One of the side effects of the Bosman ruling that allows footballers aged 23 and over to change clubs at the end of their contract without the need for compensation to be paid has undoubtedly been a reduction in ‘one club men.’
These players would spend season after season at one club, becoming part of their folklore and often being rewarded with a testimonial for their loyalty and dedication. In the 1960s and 1970s, John Greig of Rangers and Billy McNeill of Celtic were high profile examples of such men, with the 1970s and 1980s seeing Willie Miller drive Aberdeen forward to success in Scotland and Europe.
There were other examples at clubs that never got the chance to lift the silverware the aforementioned trio did, with Alan Ball keeping goal on nearly 750 occasions for Queen of the South and Dave Clarke, who holds the appearance record for East Fife, playing 617 games for the Fifers in a near 20 year spell that started in 1968.
The Bosman ruling, which has now been in place for 15 years, came after the careers of Greig, McNeill, Miller, Ball and Clarke and at a time where fans now seem to have a new ‘hero’ every season. However, Morton’s David MacGregor has proven that the ‘one club man’ has not totally disappeared.
This month marks the player’s tenth anniversary of first playing in the Cappielow senior team and it would be fair to say that it has not all been plain sailing at the Tail of the Bank since MacGregor signed as a schoolboy in 1998.
Firstly, it is not only players who move around frequently these days, as MacGregor has worked with 11 different Managers at Greenock, has been on a journey from the First Division to the Second Division to the Third Division and back up again and he has also seen off injuries along the way.
MacGregor said, “My first involvement with Morton was when I was 14 when I progressed from Boys Club Football to training there.
“I was born in Greenock but my family home was in Dunoon and I grew up there which meant that I spent a lot of time travelling backwards and forwards by ferry.
“Jim McAllister, who is now at Hamilton, was in Rothesay so the two of us would see a lot of each other as we began our careers at Morton.
“Billy Stark was the Manager when I signed as a schoolboy and he was still there when I signed professional forms in 1999. It had always been my dream to be a professional footballer as all I had done since I was a wee boy was kick a ball about so it was great to get signed.
“Billy left and Ian McCall came in but it was Allan Evans who gave me my debut in his brief spell in charge.”
Evans had won a European Cup winners’ medal with Aston Villa and played for Scotland at the 1982 World Cup in Spain and MacGregor reckons his short spell at Cappielow was of benefit to his fledgling career.
“You always pick things up from the Managers you work with and with Allan being a defender, he was good to me when I was young.”
That first appearance came against Livingston on 16th December, 2000 with the West Lothian side winning 2-1.
MacGregor said, “I played for the full game which was good and I played regularly until the end of the season with Ally Maxwell taking over after Allan Evans ended his short spell.”
The Tail of the Bank club was going through a difficult time when MacGregor came to the fore and problems surfaced off the pitch when they entered into Administration and on the pitch when they dropped down to the Second Division.
A takeover led by current Chairman Douglas Rae was successful in the summer of 2001 and MacGregor was one of the players recruited back to the club. Peter Cormack was appointed Manager, however it was a disappointing season that saw Cormack replaced by his assistant David McPherson and it was to end in further relegation.
MacGregor said, “We had a really small squad and a massive turnover of players and it all ended with us dropping down to the Third Division.
“I played a lot under Peter Cormack and than Dave McPherson but it was the guy that came in after them that got us moving in a different direction.”
The larger than life figure of John ‘Cowboy’ McCormack left Queen’s Park for Morton in November 2002 and made a huge impact on the defender.
MacGregor said, “John got this club going again in an upward way and Morton being in the First Division now can be traced back to John starting things off.”
MacGregor picked up a League Championship medal as Morton defeated Peterhead 1-0 on the last day of the 2002/03 season to pip East Fife, Albion Rovers and the Blue Toon side to the title.
It was a proud time for MacGregor who said, “Everyone starts their season looking to win the League and we did it. I had been through two relegations so to be going back up the way felt fantastic.”
The following season it looked like Morton were going to rocket their way all the way back to the First Division as quickly as they had come down as they topped the table from August to April. A final disastrous month saw the Greenock men lose five of their last six games to drop down the table to fourth.
“We got off to a flyer,” said MacGregor before adding, “We ran out of steam and Airdrie overtook us as we fell away. It was a huge disappointment as our form just deserted us.”
