Scottish Cup quarter final: Morton memories to last lifetime

In a season that promised so much from the outset Imrie, alongside his players, staff and the fans in and around Cappielow have been to hell and back as they’ve watched their side fall to basement dwellers belittled with injuries to play-off contenders with an outside chance of catching Raith Rovers and Dundee United.

But here have been several moments that have stood out to many over the course of the season and some of these are fitting to what Dougie Imrie and his side are all about.

Morton 2, St Mirren 0

Pre season This friendly at the start of the season was a sign of what could’ve been about to come in the season ahead.

The summer off season was a time that many thought would be a time for the club to kick on following last season’s heart breaking play-off outcome.

Instead, the off season brought turbulence and a worrying lack of numbers as Dougie Imrie looked to fill his squad out.

But when 4,000 fans turned out at Cappielow for this pre-season fixture, that brought an end to a disrupted warm-up schedule. It was a sign that times were changing on Sinclair Street.

A new look Ton side put Stephen Robinson’s side to the sword with a bunch of kids, trialists looking to make their way in the game and a TikTok star looking to achieve every kid in the country’s dream.

A Robbie Muirhead spot kick was followed up by a great Lewis McGrattan finish, moments after he’d initially won the penalty.

It was a sign that Imrie’s men, even at half the strength that they were initially intended to be, were a match for anyone in the land, even as lofty as fourth in the Premiership.

Dundee United 1, Morton 1 - cinch Championship

Morton headed to Tannadice down on their luck and in a worrying slump of three straight league defeats where they’d conceded at least three goals in each of those games against Arbroath, Partick Thistle and Raith Rovers.

The week before had seen Ton just scrape past League Two basement dwellers Elgin City, but only just.

They headed up to Tayside without key men such as George Oakley, Jai Quitongo, with doubts surrounding Robbie Crawford recently fit again Jack Baird and that was before they had to deal losing experienced custodian Jamie MacDonald at half time.

Despite Louis Moult’s early glancing header, Ton were more than a match for the side much-fancied to go back up to the Premiership at the first time of asking.

But you could hear the Benny Hill theme tune coming from the tannoys of Den’s Park when Declan Gallagher had a horrid breakdown in communications with stopper Jack Walton, heading the ball under the onrushing keeper and allowing Robbie Muirhead to hammer the ball home from a few yards out.

It was a sign that things were changing and that the never-say-die attitude in the squad was still there to see.

Ayr United 0, Morton 1 - cinch Championship

In hindsight, the Rangers cup tie might have majorly benefitted the Cappielow coffers, but it was a game that came way too soon for a group of players who were down to the bare bones with injuries.

They then went on a run that saw them go without a win in the league from the beginning of August until the end of October.

When they opened the second quarter of the season, it was beginning to look like they were having to win games just to salvage the gap that was developing between Inverness, themselves and the top eight.

They headed to Somerset Park looking to just not lose, but not many could have envisaged what was about to happen on this autumn afternoon.

An inspired substitution from Dougie Imrie saw Lewis McGrattan win a free kick in a promising position and what happened next was like something out of a movie.

Ex-Killie man Alan Power delivered a delicious cross deep into the area for one-time Rugby Park striker George Oakley to muscle his way past Sean McGinty and power the ball past Charlie Albinson to salvage a last minute win in Ayrshire and the scenes that followed showed just how together this squad and the fans were in making things right.

Arbroath 1, Morton 2 - cinch Championship

December came around with Morton languishing four points adrift at the bottom of the table and since their win at Ayr, they slumped below Inverness in the table after three consecutive 2-1 defeats.

A much needed cup break saw Ton lose out in the SPFL Trust Trophy quarter final on penalties before disposing of Bo’ness United at Cappielow.

But there was a monkey lingering on the back of much of Dougie Imrie’s side. The Ton boss and majority of his squad hadn’t beaten Arbroath in 14 games and almost four years.

However, the week before this December clash, Red Lichties legend Dick Campbell was relieved of his duties and a new era begun at Gayfield.

Imrie’s men were the side to first foot this era and they were the ideal gatecrashers as they wound up 2-1 winners in Angus as strikes from Lewis McGrattan and George Oakley’s late howitzer cancelled out David Gold’s second half leveler.

It was a game that had it all as the part-timer’s unbeaten streak would come to an end off the back of the return of fan-favourite Lewis Strapp, who had re-signed the day prior. But nobody knew what was about to ensue over the next three months as they closed the gap to ninth to just one point.

Morton 3, Ayr United 0 - cinch Championship

Ton ended up navigating the rest of December with two wins and two draws as they began to make their way up the table.

They lay in sixth place come the end of the year and were continuing to look up as far as the promotion play-off places.

However, when an under-fire Ayr United came to Cappielow to kick off 2024, nobody was expecting what was going to happen next as Ton blew away Lee Bullen’s men and in some style.

Robbie Muirhead’s second career hat-trick made sure the former Killie kid was the talk of Somerset Road and Sinclair Street as he made it a whopping six games unbeaten in all competitions.

His first half header was a well-timed piece of poachers finishing, but the distinct calls of ‘don’t hit it’ were heard as far as Paisley when he charged down the left hand side and cut in onto his right foot.

However, everyone knew about the ball rocketing into the top right corner from 22-yards out before he made sure of taking home the match ball with a smart drive from a similar distance just ten minutes later.

It was a statement win that firmly now had Imrie’s men looking at a top half finish, but this run had a few more gems left in it yet.

Dundee United 2, Morton 3 - cinch Championship

Just seven days later, Morton headed to Tannadice with the wind in their sails and their confidence sky high following Robbie Muirhead’s perfect hat-trick just four days prior.

What was about to follow, nobody could’ve envisaged in the City of Discovery.

George Oakley had Imrie’s side two goals to the good inside half an hour at Tannadice against all the odds with two delicate finishes, firstly with his head and then with his left foot.

Despite a late first half collapse that saw United fight back to level the game before the break, Oakley would defy all the odds in the closing stages as he leathered the ball into the top right corner with his right foot to make it back-to-back perfect hat-tricks for the Cappielow men.

It was a second statement win in four days as the full division were now fully aware of just how powerful this free-scoring Morton side could be.

Dunfermline 0, Morton 5 - cinch Championship

February soon came around and Morton were once again on the road, in some style.

Their last trip to East End Park was a sore one with a 3-1 defeat and the loss of multiple players to injury.

But this game saw Ton roll over the Fifer’s with relative ease as goals from Jack Baird, Darragh O’Connor and Michael Garrity sealed a memorable 5-0 thumping in Dunfermline to consolidate Ton’s place in the promotion play offs.

Morton 2, Motherwell 1 - Scottish Cup fifth round

Around 5,000 people packed into Cappielow to see Motherwell come to Inverclyde for the first time in a decade and they weren’t disappointed in this tie as Robbie Muirhead and George Oakley ripped the roof off the place.

Discipline, power and determination were the orders of the day and boy, did Ton not disappoint to book their place in the quarter final.