JIM Duffy has warned his Morton players that Forfar Athletic will provide just as stern an examination of their character as Peterhead did — if not more so.

The Ton walked away from Balmoor with all three points after a bruising 90 minutes against a very physical and direct Blue Toon side last Saturday.

They journey up the east coast again tomorrow to face Dick Campbell’s Forfar in what will be the third away game in their first four league fixtures.

The Loons have already shown that they are no mugs on home turf by beating pre-season title favourites Dunfermline a fortnight ago.

Although he expects a slightly different style of game, Duffy believes tomorrow’s Station Park clash promises to be as equally challenging a contest as his side’s last league outing against Peterhead.

He told the Tele: “It’s another extremely tough away match. Dick Campbell’s sides are always hard working — but they can also play.

“I think Dick gets a bad reputation because he’s not a flamboyant guy out shouting from the rooftops.

“But he does a very good job. I don’t know how many promotions he’s had, but he’s got a few. That tells you something.

“You don’t win promotions with teams that are only organised.

“Dick’s a guy I’ve known for over 20 years and who I’ve got a lot of respect for. His teams are always competitive — you’ll know you’re in a game — but they play as well. They’ll get the ball down and pass it. They have experience in Rab Douglas, Darren Dods, Derek Young, and Chris Templeman, but they also have the likes of Dale Hilson and Gavin Swankie who are terrific players.

“I’m sure Dick feels he has a team capable of challenging for promotion.

“We are aware of the players Forfar have but we have to look at ourselves.

“Each manager has to look at his own team and, for me, it’s about how we approach the game. If we play to our best then I feel we can be confident of getting the result.

“This match will be similar to the Peterhead game in the sense that it will be really close and really tough.

“I don’t think anybody goes to Forfar and comes back with a comfortable win. I can’t remember the last time anyone went to Forfar and strolled a game — that just doesn’t happen.

“We’re certainly not expecting anything other than an extremely tough match. I’ll be surprised if it’s not very close, and again it could go right to the last few minutes.

“As a group, we’ve gotten to know each other and given ourselves a platform with recent performances, now we need maintain consistency.

“We’ve got to go to places like Forfar and be there well in advance in your mind, knowing what to expect and how to cope with it.

“You can’t realise at 20 past three that you’re in a tough game.

“Over the past few days we’ve been getting inside the players’ heads and letting them know that when we go up there it will be as tough a match as it was against Peterhead, if not tougher.” The fixture is Morton’s fifth in the space of 14 days, but Duffy reckons his young side will be unaffected by the schedule.

In fact, the Ton boss believes that the largely encouraging run of results achieved will have had a positive effect going into tomorrow’s match.

He added: “Obviously, it’s our fifth match in a short period of time.

“Anybody who plays football will tell you that sometimes that wee bit of sharpness goes if you play a lot of games in quick succession.

“Don’t get me wrong, it’s good to be involved in these cup matches — and we have a young team so there will be no issues with the fitness aspect of things.

“We can also use the recent performances, not just against Partick Thistle, but going up to Peterhead and winning, and the way we played in extra-time against Berwick, as a springboard.

“The players have been doing well and working hard, and if they continue with the same attitude up at Forfar then we can come back with some points.”