Greenock Morton F.C.

Greenock Morton F.C.
Full name Greenock Morton Football Club
Nickname(s) The Ton[1]
Founded 1874 (1874) (as Morton F.C.)[2]
Ground Cappielow Park
Sinclair Street
Greenock
Ground Capacity 11,589[3] (5,741 seated)
Chairman Douglas Rae
Manager Jim Duffy
League Scottish Championship
2014–15 Scottish League One, 1st (Champions)
Website Club home page

Greenock Morton Football Club are a Scottish professional football club, who as the current champions of Scottish League One play in the Scottish Championship in 2015–16. The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest senior Scottish clubs. Morton were renamed as Greenock Morton in 1994 to celebrate the links with its home town of Greenock.

Morton won the Scottish Cup in 1922, and achieved their highest league finish in 1916–17, finishing as runners-up to champions Celtic.

Morton holds the record for the most promotions and relegations into the top flight (10 promotions and 10 relegations), however they have never competed in the Scottish Premier League or the current Scottish Premiership, having last competed in 1988 in the old Scottish Football League Premier Division.

In season 2014–15, Morton won their tenth league title as they won the Scottish League One on the final day.

History

19th century

Morton Football Club was established in 1874.[2] In the early 1870s the popularity of football was growing, with many clubs being established around Scotland. At the club's inaugural meeting, the first recorded words were "that this club be called Morton Football Club".[2] The true reason for the name 'Morton' remains unclear, though the general consensus is that the club was named after the 'Morton Terrace', a row of houses next to the original playing field, where some of the players lived.[2] The name would be altered in 1994 to read 'Greenock Morton Football Club', to celebrate the club's links with its hometown, though they are still almost universally referred to as 'Morton'.

Morton were one of the founding members of the old Second Division, formed in 1893. They finished 8th in their first season. Morton first gained promotion to the old First Division in 1899–1900, and finished 4th in their first season there.

20th century

Morton's greatest success came when they defeated Rangers 1–0 in the 1922 Scottish Cup Final. Jimmy Gourlay scored the winning goal, direct from a free kick in the 11th minute. Straight after the match Morton boarded a train for Hartlepool to play the local side in a pre-arranged friendly match. The celebrations were delayed until the Wednesday when 10,000 locals turned out at Cappielow Park to celebrate.

Morton have made two other major cup final appearances. On Saturday 17 April 1948, Morton drew 1–1 with Rangers in the Scottish Cup Final.[4] Morton's goal was a free kick scored by Jimmy White. The match was replayed on Wednesday 21 April. This time Rangers won 1–0 after extra time. The goal was said to be highly controversial because it was claimed that Morton goalkeeper Jimmy Cowan was blinded by the flash of a camera.[5] These matches were significant because of the huge crowds they attracted. The first match was played in front of 132,629; the replay in front of 133,750, which was, at the time a British record attendance for a midweek match.[6]

Morton's third and final major cup final to date was in the League Cup and this was played on Saturday 26 October 1963 when Rangers (who Morton have faced in all three final appearances) won by 5 goals to nil[7](HT: 0–0) in front of 106,000 supporters.

During the Second World War 'guest' players were common at clubs throughout Great Britain. Morton were particularly fortunate in this respect in that two of English football's greatest ever players turned out at Cappielow. Sir Stanley Matthews[8] and Tommy Lawton[9] made several guest appearances for Morton. When Morton reached the 1948 Scottish Cup Final both players sent telegrams wishing good luck to their former club. Matthews simply said 'I am delighted to see Morton reach the final of the Scottish Cup'. Lawton's was more expressive, he said 'Memories of happy days during the war at Cappielow compel me to wish the Morton manager & the boys all the best of luck in their cup final at Hampden'.

To date Morton have played in a European Club Competition once. After finishing 6th in Scotland's top division in 1967–68 Morton qualified for the European Inter-Cities Fairs Cup (now the UEFA Europa League). They were drawn to play Chelsea but were eliminated at the first hurdle after a 5–0 defeat at Stamford Bridge and a 4–3 defeat at Cappielow.[10]

In 1992–93 Morton lost 3–2 to Hamilton Academical in the Scottish Challenge Cup Final[11] in front of 7,391 fans. The final was played at Love Street, the home of Morton's arch rivals St. Mirren.

