MORTON - TEAM OF THE ROUND
It did not take recently installed Morton Manager, Allan Moore, long to pick up a trophy for the Greenock club as his side’s First Round 7-1 demolition of Stranraer was more than enough for them to lift The Co-operative Insurance Cup Team of the Round Trophy.
The former Stirling Albion Championship winning boss had seen his side draw a blank the week before in a goalless ALBA Challenge Cup tie at Dumbarton before progressing in a penalty shoot-out however, it was raining goals at the Third Division side’s Stair Park ground the following week.
Moore explained how his side managed to win an award in only the second game of his tenure at Cappielow by saying, “Everything just clicked into place that day.
“We had been struggling for goals in pre-season games and against Dumbarton in The ALBA Challenge Cup but we put that right at Stair Park.”
There was no sign of a lop sided game in the opening exchanges with Moore saying, “For the first 25 minutes, Stranraer were giving as good as they got but that all changed with Stewart Kean’s first goal. After we went in front, we started to relax as things started to open up for us.”
Fellow summer signing, Graeme Holmes, joined Kean in scoring his first goal for the Greenock side before half-time and, in the second period, Kean completed a hat-trick with front man Peter Weatherson grabbing two goals. Another new recruit, Kevin Kelbie, also scored to take the goal count up to a magnificent seven.
Stuart McColm grabbed a consolation for Keith Knox’s side with Moore jokingly adding, “We never scored in the two League games after that win at Stranraer and the Chairman was saying that we should have saved some of the Stranraer goals for our League games.”
Moore won in the First Division as Morton boss on Saturday for the first time as his side defeated Partick Thistle 2-0 and despite Kean scoring in that game as well, he is not guaranteed a starting place against St. Johnstone on Tuesday night.
Moore said, “The day we scored seven at Stranraer, we started with Kean and Weatherson up front and brought Kelbie on.
“I am still experimenting on that front line as I am really keen to get it right. That does not involve just these guys but involves the wide men as well as we need proper delivery into the box.”
The trip to Perth for the Second Round of The Co-operative Insurance Cup sees Moore return to a ground he knows well having been a player at McDiarmid Park for nearly four years.
He said, “We will go to Perth with confidence and look to enjoy it as it is a good stadium and a good playing surface. St. Johnstone performed well in the SPL last season but you never know, we may just surprise them.”
