingshire and Brian Wake to Gateshead. David van Zanten opted to go to Hamilton rather than stay at Cappielow while Stevie Masterton is also available to other clubs.

Former Celtic under-19 skipper Michael Tidser is the sole arrival at Cappielow, the attempt to acquire Finnish striker Jonatan Johansson having failed. A striker remains a priority, Grady's preference being for someone with pace who can get in behind opposing back fours.

Peter Weatherson was fixed up for a further two years last week and immediately scored twice against Raith on Saturday. He has the ability to hold the ball, make it stick and bring others into play. The task is finding a partner who can complement that, but good strikers are always most in demand and thinnest on the ground.

Travelling fans got their first glimpse of Tidser, who turned 20 this month, at Kirkcaldy last week, but he was taken off in the second half, conditions not being conducive to his passing style. According to James Grady, the pitch was the worst he's seen at Stark's Park.

It will be the opposite end of the spectrum tomorrow on Mark Farrell's bowling green. The Ton groundsman has transformed Cappielow into surely the best playing surface in the country, and Tidser's ability will be given a much truer test than last week. Mark nurtures each blade of grass as if it were a favourite grandchild.

There will no doubt be the usual mad scramble over the weekend as clubs desperately try to complete incoming and outging deals before the deadline. Morton fans will be hoping some business can be accomplished. Whether it happens in time for tomorrow's kick-off remains to be seen.

Grady has said that if his side match Airdrie's commitment throughout the park they should have the added quality to win the match. It is hard to disagree with that.

Although Airdrie will not come to Cappielow to lie down, this is exactly the sort of game Morton should be winning if they truly believe their league position is misleading.

Everyone at Cappielow will be hoping last week was not another false dawn and that definite progress can start to be made.

This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 29 Jan 10

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