21st century

After experiencing financial problems the team was relegated from the First Division at the end of the 2000–01 season after a 6-year stay and was put into administration. The club's financial problems continued and a second successive relegation followed the next season. In season 2002–03, Morton's first ever season in the Third Division, the club's financial situation was resolved by the takeover by chairman Douglas Rae. Rae appointed John McCormack as manager,[12] and the team won the Third Division championship at the first attempt, confirming their position with a 1–0 victory over Peterhead in front of a then Third Division record crowd of 8,497 people.

After a strong start to the 2003–04 season the team fell away after the turn of the year, and finished in 4th place, well outside the promotion places. This came after being 12 points ahead in the Championship race at the half way stage. This led to unfounded allegations that some players had placed large bets on nearest rivals Airdrie United to win the league, which they eventually did.[13]

Jim McInally was announced as McCormack's successor,[14] and in his first season as manager the club failed to gain promotion to the First Division by a single point, finishing behind Stranraer in 3rd place.

Morton failed to gain promotion to the First Division during the 2005–06 season. Finishing 2nd was not enough, as the SFL playoffs meant that only the championship-winning team would be promoted automatically. Gretna won the division, so Morton entered play-offs alongside Peterhead (3rd), Partick Thistle (4th), and Stranraer (9th in Division One.) Morton's first play-off match was against Peterhead, and the Greenock side were defeated 1–0 over two legs, the only goal a penalty in the second match at Balmoor.[15]

The following season, a week after a 9–1 defeat of Forfar Athletic at Cappielow Park,[16] Morton achieved promotion to the First Division,[17] and went on to become Second Division Champions.[18]

Jim McInally resigned on 11 February 2008[19] after a run of poor results allowed Morton to slip into 9th place in the First Division and was replaced by Davie Irons, with Derek Collins joining him as Assistant Manager.[20] Morton battled relegation for most of the season and survived on the final day with a 3–0 victory against Partick Thistle, to avoid the relegation playoff by a single goal. Irons was sacked in September 2009 and replaced October by James Grady, until the end of the season.[21] Grady was removed from the club in May 2010,[22] and replaced by Allan Moore.[23] Allan Moore was sacked after a 5–1 defeat at home to Livingston on 23 November 2013. His replacement Kenny Shiels was given a contract until the end of season 2014–2015, but failed to reverse the slide towards relegation from the Scottish Championship, which became a reality on 12 April 2014 after a 2–0 away defeat by Alloa Athletic. Shiels resigned after a 10–2 defeat by Hamilton Accies.[24]

After the resignation of Shiels, Jim Duffy was appointed as manager. He won the Scottish League One to return the club the Championship at the first time of asking.[25] This league victory earned Morton's tenth league title, making them the third most crowned league champions in Scotland behind Rangers and Celtic.

Colours

The team's home strip is traditionally a blue and white hooped shirt with white shorts and white socks, though season 2006–07 saw the team playing a blue and white striped shirt with white shorts and blue socks. Short-lived yet distinctive designs have been used over the years, including sky blue and white stripes in the style of the Argentine national team and even a blue Morton tartan. The away strip tends to vary much more; for the 2003–04 season it was an all yellow outfit, changing in 2004–05 to all white, which in turn became the 3rd team strip in 2005–06, with the special re-issue of the blue Morton tartan strip. The sponsor's logo on the strip is that of Millions, a brand owned by the Club Chairman's confectionery concern, Golden Casket (Greenock) Ltd.[26]

Stadium

Main article: Cappielow
Cappielow Park

Their stadium is Cappielow Park in Greenock, a ground they have occupied since 1879. Cappielow's etymology is allegedly of Scandinavian origin, although details of this are sketchy. The current capacity is 11,589,[3] with 5,741 of these being seated. In December 2008, Morton purchased the Reid Kerr sponsored East stand from local rivals St. Mirren for £50,000, to improve the away end at Cappielow.[27]

