TEMPERATURES are slowly rising outside as spring steadily develops — and the seasonal heat is also well and truly on in the context of the League One title race.

Morton face Ayr United at Cappielow tomorrow and begin the weekend in second place, having been knocked off the top of the table by Stranraer in midweek.

Their shortlived stay in pole position may have been ended by the Blues’ narrow victory at Stirling on Tuesday evening, but in reality they only have themselves to blame for being left playing catch-up.

Having lost to Forfar in front of their own fans, Jim Duffy’s men travelled to Airdrie last Saturday looking to bounce back immediately and give a demonstration of their promotion credentials.

Instead they left empty-handed after suffering a defeat which was largely self-inflicted, two avoidable mistakes bringing their downfall.

Boss Duffy has understandably sought to publicly stick up for the men concerned this week — Lee Kilday and Ross Forbes — as he defends his squad from the criticism which followed the game.

He will now be hoping that his players will repay that show of loyalty by getting the show back on the road.

With only seven games remaining, it’s imperative that they do it sooner rather than later.

A terrific run of form had carried them through a very challenging set of fixtures and ultimately left them top of the pile.

Now all of a sudden they are under a bit of pressure.

Not only are Stranraer out in front, but Forfar are level pegging with Ton on points in third and Brechin remain around touching distance too, just four points adrift.

It’s worth noting, of course, that the situation could have been even worse.

Morton are fortunate that their rivals have been in generous mood themselves of late, dropping points here, there and everywhere.

For their own part, it must be said that the Greenock men’s own record is now under serious scrutiny, with losses running into double figures.

To be frank, this is an unflattering record for any team which is chasing a title, and a particularly unconvincing one when Morton run a full-time operation and boast a number of players who are the envy of their opponents.

With 10 defeats on the board, they can’t afford to spill many more points.

Against this backdrop, Ton now have to take on an outfit they have failed to beat so far this season. Their record against Ayr reads two defeats and one draw, leading to them being dubbed the Cappielow club’s bogey team.

Yet the Honest Men have endured a wretched season.

They replaced Mark Roberts with Ian McCall earlier in the year but he has not managed to lift them out of the bottom two.

The Honest Men are now embroiled in a fight with Stenhousemuir to avoid the prospect of a play-off and, potentially, the ignominy of falling into the fourth tier of Scottish football.

McCall’s men will be fighting for their lives when this game kicks off tomorrow and Morton need to be up for the battle if they are to get the result they need.

To do so they will have to avoid the individual mistakes which proved so costly at the Excelsior Stadium — and also get their opponents on the back foot.

They made a relatively decent start last Saturday, but it frittered away all too quickly as the game became bogged down with little in the way of openings, far less any clear-cut chances.

Aside from the defensive errors which brought the Diamonds’ goals during the second half, too many key players underperformed and the team lacked attacking fluency.

Peter MacDonald, normally such an influential figure, looked a little off the pace at times while his strike partner Declan McManus, right, had a hugely frustrating afternoon and could well have been heading for a second booking before he was eventually hooked.

The smart money would be on players of this quality to bounce back quickly and produce the type of performances everyone knows that they are capable of and which can make the telling difference.

But aside from individuals, ultimately it must be a collective enterprise of teamwork and hard graft to get Morton back to winning ways.

Everyone of a Ton persuasion will hope that this process starts tomorrow, or the anxiety levels will only intensify.

TEAM LATEST JOE McKee was due to have the stitches removed from his head gash yesterday and remains a doubt for tomorrow’s match against Ayr United.

Like the midfielder, Jon Scullion also picked up a nasty injury in an Under-20s match, suffering a severely swollen cheek at Queen of the South on Monday, and he could also miss out.

Stefan McCluskey missed training in the early part of the week due to a calf strain and will be assessed today before a decision is taken on his availability.

TRAVEL NOTES THE Gourock Tartan Army bus for Wednesday night’s friendly against Northern Ireland at Hampden Park will leave the Albert Hotel in Gourock at 6pm, with pick-ups available en-route.

The club are also taking bookings for next Sunday’s European Championship qualifier against Gibraltar at Hampden Park.

The bus will leave the Albert Hotel at 4.30pm, again with pick-ups available en-route.

All are welcome. To book a seat on either of these buses call or text Sean on 07939 898359.