McCormack left the club in September 2004 after just five games of the new season and Jim McInally came on board to steer the club into third place which, of course, would now be good enough for a promotion Play-Off place.
In season 2004/05, Stranraer were automatically promoted in second place one point ahead of McInally’s side.
Although it was disappointment on the field, Morton had turned it around off the field with MacGregor saying, “During John’s time and then when Jim came in, the club was much more stable. Everything off the field was great and we remained ambitious in getting back to the First Division.”
The following season saw the introduction of the Play-Off format and ironically, it worked against Morton who finished second to a big spending Gretna side.
MacGregor explained what happened, “We played third placed Peterhead in the Semi-Final and had a goalless draw at our place but lost out to a penalty in the game at Balmoor.”
“What a terrible way to end your season. It was a long journey home knowing that we had failed but It made us all the more determined to go out again and win the League the following season and that is what we did.”
Season 2006/07 saw Morton hit the front early and stay there with an eight point gap over second placed Stirling Albion seeing McInally’s men pick up the League flag.
It was a second League Championship medal for MacGregor who said, “Winning the Third Division was really exciting and, of course, it was new to me but winning the Second Division meant just as much as we had failed on the previous three occasions. It was a mixture of elation and relief at the end of that season.
“Chris Millar came in half way through our season in the Third Division but I was the only player that had moved down and then back up the three SFL divisions.
“Backroom staff like Andy Bryan have been there all along as well but I was the last man standing from our First Division days.”
Survival in the First Division was secured with two consecutive 3-0 wins at the end of the following season with David Irons now in the managerial hot chair. A mid table place in a squashed together First Division table followed the next season with MacGregor experiencing another managerial change last season as James Grady took over from Irons.
There was a brief flirtation with relegation before Ayr were defeated on the final day of last season to secure eighth place to leave MacGregor summing up the three year stay in the First Division by saying, “I would like to think we have consolidated as a First Division side. We have never really challenged to get to the SPL and had a few wee relegation scares but hopefully, that is behind us now.”
Allan Moore came in to take charge during the summer and MacGregor has been impressed saying, “It was great when Allan came in with a three year contract as that gives the club a great deal of stability compared to things I have experienced in the past.
“He is a bubbly character and that rubs off on us and he is also an ambitious Manager. Hopefully, he will be the man that gets us challenging at the top half of the table.
“We have been a bit inconsistent and lost a few games when we have played well and won others when we have had to grind things out.
“It is a tight, tight division but if you go on a wee run of good results, you can really change your season.”
The defender, however, found himself in a position he knew well in that he had to prove his fitness to a new boss to get a new contract. A broken leg, ankle injury and a hernia operation have taken large chunks out of the defender’s playing stats however, each time MacGregor has bounced back.
The 29-year-old said, “Injuries are the worst part of the job. It is disappointing when you lose a game but lengthy injuries leave you feeling worse. You have to work hard mentally and physically to come back better and stronger.
“I worked hard this pre-season to get a new deal under Allan and Mark McNally and I proved my fitness to them. It is annoying when people think you are permanently injured and I was happy to prove myself as I did not want a new deal just because I had been here for a while.”
Needless to say, ‘Lady Luck’ decided that MacGregor was doing too well and he was injured in the first League game this season against Stirling Albion.
He explained, “I had a right good pre-season and then took a sore one on my ankle and that was me out for the next two months. I am back playing now and beginning to feel as strong as I did at the start of the season.
The only blemish in the return to playing has been the sending off at Dumbarton a couple of weeks ago in the Scottish Cup. However, with the next round four weeks away, a suspension will wait until then although the weather has MacGregor’s heels cooling at the weekend.
“You never want to miss any games,” said MacGregor before adding, “And I was hoping for a good run in the team until being forced to drop out.
“The cup is on the back burner just now and hopefully, the boys can get through against Airdrie or Beith and I can play in the next round.”
MacGregor’s dedication to the blue and white Morton colours is to be rewarded with a Testimonial however, he talks about the recognition modestly saying, “I believe a Testimonial Committee is getting formed and we will take things from there.
“I have lived the dream of being a football player so anything else is a bonus.”
.png){kind=logo}