The area currently behind the western goal (upon which the new stand will be built) is known as the Wee Dublin End, which contains non-backed bench seating, converted from the old terracing that once stood there. The main stand contains plastic bucket seating to replace the old wooden benches that were a fixture of the ground until the late 1990s. The "Cowshed" lies to the north of the pitch; formerly a fully terraced arena for both home and away supporters (complete with segregation fence down the middle), it is now for home supporters only, with much of the frontal terracing removed, and plastic bucket seats occupying its place. The segregation fence no longer exists, and the whole area is used by home supporters. Behind the eastern goal is the "Sinclair Street" end, with uncovered terracing.

Supporters

Greenock Morton have several supporters' clubs, based in Greenock and the surrounding towns. The main clubs are The Andy Ritchie Travel Club, The Prince of Wales Travel Club, The Greenock Morton Supporters Club, The Albert Hotel Morton Supporters Club and The Spinnaker Hotel Supporters Club.[28][29]

League participation

Honours

National honours

Minor honours

¹ Known as Division II at the time
² Known as Division I at the time
³ Known as SPFL League One at the time

Records

Players

As of 13 February 2016

First team squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 Scotland GK Derek Gaston
2 Scotland DF Lee Kilday (vice-captain)
3 Scotland DF Ricki Lamie
4 Scotland DF Thomas O'Ware
5 Scotland DF Frank McKeown
6 Scotland DF Michael Miller
7 Scotland MF Joe McKee
8 Scotland MF Ross Forbes
9 Scotland FW Denny Johnstone (on loan from Birmingham City)
10 Scotland FW Peter MacDonald (captain)
No. Position Player
11 Scotland FW Stefan McCluskey
12 Scotland FW Jon Scullion
14 Scotland MF Michael Tidser
15 Republic of Ireland MF Conor Pepper
16 Scotland MF Bobby Barr
17 Scotland DF Mark Russell
18 Wales FW Alex Samuel (on loan from Swansea City)
19 Canada DF Luca Gasparotto (on loan from Rangers)
20 Scotland GK Andrew McNeil
21 Scotland FW Declan McManus (on loan from Fleetwood Town)

Development squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
26 Scotland FW Jordan Cairnie (on loan to East Stirlingshire)
27 Scotland DF Luke Irvine
28 Scotland MF Jai Quitongo
29 Scotland DF Ruaridh Langan
30 Scotland GK Jamie McGowan
31 Scotland FW Alex McWaters
No. Position Player
32 Scotland DF John Mitchell
34 Scotland FW Thomas Orr (on loan to East Stirlingshire)
35 Scotland MF Dylan Stevenson (on loan to Berwick Rangers)
36 Scotland DF John Tennent
37 Scotland FW Scott Tiffoney
38 Scotland DF Lewis Strapp

Current squad statistics

League Appearances (current squad)

  • Only players over 10 league appearances
Name Games
Scotland Michael Tidser 118
Scotland Derek Gaston 95
Scotland Thomas O'Ware 94
Scotland Peter MacDonald 77
Scotland Lee Kilday 59
Scotland Mark Russell 58
Scotland Joe McKee 51
Republic of Ireland Conor Pepper 46
Scotland Stefan McCluskey 45
Scotland Ricki Lamie 42
Scotland Michael Miller
Scotland Ross Forbes		 38
Scotland Declan McManus 37
Scotland Bobby Barr
Scotland Denny Johnstone		 22
Wales Alex Samuel 18
Scotland Jon Scullion 17
Canada Luca Gasparotto 12

League goals (current squad)

Name Goals
Scotland Peter MacDonald 29
Scotland Declan McManus 21
Scotland Stefan McCluskey 10
Scotland Michael Tidser 9
Scotland Thomas O'Ware
Scotland Denny Johnstone		 7
Scotland Joe McKee 4
Scotland Lee Kilday
Scotland Mark Russell		 3
Republic of Ireland Conor Pepper
Scotland Jon Scullion
Scotland Ross Forbes
Wales Alex Samuel		 2
Scotland Michael Miller
Scotland Bobby Barr		 1

