Morton 2 Dunfermline 0

Saturday, 24th Jan 2015

SPFL League One: Three changes for the Pars - Michael Moffat, Andy Stirling and Andy Geggan start. Ross Caldwell (67) 1-0; MacDonald (81) 2-0

League One's only two full time clubs attracted live television but with the nation watching Dunfermline could not find the winning touch that has eluded them for too long now. Instead it was to be Morton's third win out of three out over the pre-season championship favourites.

Even given until the 5.30pm kick off at Cappielow, Ryan Wallace did not pass the late fitness test and with Gregor Buchanan suspended John Potter made three changes to his starting eleven. Allan Smith and Jim Paterson dropped out while in came Michael Moffat, Andy Stirling and Andy Geggan who returned having served a two match ban.

Morton made two changes Derek Gaston being preferred to Grant Adam in goals and former Hibs and St Mirren player Ross Caldwell coming in for Jamie McCluskey.

The hosts kicked off at Cappielow with Pars in red shirts and black shorts attacking goal at the west end. It was a poor pass back by Ricki Lamie in third minute that gave his keeper a fright and Michael Moffat was unlucky that his charge down on the edge of the box rebounded to the right of target.

Morton stormed forward and there were appeals for a fifth minute penalty when Stefan McCluskey's ball into the box from the left appeared to make contact with Ross Millen's arm. A free kick from the left then caused the Pars defence some concern but Millen shielded the ball back to Ryan Scully. Then Peter MacDonald powered down a cross from Lee Kilday but his header bounced over the crossbar.

Ross Forbes tried a pop at goal but was high of target after Kyle McAusland had headed out McCluskey's 14th minute cross. Next minute the Pars fans broke into song but it was just to cheer a shot and not a goal. Moffat broke through the middle fighting off the challenge of Tom O'Ware but sending his shot rolling past the left post.

Next minute Moffat was provider pulling the ball back from the right byeline for Geggan to prod at goal but his effort also slipped past that left upright. Barrowman won the first corner of the game in 25 minutes but Morton caused their own problems from Stirling's delivery in from the right, conceding a second from the other side and that was cleared again without a Dunfermline player touching the ball.

A Millen free kick from the left in 27 minutes narrowly escaped Geggan's header attempt and then Shaun Byrne and Moffat combined to make space in the box but Byrne's shot was blocked.

After Mark Russell's right footed shot was deflected behind Morton's first corner in 31st minute was a non event. Another for the Pars three minutes later was attacked by Geggan and McCluskey but only another corner was the outcome. Morton cleared that one but then let Stirling in for a loose shot that went wide right.

Morton threatened when Kilday cut back for Joe McKee but Stirling blocked that. Then the ball was kept out at the far post when O'Ware rose to get his head on a corner. Five minutes from the break, Millen's free kick sneaked through to Gaston despite efforts from both sides to connect.

There was one final good chance to take from the first half, Stirling swung over from a 45th minute corner and Geggan's header dropped to the left of the Morton goal. All square at the break but a good first half from the Pars. The half time stats showed 44% to Morton's 56% but both sides had five shots at goal with the visitors having six corners to the home siodes' two.

Half time: Morton 0 Dunfermline 0

Moffat and Barrowman got the second period underway but it was Ross Forbes who tried the first shot at goal in 48 minutes but he pulled that across the face of goal. McCluskey followed that up with a strong 30 yarder than Scully took at his second attempt.

Stirling broke up the left and exchanged passes with Moffat and when the ball was played high into the box Barrowman was denied a header on goal by O'Ware. Moffat had his 52nd minute shot from the edge of the box blocked and then Barrowman deflected the ball on target only for Gaston to gather.

Byrne was shown a yellow card for the third time this season but this looked more of a slip by his opponent than a bad challenge. Lamie fouled Stirling and another Pars free kick 35 yards out allowed Millen to fire the ball into the box where again Geggan came close to serious connection.

A Kilday run set up McCluskey for a great opportunity and although his shot beat Scully McAusland was behind him to clear. The home side had forced the Fifers deeper and deeper and McAusland was called upon again but the Pars broke and won a corner, unfortunately that caused their downfall. Morton broke and CALDWELL made a good job of finishing to the bottom left. Not bad for a player wearing borrowed boots - he left St Mirren so abruptly that he left his boots behind! 1-0

Faissal El Bakhtaoui had replaced Andy Stirling just before the goal and the sub was blocked out at his first attempt at goal. Barrowman's header at the far post was just kept out as Dunfermline turned up the pressure.

In 76 minutes McCluskey broke clear of Millen and he threaded the ball through for MacDonald with Scully coming out towards him. The Morton player spilled in the box but referee Alan Muir saw that not as a penalty but as a yellow card for simulation.

As Dunfermline tried hard for an equaliser the game opened up and play was pretty fluid. It was on the break that Morton scored a second. Forbes raced away out of defence and sent Caldwell on with an accurate pass. As he reached the Pars box he released the ball left for MACDONALD and although Scully made an great attempt to keep it, found the net. 81 minutes gone and 2-0.

There was no way back for John Potter's team and as the game drew to an end it was the home side who were well on top. Geggan had one final chance for a consolation but his header on a Whittle cross slipped wide right. Seven games without a win, it was a long trip back to the Kingdom.

