MORTON have more than trebled their investment in Cappielow to over £80,000 ahead of the eagerly-anticipated Championship season.

Stadium director Crawford Rae revealed that even more money than planned is being ploughed into the Sinclair Street ground in preparation for the arrival of large travelling supports from the likes of Rangers, Hibernian and Renfrewshire rivals St Mirren.

The planned investment to date is in excess of £81,000 and includes major repairs to the Wee Dublin End away section, upgrades to hospitality suites and additional work on groundsman Mark Farrell’s award-winning pitch.

Earlier this month, Rae estimated a spend of £25,000 on upgrades during the off-season.

But that figure looks set to be eclipsed as the club gets set to welcome larger than usual home and away supports.

Rae told the Tele: “As everyone knows we have an ageing stadium, however we are investing in extensive upgrades which includes completion of a new laundry area, Wee Dublin End stairways and toilet upgrades, replacing the old iron gates, sections of the main stand frontage being replaced to name a few.

“And if anyone hasn’t walked into the Sinclair Street entrance lately, come and walk past the McTear’s champions celebration montage and then eyeball the renovated playing surface which, having received its end of season renovation, is starting to look better than ever and really gets the hairs on the back of your neck standing up.” Around £15,000 is being spent on the dilapidated toilets behind the Wee Dublin End — which the stadium chief reckons have been hardly used in the years his family have been at the club. A further £10,500 is being spent at the end of the ground on repairs to the stairs, the gates and in sections F and G of the Main Stand.