Player records

All statistics are for league games, post-World War II.[34]

As of 7 May 2013

Top goalscorers

# Name Career Apps Goals
1 Scotland Allan McGraw 1961–66 136 117
2 Scotland Andy Ritchie 1976–83 213 100
3 Scotland Rowan Alexander 1986–95 310 98
4 England Peter Weatherson 2003–13 322 94
5 Scotland Tommy Orr 1946–58 257 86
6 Scotland Eddie Beaton 1956–60 110 83
Scotland Derek Lilley 1991–97
2005–07		 232 83
8 Scotland Joe Mason 1966–73 186 76
9 Scotland Alec Linwood 1951–55 101 72
10 Scotland John McNeil 1975–91 328 67

Most appearances

# Name Career Apps
1 Scotland Derek Collins 1987–99
2001–05		 534
2 Scotland David Wylie 1985–99 482
3 Scotland Jim Holmes 1976–88 437
4 Scotland Davie Hayes 1970–84 353
5 Scotland John McNeil 1975–91 328
6 England Peter Weatherson 2003–13 322
7 Scotland Rowan Alexander 1986–95 310
8 Scotland George Anderson 1969–81
1985–87		 280
9 England Roy Baines 1972–77
1978–83		 271
10 Scotland Tommy Orr 1946–58 257

Top league goalscorers by season (post war)

In progress

Season Name Goals Division
1946–47 Ross Henderson 10 Premier Division
1947–48 Tommy Orr 14 Premier Division
1948–49 Neil Mochan 13 Premier Division
1949–50 Neil Mochan 24 First Division
1950–51 Neil Mochan 20 Premier Division
1951–52 Alec Linwood 19 Premier Division
1952–53 Bob Gibson
Alec Linwood		 17 First Division
1953–54 Alec Linwood
John Hannigan		 22 First Division
1954–55 Alec Linwood 14 First Division
1955–56 Bob Gibson 33 First Division
1956–57 Eddie Beaton 18 First Division
1957–58 Eddie Beaton 25 First Division
1958–59 Eddie Beaton 33 First Division
1959–60 Charlie Stewart 11 First Division
1960–61 Billy Craig 11 First Division
1961–62 Allan McGraw 16 First Division
1962–63 Allan McGraw 29 First Division
1963–64 Allan McGraw 51 First Division
1964–65 Allan McGraw 12 Premier Division
1965–66 Allan McGraw
David Watson		 8 Premier Division
1966–67 Joe Harper 29 First Division
1967–68 Joe Mason 15 Premier Division
1968–69 Joe Harper 25 Premier Division
1969–70 Billy Osborne 11 Premier Division
1970–71 Joe Mason 9 Premier Division
1971–72 Donald Gillies 9 Premier Division
1972–73 Donald Gillies 14 Premier Division
1973–74 Hugh McIlmoyle 8 Premier Division
1974–75 John Hazel 6 Premier Division
1975–76 John Goldthorpe
Ian Harley
Richard Sharp		 22 First Division
1976–77 Andy Ritchie 22 First Division
1977–78 John Goldthorpe
Andy Ritchie		 20 First Division
1978–79 Andy Ritchie 22 Premier Division
1979–80 Andy Ritchie 19 Premier Division
1980–81 Andy Ritchie 8 Premier Division
1981–82 Andy Ritchie 6 Premier Division
1982–83 James Rooney 7 Premier Division
1983–84 John McNeil 17 First Division
1984–85 James Gillespie 5 Premier Division
1985–86 John McNeil 14 First Division
1986–87 Rowan Alexander 23 First Division
1987–88 Jimmy Boag 8 Premier Division
1988–89 Rowan Alexander 11 First Division
1989–90 Rowan Alexander 11 First Division
1990–91 Dave McCabe 21 First Division
1991–92 Alex Mathie 18 First Division
1992–93 Alex Mathie 13 First Division
1993–94 Rowan Alexander 11 First Division
1994–95 Derek Lilley 16 Second Division
1995–96 Derek Lilley 14 First Division
1996–97 Derek Lilley 15 First Division
1997–98 Warren Hawke 10 First Division
1998–99 Kevin Thomas 9 First Division
1999–2000 Harry Curran 9 First Division
2000–01 Ross Matheson 9 First Division
2001–02 Scott Bannerman 8 Second Division
2002–03 Alex Williams 23 Third Division
2003–04 Peter Weatherson
Alex Williams		 15 Second Division
2004–05 Chris Millar
Peter Weatherson		 10 Second Division
2005–06 Derek Lilley 12 Second Division
2006–07 Peter Weatherson 15 Second Division
2007–08 Peter Weatherson 9 First Division
2008–09 Peter Weatherson
Brian Wake		 9 First Division
2009–10 Peter Weatherson 10 First Division
2010–11 Allan Jenkins 8 First Division
2011–12 Peter MacDonald 10 First Division
2012–13 Peter MacDonald 14 First Division
2013–14 Dougie Imrie 9 Championship
2014–15 Declan McManus (on loan from Aberdeen) 20 League One
2015–16 Denny Johnstone (on loan from Birmingham City) 7 Championship