MORTON: Derek Gaston; Lee Kilday, Tom O'Ware, Ricki Lamie, Mark Russell; Michael Miller (Conor Pepper 64); Joe McKee, Ross Forbes, Stefan McCluskey; Peter MacDonald (c), Ross Caldwell (Sean Crighton 87).
SUBS NOT USED: Stefan Milojevic, Craig Knight, Aidan Ferris, Jordan Cairnie, Grant Adam (GK).
SCORERS: Caldwell (67), MacDonald (81)
YELLOW CARD: MacDonald (76)

DUNFERMLINE: Ryan Scully; Ross Millen, Lewis Martin, Kyle McAusland, Alex Whittle; Josh Falkingham (c), Shaun Byrne (Lewis Spence 84), Andy Geggan, Andy Stirling (Faissal El Bakhtaoui 66); Andy Barrowman, Michael Moffat.
SUBS NOT USED: Ryan Thomson, Jim Paterson, Allan Smith, Stuart Urquhart, Ryan Goodfellow (GK)
YELLOW CARD: Byrne (56)

REFEREE: Alan Muir
WEATHER: 5C Overcast
ATTENDANCE 1446

NEXT MATCH: SPFL League One (away) v Ayr United
Saturday 31st January 2015, kick off 3.00pm

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Preview Morton

Saturday, 24th Jan 2015

This match has a 5.30pm kick off for the benefit of live broadcast on BBC Alba.

The broadcaster was no doubt attracted to the fixture between the only two full time clubs in League One and following indifferent form from each, the match can rightly be termed a 'must win' for both sides title hopes.

Pars v Morton: The Full League Record
	P	W	D	L	F	A
At East End	44	24	9	11	86	50
At Cappielow	43	17	12	14	54	50
TOTALS	87	41	21	25	140	100

In 87 league meetings Dunfermline have won almost half, 21 have been drawn and Morton have won 25 but that includes both games already played this season. In September when Dunfermline travelled to Greenock they were top of the league. Morton striker Declan McManus opened the scoring in 29 minutes but when Ross Millen equalised from the penalty spot in 72 minutes hopes were renewed that a win was possible. Unfortunately those hopes lasted just four minutes until Connor Pepper scored the winner.

Alex Whittle and Shaun Byrne came into the team for the return just a month later and Faissal El Bakhtaoui put the Pars into a 1-0 lead early in the second half; Tom O'Ware equalised however with eleven minutes remaining and Declan McManus grabbed a 93rd minute winner.

Milestones v Morton (Away)
Last League Victory	13/04/13	1-0	First Div
Last League Defeat	20/09/14	1-2	League One
Best League Victory	11/12/99 23/08/88 25/11/67	3-0 3-0 3-0	Div 1 Prem League Div1*
Worst League Defeat	14/08/26 19/04/08	0-3 0-3	Div 1* First Div
*Pre league reconstruction

Only two wins over Morton in the last nine meetings is not a great record but both those wins were at Cappielow.

Last Twelve Matches v Morton
25/10/14	H	L	1-2	League One
20/09/14	A	L	1-2	League One
13/04/13	A	W	1-0	Scottish Division One
23/02/13	H	L	1-4	Scottish Division One
29/12/12	A	L	2-4	Scottish Division One
20/10/12	H	D	2-2	Scottish Division One
30/04/11	A	W	2-0	Scottish Division One
05/03/11	H	L	1-3	Scottish Division One
06/11/10	A	L	1-2	Scottish Division One
14/08/10	H	W	2-0	Scottish Division One
24/04/10	H	W	4-1	Scottish Division One
27/02/10	A	W	2-1	Scottish Division One

Both clubs were expected to have done better this season but in such a competitive League One more that half the teams in the league are still within touching distance of a play off place. The Pars have a game in hand on Morton but they are five points behind and really as matches come and go a win is essential for both their title hopes.

Morton	Dunfermline
Current League Position
2	5
League Points
35	30
Goal Difference
+7	+10
League Form
DLWLWD	LLLDDD
Home / AwayLeague Record
P10, W6, D1, L3	P9, W3, D2, L4

Recent Form

Since losing to Spartans in the Scottish Cup at the end of November, Morton have won only twice - away to the bottom two clubs Stenhousemuir and Stirling Albion - and have lost their last two home games. Dunfermline have only won three of their last fourteen games and their last away win was at Ayr on 10th October.

Form last six league matches
Morton (home)				Dunfermline (away)
Airdrieonians	L	1-2		Stirling Albion	D	2-2
Peterhead	L	0-1		Airdrieonians	L	0-3
Brechin City	D	2-2		Stranraer	D	2-2
Stenhousemuir	W	3-1		Stenhousemuir	L	0-1
Forfar Athletic	W	2-0		East Stirlingshire	W	4-1
Airdrieonians	D	0-0		Ayr United	W	1-0

Last Time Out

DUNFERMLINE (v Airdrieonians): Ryan Scully; Ross Millen, Gregor Buchanan, Lewis Martin, Jim Paterson (Andy Stirling 27 (Michael Moffat 70)); Josh Falkingham (c), Kyle McAusland, Shaun Byrne, Alex Whittle; Andy Barrowman, Allan Smith (Ryan Wallace 61).
SUBS NOT USED: Faissal El Bakhtaoui, Ryan Thomson, Lewis Spence, Ryan Goodfellow (GK)

MORTON (v Ayr United): Grant Adam; Lee Kilday, Tom O'Ware, Ricki Lamie, Mark Russell, Jamie McCluskey (Ross Caldwell 58), Michael Miller, Joe McKee, Ross Forbes, Peter MacDonald (Aidan Ferris 88), Stefan McCluskey.
SUBS NOT USED: Conor Pepper, Sean Crighton, Milojevic Bjekovic, Craig Knight, Derek Gaston

Andy Barrowman and Ross Forbes have changed sides in the last ten days and that will create an added interest in both camps.

Referee for the match will be Alan Muir.

Elsewhere the 3.00pm kick off will see
Airdrieonians v Stranraer
Brechin City v Peterhead
Stenhousemuir v Ayr
Stirling v Forfar

C'mon Ye Pars!

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