IF Morton eventually find themselves celebrating League One title success in May, this match and more specifically the outcome will surely be a reference point in the season.

It was the quintessential ‘six pointer’ – a crunch top of the table clash between two sides separated by four points.

Lose and second-placed Ton would slip seven points off pace-setters Stranraer and leave their championship hopes hanging by a thread.

Win and the gap was narrowed to a solitary point, leaving a part-time Blues side looking nervously over their shoulder as the campaign moved into the final third.

And goals from Declan McManus and Mark Russell right at the end of both halves saw Jim Duffy’s men claim three points of paramount importance.

The significance of the occasion was tangible. There was real a buzz about the ground prior to kick-off, a feeling in the air that just isn’t replicated on every other match day.

There was also an unerring confidence as I entered the stadium and encountered all of the unsung heroes who lend a hand at Cappielow every week come rain or shine on the way to the press bench.

From ball boy supervisor Elizabeth Irvine, programme and 50/50 co-ordinator Alistair Wylie, and main stand regulars, everyone appeared to be brimming with positivity about the match to come.

However, that might well have dissipated a little as Stevie Aitken’s side showed why they are straddling the summit so far into the season in the early stages.

With just two minutes on the clock, Jamie Longworth teed up Chris Aitken for a dipping volley that had Derek Gaston scrambling to his right to save and then gathering at the second attempt.

Ton responded instantly with McManus getting on the end of Gaston’s huge punt before lofting an ambitious lob over the top from wide on the left.

Gaston was back in the thick of things on nine minutes when Willie Gibson whipped a free-kick over the wall from 20 yards.

The home custodian wasn’t quite at his assured best, though, and awkwardly spilled at first before again taking at the second time of asking.

Some slick passages of play offered encouragement for the Greenock men, with Jamie McCluskey an influential force as he looked to get on the ball and direct traffic.

But Stranraer were more assured and really began to take the game by the scruff of the neck around the 20-minute mark.

It was then that Grant Gallagher tested Gaston with an angled drive from the right-hand side of the box, but the big shot-stopper claimed comfortably on this occasion.

Just as he did six minutes later when clever combination play ended with the Stranraer No7 firing straight down his throat from a central position.

By this juncture, a nervy home side were struggling to string a move together as Stranraer regularly got a crucial foot in to cut out passes or made well-timed interceptions to regain possession.

And they could count themselves lucky to survive when one such incident saw striker Jon McShane burst clear down the inside left after Conor Pepper conceded possession.

Crucially, the former St Mirren striker failed to make proper use of the overload by ignoring other options and bending the ball wide of the right-hand post from the edge of the box.

It was perhaps the best opportunity of their most dominant spell and likely one they would come to rue as Duffy’s men began to settle towards the end of the half.

They might well have taken the lead on 36 minutes had Ross Caldwell not snatched at a chance from an acute angle following a clever McManus pass and his own intelligent piece of skill to work space.

It was an opportunity of their own making, but when they eventually broke the deadlock in the 44th minute, it came as a result of a slip by the normally unshakeable Stranraer defence.

Before the match, Duffy had pinpointed the need to ruthlessly take advantage of any unforced errors, as it was something he didn’t expect to see from the opposition.

And his comments seemed prophetic as Jackson Longridge failed to deal with Pepper’s prodded pass between defenders.

The hesitation gave Caldwell the glimpse he needed.

The hitman seized on the indecision, beating keeper David Mitchell to the ball in the nick of time to square for strike partner McManus.

It was the simplest goal loan star McManus is every likely to score, and he duly tapped into the empty net to claim the first goal of his second spell and his 13th in total.

Not only was it incredibly important to score the first goal in such a tense and tight encounter, the timing of it was incredibly significant, coming as it did right on half-time.

And Ton might well have scored with 20 seconds of the restart when Sean Crighton picked out McManus with a searching pass.

The hitman had just Mitchell to beat but saw his clipped effort drift narrowly wide after what appeared to be a touch from the visiting keeper.

Much to his frustration a goal kick was awarded.

Stevie Aitken’s table toppers enjoyed a lot of territorial control in the second half but found Jim Duffy’s defence a tough nut to crack, with Ricki Lamie and Crighton both rocks at the back.

They repelled almost everything the table toppers had to throw at them, particularly as the game edged towards its conclusion and their route to goal became increasingly direct.

In fact, for all their pressure in the second half, they only had one real noteworthy shot on target in the whole second half.

It was, however, an excellent effort from Aitken. After receiving a break of the ball on the edge of the box, the experienced midfield man unleashed a searing half volley.

This was the kind of effort he would showcase, on occasion, during his second spell as a Morton player between 2001 and 2003.

The ball seemed destined to drop inside the far post until Gaston propelled his considerable frame across the line to claw the ball clear.

It was a massive contribution from the reliable custodian.

Other than that, Gallagher skewed a header wide on the stretch while sub Craig Malcolm sent a cross-cum-shot into Gaston’s midriff from wide on the right.

To their immense credit, Ton never looked like conceding to a side that had only failed to net on three other occasions on league duty this season On the contrary, they looked the side more likely to actually score and they went close on three separate occasions.

Attacking an inswinging corner from the hugely impressive Ross Forbes at the near post, local lad Crighton sent a glancing header narrowly over the top and onto the roof of the net on 69 minutes.

Another massive route-one clearance from Gaston to McManus almost bore fruit on 82 minutes after the two earlier attempts.

The wiry frontman did superbly well to take the ball in and hold it up while under pressure from imposing centre-half Frank McKeown.

This allowed support to arrive in the shape of Caldwell.

McManus pushed into the path of his onrushing partner, but Caldwell couldn’t make it count as he seemed to lose his footing as he shanked his shot wide of the goal on the slide.

But the Ton wrapped up a vital victory in injury time after subs Stefan McCluskey and Joe McKee combined down the left.

The pair seemed content to play out time, but teenage left-back Mark Russell had other ideas and ignored his manager’s instructions to sit back and instead charge forward to get involved.

He was coolness personified as he demanded a pass inside from McKee then nonchalantly waltzed inside a challenge on his way into the middle of the box before rifling through Mitchell’s legs.

The teenager’s goal prompted an outpouring of emotion from all sections of the home support as a palpable bank of pent-up tension dissipated in an instant.

Although it wasn’t exactly a vintage attacking performance from the hosts, it was certainly a resilient and hardworking display characterised by some heroic home defending.

And when all is said and done, this was a match that was all about the result.

Claiming these three points which could well prove amongst the most precious Morton will pick up of the course of this season.