National Player Honours

Recent internationals

The last player to earn a full international cap whilst playing for Morton – Fouad Bachirou for Comoros in 2014.[35]

Notable players

To be included in this list players must have met one of the following criteria...

  • Played over 100 league games for Morton
  • Scored in a national Cup final
  • Managed the club after playing for them
  • Been from a nation outwith the British Isles
  • Won full international honours

Scottish Football Hall of Fame

Ex-Morton players who have been inducted into the Scottish Football Hall of Fame are listed below.


For all Greenock Morton players with a Wikipedia article, see Category:Greenock Morton F.C. players.

Non-playing staff

Boardroom

Name Role
Scotland Douglas RaeChairman
Scotland Gillian DonaldsonChief Executive
Scotland Crawford RaeDirector
Scotland Nick RobinsonDirector
England Warren HawkeDirector

Management

Name Role
Scotland Jim DuffyManager
Scotland Craig McPhersonAssistant Manager
Scotland David WylieGoalkeeping Coach
Scotland Peter MacDonaldPlayer/Coach
England Warren HawkeDevelopment Officer
Scotland Derek AndersonHead of Youth Development
Scotland Andy MillenDevelopment Squad Manager
Scotland Derek Allan
Scotland Sandy MacLean
Scotland Ross Peebles-Brown 		Under 17 Coaches

Managers

This list does not contain caretaker managers such as David Hopkin or Joe McLaughlin.

Scottish Cup Record

Morton first entered the Scottish Cup in season 1877/1878, and won it once in 1922. Over the course of Morton's time in the competition it has changed format seven times, to its current format of 8 rounds and 2 preliminary rounds.

  • Between 2012/13 and 2014/15 there were 8 rounds plus a preliminary round.
  • Between 2007/08 and 2011/12 there were 8 rounds.
  • Between 1970/71 and 2006/07 there were 7 rounds.
  • Between 1957/58 and 1969/70 there were 5 rounds plus a preliminary round.
  • Between 1954/55 and 1956/57 there were 9 rounds.
  • Between 1912/13 and 1953/54 there were 6 rounds.
  • Between 1895/96 and 1911/12 there were 5 rounds.

So far Morton have finished the competition in the following rounds, this many times.

