The Ton host rivals St Mirren at Cappielow tonight in what will be the first league meeting between the clubs in 15 years. As a no-nonsense defender, Duffy turned out against the Paisley outfit 11 times over the course of his four seasons in Greenock and fully embraced all facets of the fiercely contested fixture.

As a manager the 56-year-old says he must now detach himself from the occasion, but he is also fully aware that for players and supporters anticipation will be at fever pitch come kick-off time.

He told the Tele: “We understand the importance of the derby to the supporters.

“I’ve been involved in many of them over the years in various places, including Morton–St Mirren when I was a player.

“This is the type of game that if you’re a footballer you want to play in. I loved the derbies that I played in, it was brilliant.

“You’re desperate for the first whistle, for the match to start. Everything is half a yard quicker, you get less time on the ball, the tackles are tougher, every header was met with more aggression.

“If you went in for a tackle, it was a must-win tackle because you had to show the supporters what it meant to you.

“But it’s more for the players and the fans. Managers just have to prepare the team and can’t be thinking about how long it’s been since the teams played or what’s at stake.

“You just have to keep it in perspective, in terms of what you can achieve is the same as any other game — but that’s not to underplay it. This match is different.

“You want to put one over on your big rivals. All over the world, the derby is the fixture the fans look forward to the most; it’s the one they’re itching to see.

“[When the fixture list was drawn up] Morton fans don’t look at it and ask: ‘When do we play Rangers?’ They ask: ‘When do we play St Mirren?’ “There’s a more intense atmosphere, there’s an intensity about the tempo of the game, particularly the first 20 minutes of the game.

“It tends to fly by and it almost seems like you snap your fingers and it’s 20 minutes gone. When you’re playing in them you can’t get a breath.

“And having not played each other [in the league] for such a long time, I’m sure the players will be trying to make their mark in terms of how they impose themselves.

“If you’re the guy that scores the goal, you become an instant favourite; if you’re the person that concedes the goal, you’re the villain. It’s maybe unfair but that happens.

“In terms of the result, both teams are obviously desperate to win and we’ll be as determined to do so as we possibly can be.

“If we could manage to beat St Mirren, who we’ve got to remember were two divisions above us until a couple of months ago, it gives everyone belief we are heading in the right direction.

“Fantastic if you can manage to do it, but if you don’t win you also can’t exaggerate it or lose faith in what you’re trying to do.” Duffy doesn’t have any standout memories of the matches but recalls the way certain team-mates rose to the occasion.

He explained: “The good players stood out in those games. They had the calmness and awareness to make the difference at times.

“Jim Holmes would go and nutmeg somebody and go on a wee dribble, and I’d be like ‘Come on, you’re a full-back, stick it in the channel’.

“Or Casper [Jim Rooney] would make a wee joke about something, and it would get me thinking I was too intense. I’m like piano wire and he’s joking.

“Andy [Ritchie] has had enough waxed lyrical about him over the years to know that everybody could be running about at 100mph and he’s just put his foot on the ball, hit a shot or switch and took the game to a different dimension.

“When I look back these were the guys who stood out. Not always the guys who caught the fans’ eyes, because these are moments in games I’m talking about.

“They were important moments that showed calmness and authority during an intense game in a derby atmosphere.

“Whereas, I would get caught up in it, wanting to win every tackle, every header, and got a bit uptight about the whole thing.

“But the more you play in them, the more relaxed you are during them. By the time I went to Dundee, I always felt a bit more relaxed because I’d learned from my time at Morton.” In terms of his current squad, only Peter MacDonald and Michael Tidser, who misses out through injury, have experienced a truly competitive Renfrewshire derby.

Duffy admits nothing can fully prepare the uninitiated for the experience, but he hopes playing in front of 8,923 fans at Hibs will have given them some insight into the big occasion.

He added: “I don’t think there’s any way for the players to know what to expect. Obviously the biggest crowd we played in front of last season was 6,000 people against Peterhead. I think the Hibs game last week will help the players because there were almost 9,000 people there in a big stadium in a big match.

“They acquitted themselves really well, so I’m hoping that recent experience will be beneficial, because unless you’ve been there you don’t know how you’ll deal with the vocal atmosphere.

“Looking at the two squads, there are some experienced players dotted about, but there aren’t too many, so it will be interesting to see how the teams deal with the occasion and sink or swim.

“It will be all about how quickly they can adjust during the game, and the quicker they can adjust the better they will settle and hopefully go on and perform to the best of their ability.”