  • Finals – 2 (last 1948)
  • Semi-finals – 5 (last 1981)
  • 1/4 finals – 13 (last 1999)

European record

Season Competition Round Opponent Home Away Aggregate
1968–69 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup First round England Chelsea 3–4 0–5 3–9

References

  1. ↑ "Club Info". Greenock Morton F.C.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Club History". Greenock Morton F.C. Retrieved 11 November 2009.
  3. 1 2 "Greenock Morton Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2013.
  4. ↑ "1946–1970 A Historic Treble". Rangers F.C. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  5. ↑ "GREENOCK MORTON FOOTBALL CLUB – THE PRIDE OF THE CLYDE". 188-football.co.uk. 7 May 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  6. ↑ Halliday, Stephen (15 April 2006). "Goal feats of understudy 'Sailor' Williamson saw him chart course into Ibrox folklore". The Scotsman. Retrieved 1 April 2010.
  7. ↑ "RALPH BRAND". Rangers F.C. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  8. ↑ Black, Jim (27 February 2000). "Morton add to Clydebank woes". Sunday Herald. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  9. ↑ "England Player Profile". englandfc.com. Retrieved 15 September 2008.
  10. ↑ "Battles of Britain: the full list". The Guardian. 31 October 2002. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  11. ↑ "History of Hamilton Academical FC". acciesyouth.sports.officelive.com. 10 July 2005. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  12. ↑ "Morton appoint McCormack". BBC Sport. 20 November 2002. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  13. ↑ Parks, Gordon (17 December 2010). "I remember Morton squad bet on teammate to be first scorer in match, admits John McCormack". Daily Record. Retrieved 8 July 2012.
  14. ↑ "McInally named as Morton manager". BBC Sport. 22 October 2004. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  15. ↑ Broadley, Ian (7 May 2006). "STUFF YOUR PLAY-OFFS". Sunday Mirror. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  16. ↑ "Morton 9–1 Forfar Athletic". BBC Sport. 7 April 2007. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  17. ↑ "Raith Rovers 2–0 Morton". BBC Sport. 14 April 2007. Retrieved 5 September 2008.
  18. ↑ "Ayr United 3–2 Stirling Albion". BBC Sport. 14 April 2007. Retrieved 5 September 2008.
  19. ↑ "McInally resigns as Morton boss". BBC Sport. 12 February 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  20. ↑ "Irons quits Gretna for Morton job". BBC Sport. 19 February 2008. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  21. ↑ Graham, Roger (31 October 2009). "Grady and McManus get Ton job". Greenock Telegraph. Retrieved 31 October 2009.
  22. ↑ "Manager James Grady parts company with Morton". BBC Sport. 9 May 2010. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
  23. ↑ "Allan Moore eyes top flight with Morton". BBC Sport. 29 May 2010. Retrieved 22 August 2011.
  24. ↑ Mitchell, Jonathan (6 May 2014). "Kenny Shiels resigns as Morton manager". Greenock Telegraph. Retrieved 6 May 2014.
  25. ↑ "Morton are League 1 Champions". Scottish Professional Football League. 2 May 2015. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
  26. ↑ "Greenock Morton – Historical Football Kits". historicalkits.co.uk. Retrieved 3 September 2008.
  27. ↑ "MORTON Buy Stand From St Mirren". inverclydenow.com. 13 December 2008. Archived from the original on 19 December 2008. Retrieved 12 May 2009.
  28. ↑ "Supporters Clubs". Greenock Morton F.C. Retrieved 13 September 2008.
  29. ↑ "Home Page". gourock-morton-supporters.org.uk. Retrieved 16 September 2008.
  30. ↑ "War Fund Shield". Scottish Football Historical Archive. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  31. ↑ "Rangers win SFL Reserve League Championship". Scottish Professional Football League. 20 February 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2015.
  32. ↑ Mitchell, Jonathan. "Morton Under-17s save best for last". Greenock Telegraph.
  33. ↑ "Morton is Lilley's pad". The Scotsman. 30 July 2005. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  34. ↑ "Greenock Morton 1946–47–2007–08". newcastlefans.com.
  35. ↑ Mitchell, Jonathan (6 March 2014). "Bachirou's joy at international debut". Greenock Telegraph. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
  36. ↑ "2005". Scottish Football Museum. Retrieved 17 August 2011.
  37. ↑ "Nine hoisted into Scotland's proud Hall of Fame". The Scotsman. 12 November 2007. Retrieved 11 November 2013.

External links

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